Zhengtong_Emperor

Zhengtong Emperor

Zhengtong Emperor

Family name:	Zhu (朱)
Given name:	Qizhen (祁鎮)
Emperor of China (1st time)
Dates of reign:	February 7, 1435–September 1, 1449¹
Era name:	Zhengtong (正統)
Era dates	January 18, 1436–January 13, 1450
Emperor of China (2nd time)
Dates of reign:	February 11, 1457–February 23, 1464
Era name:	Tianshun (天順)
Era dates	February 15, 1457–January 26, 1465
Temple name:	Yingzong (英宗)
Posthumous name: (short)	Emperor Rui (睿皇帝)
Posthumous name: (full)	Emperor Fatian Lidao Renming Chengjing Zhaowen Xianwu Zhide Guangxiao Rui 法天立道仁明誠敬昭文憲武至德廣孝睿皇帝
General note: Dates given here are in the Julian calendar. They are not in the proleptic Gregorian calendar.
———
1. Captured by the Mongols, he was succeeded by his brother Jingtai who conferred on him the title Taishang Huang (太上皇), a title reserved for the retired emperors and which he held until 1457.

Zhu Qizhen (Cheng-t'ung) (November 29, 1427 – February 23, 1464) was an emperor of the Ming Dynasty. He ruled as the Zhengtong Emperor from 1435 to 1449, and as the Tianshun Emperor from 1457 to 1464.

First Reign

Zhu Qizhen was the son of the Xuande Emperor Zhu Zhanji and his Empress Sun. At the beginning of Zhengtong's reign, the Ming dynasty was prosperous and at the height of its power as a result of Xuande Emperor's able administration. Zhengtong's accession at the age of eight makes him the first child emperor of the dynasty hence Zhengtong was easily influenced by others, namely his eunuch Wang Zhen. Zhengtong thoroughly relied on Zhen for advice and guidance.

Imprisonment by the Mongols

At the age of 22, in 1449, he was imprisoned by the Mongols when, advised by Wang Zhen, he personally directed and lost the Battle of Tumu Fortress against the Mongols under Esen Khan. His capture by the enemy force shook the Ming dynasty to its core and the ensuing crisis almost caused the dynasty to collapse were it not for the capable governing of a prominent minister named Yu Qian. Although Zhengtong was a prisoner of the Mongols, he became a good friend to the khan. Meanwhile, to calm the crisis at home, his brother Zhu Qiyu was installed as the Jingtai Emperor. This reduced Zhengtong's imperial status and he was granted the title of "grand emperor".

House arrest and second reign

The Zhengtong Emperor was released one year later in 1450 but when he returned to China, he was immediately put under house arrest by his brother for almost seven years. He resided in the southern palace of the Forbidden city and all outside contacts were severely curtailed by the Jingtai Emperor. Zhengtong's son (later Emperor Chenghua) was stripped of the title of crown prince and replaced by Jingtai's own son. This act greatly upset and devastated Zhengtong but the heir apparent died shortly thereafter. Overcome with grief, the Jingtai Emperor fell ill and Zhengtong decided to depose Jingtai by a palace coup which eventually reinstalled Zhu Qizhen as emperor, who renamed his second reign Tianshun ("heavenly obedience") and went on to rule for another seven years.

On August 6, 1461, the Tianshun Emperor issued an edict warning his subjects to be loyal to the throne and not to violate the laws. This was a veiled threat aimed at the general Cao Qin (d. 1461), who had become embroiled in a controversy when he had one of his retainers kill a man whom Ming authorities were attempting to interrogate (to find out about Cao's illegal foreign business transactions). On August 7, 1461, General Cao Qin and his cohorts of Mongol descent attempted a coup against the Tianshun Emperor. However, during the first hours of the morning of August 7, prominent Ming Mongol generals, Wu Jin and Wu Cong, were alerted of the coup and immediately relayed a warning to the emperor. Although alarmed, the emperor and his court made preparations for a conflict and barred the gates of the palace. During the ensuing onslaught in the capital later that morning, the Minister of Works and the Commander of the Imperial Guard were killed, while the rebels set the gates of the Forbidden City on fire. The eastern and western gates of the imperial city were only saved when pouring rains came and extinguished the fires. The fight lasted for nearly the entire day within the city; during which three of Cao Qin's brothers were killed, and Qin himself received wounds to both arms. With the failure of the coup, in order to escape being executed, Qin fled to his residence and committed suicide by jumping down a well within the walled compound of his home.

The Tianshun Emperor died at the age of 37 in 1464 and was buried in the Yuling (裕陵) tomb of the Ming Dynasty Tombs.

Note

Tianshun (天順) was also the name of a Yuan Dynasty reign.

Notes

References

Robinson, David M. "Politics, Force and Ethnicity in Ming China: Mongols and the Abortive Coup of 1461," Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies (Volume 59: Number 1, June 1999): 79–123.