China and the Manchus

First published in 1912, Herbert Allen Giles provides in "China and the Manchus" a very short summary of the history of China under the Manchu rule. He covers the historical period from roughly the 17th Century to the start of the 20th Century and he does so in a very efficient, if brief manner.

Giles provides an overview of how the Manchus became an influence and a danger on the borders of China, how they found themselves in a position to take over from the Ming Dynasty and how they maintained themselves in power until the 20th Century.
He provides both a broad historical sweep of events as well as various ethnographic details such as differences in hairstyle and footwear habits between the Manchus and the Chinese.