Abstract: Developing Yunnan copper was an important national policy for Qing Dynasty government. From the development of Yunnan copper we may find that the “hometown-land -farmer” structure could not self-adapt because of the fossilization of national policy and people’s minds and cultures under the agricultural cultures. The finance thought of Qing Dynasty’s central government is interpreted from the perspective of “agricultural China” based on the survey of policy of Yunnan copper to find that the essence of the finance thought was to maintain the lowest social need in the agricultural society. The development of Yunnan copper became the complementary to the land tax.

Key words: Qing Dynasty, Yunnan copper policy, morality and interests, finance thought