Misplaced Pages

#565434

175-528: Inhabited since prehistoric times, it first became an important town in the Ming dynasty , due to its location on the route from Chang'an (Xi'an) to Ningxia . In 1985, Xifeng was upgraded to a city in Qingyang Prefecture. In 2002, Qingyang Prefecture was upgraded to a prefecture-level city, and Xifeng City (county-level) became its district. Xifeng is known as the grain shed of eastern Gansu, but

350-462: A 48 km (30 mi) long wall around Nanjing , as well as new palaces and government halls. The History of Ming states that as early as 1364 Zhu Yuanzhang had begun drafting a new Confucian law code, the Da Ming Lü , which was completed by 1397 and repeated certain clauses found in the old Tang Code of 653. Hongwu organized a military system known as the weisuo , which was similar to

525-767: A coup against the Tianshun Emperor out of fear of being next on his purge-list of those who aided him in the Wresting the Gate Incident. Cao's rebel force managed to set fire to the western and eastern gates of the Imperial City (doused by rain during the battle) and killed several leading ministers before his forces were finally cornered and he was forced to commit suicide. While the Yongle Emperor had staged five major offensives north of

700-442: A definitive form in the provinces. They operate in all provinces except Fujian and in six of the nine border garrisons on the northern border. The immediate consequence of the introduction of grand coordinators was the transfer of command over the troops in the provinces to civilian hands, likely due to the decline in the quality of hereditary officers. The court did not forget about culture either. During Emperor Yingzong's reign,

875-670: A eunuch servant, hanged himself on a tree in the imperial garden right outside the Forbidden City. Seizing opportunity, the Eight Banners crossed the Great Wall after the Ming border general Wu Sangui (1612–1678) opened the gates at Shanhai Pass . This occurred shortly after he learned about the fate of the capital and an army of Li Zicheng marching towards him; weighing his options of alliance, he decided to side with

1050-588: A force personally to face the Oirats after a recent Ming defeat; the emperor left the capital and put his half-brother Zhu Qiyu in charge of affairs as temporary regent. On 8 September, Esen routed Zhengtong's army, and Zhengtong was captured—an event known as the Tumu Crisis . The Oirats held the Zhengtong Emperor for ransom. However, this scheme was foiled once the emperor's younger brother assumed

1225-429: A high population and limited job opportunities, illegal silver mining persisted. In 1447, the leader of a group of silver miners in the mountains between Zhejiang and Fujian openly rebelled, gathering followers and forming an army. In the interior of Fujian, two brothers, Deng Maoqi ( 鄧茂七 ) and Deng Maoba ( 鄧茂八 ), opposed the exploitation of tenants. The tenants themselves demanded that landlords cancel payments beyond

1400-433: A historical work lambasting and belittling his political opponents. The instability at court came right as natural calamity, pestilence, rebellion, and foreign invasion came to a peak. The Chongzhen Emperor (r. 1627–44) had Wei dismissed from court, which led to Wei's suicide shortly after. The eunuchs built their own social structure, providing and gaining support to their birth clans. Instead of fathers promoting sons, it

1575-432: A low civil service rank. The one great advantage of the lesser functionaries over officials was that officials were periodically rotated and assigned to different regional posts and had to rely on the good service and cooperation of the local lesser functionaries. Eunuchs gained unprecedented power over state affairs during the Ming dynasty. One of the most effective means of control was the secret service stationed in what

1750-474: A major cause of "China's cultural stagnation and economic backwardness." However Benjamin Ellman argues there were some positive features, since the essay form was capable of fostering "abstract thinking, persuasiveness, and prosodic form" and that its elaborate structure discouraged a wandering, unfocused narrative". Scholar-officials who entered civil service through examinations acted as executive officials to

1925-447: A massive influx of South American silver. This abundance of specie remonetized the Ming economy, whose paper money had suffered repeated hyperinflation and was no longer trusted. While traditional Confucians opposed such a prominent role for commerce and the newly rich it created, the heterodoxy introduced by Wang Yangming permitted a more accommodating attitude. Zhang Juzheng 's initially successful reforms proved devastating when

SECTION 10

#1732793747566

2100-498: A much larger body of non-ranked personnel called lesser functionaries. They outnumbered officials by four to one; Charles Hucker estimates that they were perhaps as many as 100,000 throughout the empire. These lesser functionaries performed clerical and technical tasks for government agencies. Yet they should not be confused with lowly lictors, runners, and bearers; lesser functionaries were given periodic merit evaluations like officials and after nine years of service might be accepted into

2275-467: A rebellion that sparked a three-year civil war . Under the pretext of rescuing the young Jianwen from corrupting officials, Zhu Di personally led forces in the revolt; the palace in Nanjing was burned to the ground, along with Jianwen himself, his wife, mother, and courtiers. Zhu Di assumed the throne as the Yongle Emperor (r. 1402–24); his reign is universally viewed by scholars as a "second founding" of

2450-504: A reversal from the Hongwu Emperor's policy of suppressing the influence of wealthy landowners. Another historian, Richard Von Glahn, believes that it was an attempt to get the rich people's silver out of their coffers. Additionally, the government reduced silver mining to a minimum. After Wang Zhen gained influence in the government, the eunuchs pushed for the reopening of the silver mines under their supervision. However, due to

2625-475: A sedan chair and two horses. The Jingtai Emperor met him at the side door of the palace, and Emperor Yingzong renounced all claims to the throne. He was then assigned to the Southern Palace in the southeast of the Forbidden City, where he spent the next six and a half years as a virtual prisoner. His wives also lived with him there, and during this time, he fathered three sons (fifth to seventh). However,

2800-564: A series of lit beacons and signalling stations to allow rapid warning to friendly units of advancing enemy troops. There were many problems—fiscal or other—facing Ming China that started during the reign of the Wanli Emperor (1572–1620). In the beginning of his reign, Wanli surrounded himself with able advisors and made a conscientious effort to handle state affairs. His Grand Secretary Zhang Juzheng (1572–82) built up an effective network of alliances with senior officials. However, there

2975-556: A significant decrease in population in certain areas. On the other hand, bandits and vagabonds multiplied. The economic decline in China from the early 1440s to the mid-1460s resulted in a decrease in porcelain production, particularly for export. Even the emperor's ban on the private sale of blue-and-white porcelain in 1439, which aimed to protect the state monopoly, did not contribute to the growth of production. In fact, in January 1448,

3150-471: A slowdown in agriculture was produced by the Little Ice Age . The value of silver rapidly increased because of a disruption in the supply of imported silver from Spanish and Portuguese sources, making it impossible for Chinese farmers to pay their taxes. Combined with crop failure, floods, and an epidemic , the dynasty collapsed in 1644 as Li Zicheng's rebel forces entered Beijing. Li then established

3325-408: A statesman. However, they also revealed a lack of financial reserves and experienced generals on the northern frontier. In response to the increased demand for silver due to the implementation of silver-based taxes in 1436, the government took action by shutting down silver mines and prohibiting small-scale silver mining along the border of Zhejiang and Fujian two years later. However, in an area with

3500-471: A strong figure among the Grand Secretaries. His colleague Ma Yu ( 馬愉 ) only handled routine work, and the new Grand Secretaries appointed in the late 1440s—Gao Gu ( 高穀 ), Chen Xun ( 陳循 ), and Miao Zhong ( 苗衷 )—did not have a significant impact on politics. So far, the system of grand coordinators ( xunfu ), who manage the "three provincial offices" (civil, military, and surveillance), has taken

3675-559: A vast imperial household, staffed with thousands of eunuchs, who were headed by the Directorate of Palace Attendants. The eunuchs were divided into different directorates in charge of staff surveillance, ceremonial rites, food, utensils, documents, stables, seals, apparel, and so on. The offices were in charge of providing fuel, music, paper, and baths. The bureaus were in charge of weapons, silverwork, laundering, headgear, bronze work, textile manufacture, wineries, and gardens. At times,

SECTION 20

#1732793747566

3850-442: A very expensive, sophisticated tutoring of the sort that wealthy gentry families specialized in providing their talented sons. In practice, 90 percent of the population was ineligible due to lack of education, but the upper 10 percent had equal chances for moving to the top. To be successful young men had to have extensive, expensive training in classical Chinese, the use of Mandarin in spoken conversation, calligraphy, and had to master

4025-603: A work on the moral patterns of On the Five Relationships ( 五倫書 ; Wǔlúnshū ) with 62 volumes was published. The emperor also wrote a preface to the new edition of the Song work on acupuncture Illustrated Manual of Acupuncture Points on a Bronze Figure ( 铜人腧穴针灸图经 ; Tóngrén Shùxué Zhēnjiǔ Tújīng ) in 3 volumes. This work included text and illustrations engraved in stone and a bronze sculpture with 360 acupuncture points. The original illustrations and statue, created during

4200-601: Is also known for its fruit orchards. The Xifeng oilfield located in the district is one of the largest oilfields of the Ordos Basin . Although oil was presumed to be present under Xifeng since 1907, exploitation didn't start until the 1960s. Xifeng is home to the Beishiku temple-grottoes, a system of 195 caves built in 509 AD. The district is located centrally on a loess plain named Dongzhiyuan ( Chinese : 董志塬 ) flanked by gullies, at around 1421 m elevation. The plain

4375-504: Is considered the world's largest of its kind and estimated to be around 200 m in thickness. Due to erosion, the plain has shrunk over 400 km (150 sq mi) on a total area of 2,200 km (850 sq mi) in the past 100 years. Xifeng District is divided into 3 Subdistricts, 5 towns, and 2 townships. This Gansu location article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty ( / m ɪ ŋ / MING ), officially

4550-430: Is often estimated to be around half a million. However, this number is likely an exaggeration from a single contemporary source, as the actual number was likely much lower. Even under optimal conditions, it would have been difficult to supply such a large army. However, the troops were hastily assembled, poorly prepared, and incompetently led. Despite pleas from many members of his entourage to turn back, Wang Zhen advised

4725-588: Is underrepresented in modern scholarship. Others note the Ming need for Central Asian horses and the need to maintain the tea-horse trade . The Ming sporadically sent armed forays into Tibet during the 14th century, which the Tibetans successfully resisted. Several scholars point out that unlike the preceding Mongols, the Ming dynasty did not garrison permanent troops in Tibet. The Wanli Emperor (r. 1572–1620) attempted to reestablish Sino-Tibetan relations in

4900-502: Is used to denote important turning points in Chinese history. As Charles Patrick Fitzgerald writes: the event was a landmark in the Ming period. The era of Chinese military supremacy had ended, and henceforth the empire was on defensive on the northern frontier, a defensive which increasingly failed to withstand the nomad onslaughts. After news of the emperor's capture reached Beijing, Empress Dowager Sun, Yingzong's mother, proclaimed

5075-581: The fubing system of the Tang dynasty (618–907). In 1380 Hongwu had the Chancellor Hu Weiyong executed upon suspicion of a conspiracy plot to overthrow him; after that Hongwu abolished the Chancellery and assumed this role as chief executive and emperor, a precedent mostly followed throughout the Ming period. With a growing suspicion of his ministers and subjects, Hongwu established

5250-736: The Censorate , and the Chief Military Commission and personally took charge of the Six Ministries and the regional Five Military Commissions. Thus a whole level of administration was cut out and only partially rebuilt by subsequent rulers. The Grand Secretariat , at the beginning a secretarial institution that assisted the emperor with administrative paperwork, was instituted, but without employing grand counselors, or chancellors . The Hongwu Emperor sent his heir apparent to Shaanxi in 1391 to "tour and soothe" ( xunfu )

5425-489: The Embroidered Uniform Guard , and other peoples such as Jurchens were also prominent. He frequently wrote to Mongol, Japanese, Korean, Jurchen, Tibetan, and Southwest frontier rulers offering advice on their governmental and dynastic policy, and insisted on leaders from these regions visiting the Ming capital for audiences. He resettled 100,000 Mongols into his territory, with many serving as guards in

Xifeng, Qingyang - Misplaced Pages Continue

5600-599: The Great Ming , was an imperial dynasty of China , ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol -led Yuan dynasty . The Ming dynasty was the last imperial dynasty of China ruled by the Han people , the majority ethnic group in China. Although the primary capital of Beijing fell in 1644 to a rebellion led by Li Zicheng (who established the short-lived Shun dynasty ), numerous rump regimes ruled by remnants of

5775-546: The Great Wall against the Mongols and the Oirats, the constant threat of Oirat incursions prompted the Ming authorities to fortify the Great Wall from the late 15th century to the 16th century; nevertheless, John Fairbank notes that "it proved to be a futile military gesture but vividly expressed China's siege mentality." Yet the Great Wall was not meant to be a purely defensive fortification; its towers functioned rather as

5950-643: The Han River to Wuchang , and finally along the northern border of Jiangxi province, Li Zicheng died there in the summer of 1645, thus ending the Shun dynasty . One report says his death was a suicide; another states that he was beaten to death by peasants after he was caught stealing their food. Despite the loss of Beijing and the death of the emperor, the Ming were not yet totally destroyed. Nanjing, Fujian, Guangdong, Shanxi, and Yunnan were all strongholds of Ming resistance. However, there were several pretenders for

6125-621: The Japanese invasions of Korea in the 1590s. Ming officials declined the offer, but granted him the title of dragon-tiger general for his gesture. Recognizing the weakness of Ming authority in Manchuria at the time, he consolidated power by co-opting or conquering surrounding territories. In 1616 he declared himself Khan and established the Later Jin dynasty in reference to the previous Jurchen-ruled Jin dynasty . In 1618 he openly renounced

6300-644: The Jingnan campaign , an uprising that placed the Prince of Yan upon the throne as the Yongle Emperor in 1402. The Yongle Emperor established Yan as a secondary capital and renamed it Beijing , constructed the Forbidden City , and restored the Grand Canal and the primacy of the imperial examinations in official appointments. He rewarded his eunuch supporters and employed them as a counterweight against

6475-505: The Jinyiwei , a network of secret police drawn from his own palace guard. Some 100,000 people were executed in a series of purges during his rule. The Hongwu Emperor issued many edicts forbidding Mongol practices and proclaiming his intention to purify China of barbarian influence. However, he also sought to use the Yuan legacy to legitimize his authority in China and other areas ruled by

6650-534: The Ming imperial family —collectively called the Southern Ming —survived until 1662. The Ming dynasty's founder, the Hongwu Emperor ( r.   1368–1398), attempted to create a society of self-sufficient rural communities ordered in a rigid, immobile system that would guarantee and support a permanent class of soldiers for his dynasty: the empire's standing army exceeded one million troops and

6825-523: The Qing dynasty in 1739—states that the Ming established itinerant commanderies overseeing Tibetan administration while also renewing titles of ex-Yuan dynasty officials from Tibet and conferring new princely titles on leaders of Tibetan Buddhist sects . However, Turrell V. Wylie states that censorship in the Mingshi in favor of bolstering the Ming emperor's prestige and reputation at all costs obfuscates

7000-527: The Second Manchu invasion of Korea and forced Joseon to become a Qing tributary. Shortly after, the Koreans renounced their long-held loyalty to the Ming dynasty. A peasant soldier named Li Zicheng mutinied with his fellow soldiers in western Shaanxi in the early 1630s after the Ming government failed to ship much-needed supplies there. In 1634 he was captured by a Ming general and released only on

7175-637: The Shaanxi earthquake of 1556 , occurred during the Jiajing Emperor 's reign, killing approximately 830,000 people. Originally a Ming vassal who officially considered himself a guardian of the Ming border and a local representative of imperial Ming power, Nurhaci , leader of the Jianzhou Jurchens , unified other Jurchen clans to create a new Manchu ethnic identity. He offered to lead his armies to support Ming and Joseon armies against

Xifeng, Qingyang - Misplaced Pages Continue

7350-553: The Shun dynasty , but it was defeated shortly afterwards by the Manchu -led Eight Banner armies of the Qing dynasty , with the help of the defecting Ming general Wu Sangui . The Mongol -led Yuan dynasty (1271–1368) ruled before the establishment of the Ming dynasty. Explanations for the demise of the Yuan include institutionalized ethnic discrimination against the Han people that stirred resentment and rebellion, overtaxation of areas hard-hit by inflation , and massive flooding of

7525-540: The Song dynasty , had eroded and faded, so both were remade. In the mid-1430s, a sixty-year cold period began in the Northern Hemisphere , accompanied by sporadic floods and droughts that resulted in crop failures, leading to famines and epidemics. China was also struck by a series of natural disasters in the late 1430s and 1440s, with floods, droughts, epidemics, and famines occurring in succession. In 1448,

7700-655: The Uriankhai in the southeast, the Eastern Mongols (also known as Tatars) in the east, and the Oirats in the west. In 1434, the leader of the Eastern Mongols, Arughtai , was defeated in battle by the Oirats. This gave the Oirats control over Mongolia, and their chief Toghon solidified their power by arranging for his daughter to marry the young Khan of the Eastern Mongols, Toghtoa Bukha . After Toghon's death in 1440, his son Esen took over as ruler of Mongolia. Esen

7875-676: The Yellow River as a result of the abandonment of irrigation projects. Consequently, agriculture and the economy were in shambles, and rebellion broke out among the hundreds of thousands of peasants called upon to work on repairing the dykes of the Yellow River. A number of Han groups revolted, including the Red Turbans in 1351. The Red Turbans were affiliated with the White Lotus , a Buddhist secret society. Zhu Yuanzhang

8050-632: The conquest of Tibet by Güshi Khan (1582–1655) in 1642, establishing the Khoshut Khanate . The Hongwu Emperor specified his grandson Zhu Yunwen as his successor, and he assumed the throne as the Jianwen Emperor (r. 1398–1402) after Hongwu's death in 1398. The most powerful of Hongwu's sons, Zhu Di, then the militarily mighty disagreed with this, and soon a political showdown erupted between him and his nephew Jianwen. After Jianwen arrested many of Zhu Di's associates, Zhu Di plotted

8225-548: The navy 's dockyards in Nanjing were the largest in the world. He also took great care breaking the power of the court eunuchs and unrelated magnates, enfeoffing his many sons throughout China and attempting to guide these princes through the Huang-Ming Zuxun , a set of published dynastic instructions. This failed when his teenage successor, the Jianwen Emperor , attempted to curtail his uncle's power, prompting

8400-642: The 12th century. Ming era examinations were perhaps more difficult to pass since the 1487 requirement of completing the " eight-legged essay ", a departure from basing essays off progressing literary trends. The exams increased in difficulty as the student progressed from the local level, and appropriate titles were accordingly awarded successful applicants. Officials were classified in nine hierarchic grades, each grade divided into two degrees, with ranging salaries (nominally paid in piculs of rice) according to their rank. While provincial graduates who were appointed to office were immediately assigned to low-ranking posts like

8575-573: The Bedchamber, Bureau of Handicrafts, and Office of Staff Surveillance. Starting in the 1420s, eunuchs began taking over these ladies' positions until only the Bureau of Apparel with its four subsidiary offices remained. Hongwu had his eunuchs organized into the Directorate of Palace Attendants, but as eunuch power at court increased, so did their administrative offices, with eventual twelve directorates, four offices, and eight bureaus. The dynasty had

8750-486: The Chinese against the influx of Mongols. By the late 1440s, up to two thousand Mongols were arriving in Datong, the main trading center, every year. The presence of such large groups of armed horsemen posed a security threat. This caused the Ming authorities to become increasingly hostile and fearful. In 1449, the Mongols were only given a fifth of the required goods, which led them to resort to force. The immediate cause of

8925-624: The Chinese and Ava successfully defeated Si Renfa's son, Si Jifa, who resided in Mong Yang west of the Irrawaddy River. In March 1449, Emperor Yingzong celebrated the victory. These wars ultimately solidified Ming power in Yunnan, but at a high cost. Local rulers acknowledged Ming sovereignty and paid tribute to Beijing until the 16th century. Domestically, these wars were a success for Wang Zhen, increasing his prestige and reputation as

SECTION 50

#1732793747566

9100-465: The Chinese government's refusal to recognize them. The closure of these mints had far-reaching consequences, causing problems in places like Japan and Java. Japan, which had not minted coins since the 10th century, relied heavily on imports from China. The disruption of this supply in the early 15th century had a significant impact on the Japanese economy and even led to political turmoil, resulting in

9275-638: The Confucian scholar-bureaucrats . One eunuch, Zheng He , led seven enormous voyages of exploration into the Indian Ocean as far as Arabia and the eastern coasts of Africa. Hongwu and Yongle emperors had also expanded the empire's rule into Inner Asia . The rise of new emperors and new factions diminished such extravagances; the capture of the Emperor Yingzong of Ming during the 1449 Tumu Crisis ended them completely. The imperial navy

9450-560: The Directorate of Ceremonial, the most powerful office in the Imperial Palace. They had all held their positions under the previous emperor. The empress dowager acted as a mediator between the grand secretaries and the head eunuchs. The emperor's exclusion from decision-making was considered illegal, but it allowed for the successful rule of experienced statesmen, particularly the Three Yangs. This period of political stability

9625-641: The Great Wall had not yet been built, and the border was only guarded by patrol battalions. These battalions were expected to hold off the enemy until the main forces arrived, according to the plans. The main forces were located in three fortified cities—Xuanfu, Datong, and Beijing—each housing several tens of thousands of soldiers. The largest force, consisting of 160,000 men, was stationed in Beijing. The reserves were scattered throughout northeastern China, in North Zhili, Shandong, and Henan. However, since Xuanfu

9800-545: The Imperial Guard, which he did not hesitate to use against his opponents, and he also had influence among the ministers. With these advantages, Wang Zhen easily gained the upper hand in politics. While he had held back during Lady Zhang's lifetime, after her death, he began to push the Grand Secretaries, who were now in their seventies, out of active politics. Yang Shiqi died in 1444, and two years later, Yang Pu also died. After their deaths, only Cao Nai ( 曹鼐 ) remained

9975-580: The Manchus. The Eight Banners under the Manchu Prince Dorgon (1612–1650) and Wu Sangui approached Beijing after the army sent by Li was destroyed at Shanhaiguan ; the Prince of Shun's army fled the capital on the fourth of June. On 6 June, the Manchus and Wu entered the capital and proclaimed the young Shunzhi Emperor ruler of China. After being forced out of Xi'an by the Qing, chased along

10150-660: The Ming court in 1557 to settle Macau as their permanent trade base in China. Their role in providing silver was gradually surpassed by the Spanish , while even the Dutch challenged them for control of this trade. Philip IV of Spain (r. 1621–1665) began cracking down on illegal smuggling of silver from New Spain and Peru across the Pacific through the Philippines towards China, in favor of shipping silver mined in

10325-400: The Ming dynasty since he reversed many of his father's policies. Yongle demoted Nanjing to a secondary capital and in 1403 announced the new capital of China was to be at his power base in Beijing . Construction of a new city there lasted from 1407 to 1420, employing hundreds of thousands of workers daily. At the center was the political node of the Imperial City , and at the center of this

10500-402: The Ming in campaigns against aboriginal tribes. In 1381, the Ming dynasty annexed the areas of the southwest that had once been part of the Kingdom of Dali following the successful effort by Hui Muslim Ming armies to defeat Yuan -loyalist Mongol and Hui Muslim troops holding out in Yunnan province. The Hui troops under General Mu Ying , who was appointed Governor of Yunnan, were resettled in

10675-484: The Ming overlordship and effectively declared war against the Ming with the " Seven Grievances ." In 1636, Nurhaci's son Hong Taiji renamed his dynasty the " Great Qing " at Mukden (modern Shenyang), which had been made their capital in 1625. Hong Taiji also adopted the Chinese imperial title huangdi , declared the Chongde ("Revering Virtue") era, and changed the ethnic name of his people from "Jurchen" to " Manchu ". In 1636, Banner Armies defeated Joseon during

SECTION 60

#1732793747566

10850-432: The Ming throne, and their forces were divided. These scattered Ming remnants in southern China after 1644 were collectively designated by 19th-century historians as the Southern Ming . Each bastion of resistance was individually defeated by the Qing until 1662, when the last Southern Ming emperor, Zhu Youlang , the Yongli Emperor, was captured and executed. Despite the Ming defeat, smaller loyalist movements continued until

11025-419: The Mongols had launched a large-scale invasion and had already attacked Datong. Without consulting the government, Emperor Yingzong ordered the Beijing garrison to be mobilized on 1 August and decided to personally lead the campaign against the Mongols. This decision was met with protest from Minister of War, Kuang Ye ( 鄺埜 ), and his deputy, Yu Qian . Later, Minister of Personnel, Wang Zhi ( 王直 ), also joined in

11200-447: The Southern Palace within the Forbidden City . He also restricted Emperor Yingzong's contact with the outside world. Essentially, Emperor Yingzong was placed under house arrest. In early 1457, the Jingtai Emperor fell ill and, since his only son had died in 1453, there was no heir to the throne. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Emperor Yingzong organized a palace coup and regained power in February 1457. The era name of his second reign

11375-531: The Spanish Latin American colonies through Spanish ports. People began hoarding precious silver as there was progressively less of it, forcing the ratio of the value of copper to silver into a steep decline. In the 1630s a string of one thousand copper coins equaled an ounce of silver; by 1640 that sum could fetch half an ounce; and, by 1643 only one-third of an ounce. For peasants this meant economic disaster, since they paid taxes in silver while conducting local trade and crop sales in copper. Historians have debated

11550-428: The Yellow River breached its dams, causing the waters to flow into northern Jiangsu . The following year, another dam broke, diverting part of the Yellow River's flow into the Guo River and then the Huai River , eventually reaching the sea in southern Jiangsu. Flooding persisted into the 1450s, and the changing course of the Yellow River posed a threat to the water supply of Beijing. The government attempted to assist

11725-527: The Yongle Emperor's reign (1402–1424) and afterwards managed huge imperial workshops, commanded armies, and participated in matters of appointment and promotion of officials. Yongle put 75 eunuchs in charge of foreign policy; they traveled frequently to vassal states including Annam, Mongolia, the Ryukyu Islands, and Tibet and less frequently to farther-flung places like Japan and Nepal. In the later 15th century, however, eunuch envoys generally only traveled to Korea. The eunuchs developed their own bureaucracy that

11900-434: The Yongle Emperor, the Ming Dynasty established the Nurgan Regional Military Commission on the banks of the Amur River , and Yishiha , a eunuch of Haixi Jurchen origin, was ordered to lead an expedition to the mouth of the Amur to pacify the Wild Jurchens. After the death of Yongle Emperor, the Nurgan Regional Military Commission was abolished in 1435, and the Ming court ceased to have substantial activities there, although

12075-417: The Yuan capital Dadu (present-day Beijing ) in 1368. The last Yuan emperor fled north to the upper capital Shangdu , and Zhu declared the founding of the Ming dynasty after razing the Yuan palaces in Dadu to the ground; the city was renamed Beiping in the same year. Zhu Yuanzhang took Hongwu, or "Vastly Martial", as his era name . Hongwu made an immediate effort to rebuild state infrastructure. He built

12250-402: The Yuan. He continued policies of the Yuan dynasty such as continued request for Korean concubines and eunuchs, Mongol-style hereditary military institutions, Mongol-style clothing and hats, promoting archery and horseback riding, and having large numbers of Mongols serve in the Ming military. Until the late 16th century Mongols still constituted one-in-three officers serving in capital forces like

12425-436: The advice of ministers. This system did not account for the scenario of a child ruler, leaving no provisions or precedents for how to handle the situation. At court, the most respected and highest-ranking individual was the Grand Empress Dowager Zhang, who effectively, though not formally, became the regent. Empress Dowager Sun was also occasionally consulted, but she held a lower status than her mother-in-law. Lady Zhang

12600-814: The aloof emperor and his officials; any senior official who wanted to discuss state matters had to persuade powerful eunuchs with a bribe simply to have his demands or message relayed to the emperor. There were several military campaigns, which included the Ordos campaign , Bozhou rebellion by the Chiefdom of Bozhou in southwestern China and the Imjin War , during the Wanli Emperor's reign. The Hongwu Emperor forbade eunuchs to learn how to read or engage in politics. Whether or not these restrictions were carried out with absolute success in his reign, eunuchs during

12775-698: The army against the Mongol army of Esen Taishi . Unfortunately, at the Battle of Tumu Fortress , the Ming army was defeated and the emperor was captured. This event shocked the government and the country, leading the court to elevate Yingzong's brother, Zhu Qiyu, to the throne as the Jingtai Emperor . During his captivity, Emperor Yingzong had established good relations with Esen and was eventually released in 1450. After Emperor Yingzong returned to his homeland, his brother felt threatened and ordered him to stay in

12950-517: The army camped at the Tumu post station , without a source of water. On the morning of 1 September, 20,000 Mongols launched a surprise attack on the Ming army, resulting in their defeat. Due to hunger and thirst, the Ming soldiers were unable to put up much resistance and only a few high-ranking officials were able to escape. Among the casualties were Wang Zhen, two dukes, two marquises, five counts, several generals, and hundreds of officials. The emperor

13125-561: The ban was reinforced and extended to forbid the production of porcelain in any colors other than blue and white (such as yellow, purple, red, green, dark blue, and light blue) for private sale in Raozhou prefecture, where Jingdezhen , known for its porcelain, is located. These prohibitions may have been one of the reasons for the scarcity of porcelain from the Zhengtong, Jingtai and Tianshun eras (1436–1464). The "Three Yangs" responded to

13300-532: The banknotes' failure. Despite efforts by his successor to lift the ban, the Ministry of Revenue continued to prohibit coinage until 1453. By the mid-1450s, private coins from Jiangnan had become more prevalent in the markets of Beijing, replacing Yongle's coins. Suggestions to combat private coinage by opening state mints were rejected, leading to the proliferation of illegal mints. These private coins were of lower quality, often containing tin or iron, but due to

13475-401: The border with the Mongols. This trade involved exchanging a million jin (258 tons) of tea for 14 thousand horses every three years. The Ming authorities tightly regulated and restricted trade with the Mongols, with Wang Zhen overseeing the profitable trade through a network of eunuch-trustees in border towns. As Essen's power grew, his need for goods also increased, leading to protests from

13650-460: The capital. The emperor also strongly advertised the hospitality and role granted to Chinggisid nobles in his court. Hongwu insisted that he was not a rebel, and he attempted to justify his conquest of the other rebel warlords by claiming that he was a Yuan subject and had been divinely-appointed to restore order by crushing rebels. Most Chinese elites did not view the Yuan's Mongol ethnicity as grounds to resist or reject it. Hongwu emphasised that he

13825-652: The control imposed upon the Jurchens in Manchuria by the Mongols, yet it created a norm of organization that would ultimately serve as the main instrument for the relations with peoples along the northeast frontiers. By the end of the Hongwu reign, the essentials of a policy toward the Jurchens had taken shape. Most of the inhabitants of Manchuria, except for the Wild Jurchens , were at peace with China. In 1409, under

14000-441: The county graduates, those who passed the palace examination were awarded a jinshi ('presented scholar') degree and assured a high-level position. In 276 years of Ming rule and ninety palace examinations, the number of doctoral degrees granted by passing the palace examinations was 24,874. Ebrey states that "there were only two to four thousand of these jinshi at any given time, on the order of one out of 10,000 adult males." This

14175-609: The court of the Tianqi Emperor (r. 1620–1627) and had his political rivals tortured to death, mostly the vocal critics from the faction of the Donglin Society . He ordered temples built in his honor throughout the Ming Empire, and built personal palaces created with funds allocated for building the previous emperor's tombs. His friends and family gained important positions without qualifications. Wei also published

14350-627: The deposed Jingtai Emperor was likely strangled and his reputation tarnished. In contrast, Wang Zhen was given an official burial, a statue in the Zhihua Temple , and the posthumous name "Jingzhong" ( 旌忠 ). These purges only served to make Emperor Yingzong's regime unpopular. In an attempt to improve his image, the emperor appointed respected scholars Xue Xuan ( 薛瑄 ) and Li Xian ( 李賢 ) to the Grand Secretariat. In late June 1457, Shi Heng and Cao Jixiang decided that they no longer needed

14525-515: The division of Japan into competing domains during the Sengoku period . In the first quarter of the 15th century, on the southwestern borders of the Ming dynasty, one of the Shan states, Möng Mao , called Luchuan by the Ming, grew in strength under the rule of the ambitious Si Renfa, who ruled from 1413. By 1436, Si Renfa had begun to pose a threat to Ming positions in the area. In 1438, Mu Sheng ,

14700-469: The dominant currency for small transactions in cities. In 1436, the Minister of Revenue proposed to buy out old banknotes and replace them with new ones covered in silver, but this proposal was ultimately unsuccessful. Around the same time (in the mid-1430s), the government began to tolerate the use of coins in commerce, although their prohibition was not consistently enforced even before this time. While

14875-528: The early 1440s. In 1440, Yang Rong, a prominent figure at the age of sixty-nine, died. On 8 June 1442, the emperor entered into marriage with Lady Qian , and on 18 November 1442, just a few days before his fifteenth birthday, he assumed control of the government. Two days later, Grand Empress Dowager Zhang died. Wang Zhen had finally gained his freedom. He possessed great talent, was direct, attentive, and charismatic, but over time, he became conceited. His power primarily stemmed from his personal influence over

15050-407: The economic problems mentioned above by cutting state spending. This was made worse by the struggles in the southwest during the 1430s and 1440s, which led to a decline in mining in the region. As a result, they cancelled overseas expeditions and restricted official foreign trade. These austerity measures were easier for them to accept because they directly affected the economic power of the eunuchs in

15225-459: The editors of the History of Ming , the official history of the Ming dynasty completed in 1739, portrayed Empress Dowager Zhang as a supporter of Zhu Qizhen's rights. According to their version, she summoned all three Grand Secretaries—Yang Shiqi, Yang Rong, and Yang Pu—to her and emphasized that her grandson Zhu Qizhen was now emperor. Thereupon, the Grand Secretaries expressed their allegiance to

15400-544: The emperor and ministers at times). The Secretariat operated as a coordinating agency, whereas the Six Ministries— Personnel , Revenue , Rites , War , Justice , and Public Works —were direct administrative organs of the state: The imperial household was staffed almost entirely by eunuchs and ladies with their own bureaus. Female servants were organized into the Bureau of Palace Attendance, Bureau of Ceremonies, Bureau of Apparel, Bureau of Foodstuffs, Bureau of

15575-449: The emperor and the other half occupying strategic locations in Beijing. The conspirators had contacted Emperor Yingzong two days prior to the coup, although there is another version that suggests it was a surprise for him. This event became known as the duomen —"forcing the palace gate", but later this name was considered too vulgar and the term fubi —"restoration of the throne"—began to be used. The emperor initially honored and promoted

15750-439: The emperor to continue on. The army reached Datong on 18 August, with more soldiers dying from starvation during the journey than from skirmishes with Mongol troops. Two days later, Emperor Yingzong finally issued the order to return. Upon reaching Xuanfu on 30 August, the emperor learned that the rearguard had been defeated by the Mongols and that the auxiliary detachment of 40,000 men had been completely destroyed. The next evening,

15925-530: The emperor's concubines. On 20 February 1428, he was created crown prince, and in March of the same year, the Xuande Emperor promoted Lady Sun to empress. The father was overjoyed by his son's birth and showed him love and affection. He also ensured that Zhu Qizhen received proper military training. In 1433, the Ministry of War assembled a detachment of 7,112 physically fit 11–12-year-old youths, as ordered by

16100-476: The emperor's two-year-old son, Zhu Jianshen, as crown prince. She also appointed the emperor's brother, Zhu Qiyu, to administer the country. However, officials demanded punishment for the followers of Wang Zhen, whom they believed were responsible for the disaster. When Zhu Qiyu refused, the officials became angry and killed two of Wang's allies. At the insistence of Yu Qian, Zhu Qiyu eventually agreed to confiscate Wang Zhen's fortune and execute his relatives. Yu Qian

16275-464: The emperor, and the prince was appointed as their commander. He also began his education in reading and writing, with his first teacher likely being the eunuch and former pedagogue, Wang Zhen . The Xuande Emperor died on 31 January 1435 after a brief illness, less than two months. At the time of his father's death, Zhu Qizhen was only seven years old, prompting a proposal to place his uncle, Zhu Zhanshan, Prince of Xiang and Xuande's younger brother, on

16450-531: The emperor, handling paperwork under the reign of the Yongle Emperor and later appointed as top officials of agencies and Grand Preceptor, a top-ranking, non-functional civil service post, under the Hongxi Emperor (r. 1424–25). The Grand Secretariat drew its members from the Hanlin Academy and were considered part of the imperial authority, not the ministerial one (hence being at odds with both

16625-451: The emperor, who held his teacher in the highest regard. Wang Zhen was also a skilled politician. He formed alliances with Xu Xi ( 徐晞 ), who was later promoted to Minister of War, as well as Imperial Guard commander Ma Shun and his deputy and nephew Wang Shan, and Left Vice Minister of War Wang Ji , who previously organized the "youth-guards" ( 幼軍 ) of the young emperor, later also appointed as Minister of War. Wang Zhen also had control over

16800-497: The emperor. As in prior dynasties, the provincial administrations were monitored by a travelling inspector from the Censorate. Censors had the power to impeach officials on an irregular basis, unlike the senior officials who were to do so only in triennial evaluations of junior officials. Although decentralization of state power within the provinces occurred in the early Ming, the trend of central government officials delegated to

16975-557: The establishment of the Xi dynasty , while Li's center of power was in Hubei with extended influence over Shaanxi and Henan. In 1640, masses of Chinese peasants who were starving, unable to pay their taxes, and no longer in fear of the frequently defeated Chinese army, began to form into huge bands of rebels. The Chinese military, caught between fruitless efforts to defeat the Manchu raiders from

17150-466: The exam generally limited participants to those already coming from the landholding class. However, the government did exact provincial quotas while drafting officials. This was an effort to curb monopolization of power by landholding gentry who came from the most prosperous regions, where education was the most advanced. The expansion of the printing industry since Song times enhanced the spread of knowledge and number of potential exam candidates throughout

17325-438: The first child emperor of the Ming dynasty, Emperor Yingzong's rule was heavily influenced by high dignitaries at court. Initially, his grandmother, Grand Empress Dowager Zhang , along with the "Three Yangs" ( Yang Shiqi , Yang Rong , and Yang Pu ), held the highest positions of power. However, in 1442, the emperor began to listen more to the eunuch Wang Zhen . In 1449, at Wang Zhen's suggestion, Emperor Yingzong personally led

17500-437: The former emperor that he had been reinstated and bringing him to the throne room. This coup was orchestrated by a small group, led by the eunuch-general Cao Jixiang ( 曹吉祥 ), along with generals Shi Heng ( 石亨 ), Zhang Yue ( 張軏 ), and strategist Xu Youzhen ( 徐有貞 ). The initial invasion of the Southern Palace was carried out by 400 men, primarily consisting of Mongols. Later, an additional 2,800 men joined, with half of them escorting

17675-504: The government to properly manage irrigation and flood-control projects caused widespread loss of life and normal civility. The central government, starved of resources, could do very little to mitigate the effects of these calamities. Making matters worse, a widespread epidemic, the Great Plague of 1633–1644 , spread across China from Zhejiang to Henan, killing an unknown but large number of people. The deadliest earthquake of all time,

17850-424: The guards continued to exist in Manchuria. Throughout its existence, the Ming established a total of 384 guards (衛, wei ) and 24 battalions (所, suo ) in Manchuria, but these were probably only nominal offices and did not necessarily imply political control. By the late Ming period, Ming's political presence in Manchuria has declined significantly. The Mingshi —the official history of the Ming dynasty compiled by

18025-487: The imperial palace, who were competing with other groups for power. The eunuchs were the ones involved in maritime expeditions and had a vested interest in silver mining, which was also limited in the mid-1430s. By the end of the Xuande era, the government had recognized the failure to enforce baochao banknotes as the main currency and began tolerating silver. In 1433, Governor of South Zhili , Zhou Chen ( 周忱 ), introduced

18200-430: The intricate poetic requirements of the eight-legged essay. Not only did the traditional gentry dominated the system, they also learned that conservatism and resistance to new ideas was the path to success. For centuries critics had pointed out these problems, but the examination system only became more abstract and less relevant to the needs of China. The consensus of scholars is that the eight-legged essay can be blamed as

18375-686: The kingdoms visited by Zheng He, Yongle proclaimed the Kingdom of Cochin to be its protectorate. The Chinese had sent diplomatic missions over land since the Han dynasty (202 BCE – 220 CE) and engaged in private overseas trade , but these missions were unprecedented in grandeur and scale. To service seven different tributary voyages, the Nanjing shipyards constructed two thousand vessels from 1403 to 1419, including treasure ships measuring 112 to 134 m (367 to 440 ft) in length and 45 to 54 m (148 to 177 ft) in width. Yongle used woodblock printing to spread Chinese culture. He also used

18550-543: The largest political division was the circuit ( lu 路). However, after the Jurchen invasion in 1127, the Song court established four semi-autonomous regional command systems based on territorial and military units, with a detached service secretariat that would become the provincial administrations of the Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties. Copied on the Yuan model, the Ming provincial bureaucracy contained three commissions: one civil, one military, and one for surveillance. Below

18725-459: The last opposing rebel faction, leaving Zhu Yuanzhang in uncontested control of the bountiful Yangtze River Valley and cementing his power in the south. After the dynastic head of the Red Turbans suspiciously died in 1367 while a guest of Zhu, there was no one left who was remotely capable of contesting his march to the throne, and he made his imperial ambitions known by sending an army toward

18900-413: The level of the province ( sheng 省) were prefectures ( fu 府) operating under a prefect ( zhifu 知府), followed by subprefectures ( zhou 州) under a subprefect. The lowest unit was the county ( xian 縣), overseen by a magistrate. Besides the provinces, there were also two large areas that belonged to no province, but were metropolitan areas ( jing 京) attached to Nanjing and Beijing. Departing from

19075-403: The living conditions were poor and the supply of resources was limited. Despite this, officials still requested permission to congratulate Emperor Yingzong on his birthday every year, but the government consistently refused. On the night of 11 February 1457, the quiet atmosphere of the Southern Palace was abruptly shattered by a group of soldiers who forcefully entered the building, announcing to

19250-648: The local peoples. After the overthrow of the Mongol Yuan dynasty by the Ming dynasty in 1368, Manchuria remained under control of the Mongols of the Northern Yuan dynasty based in Mongolia . Naghachu , a former Yuan official and a Uriankhai general of the Northern Yuan dynasty, won hegemony over the Mongol tribes in Manchuria ( Liaoyang province of the former Yuan dynasty). He grew strong in

19425-514: The low productivity of mining and the high demands of the eunuchs, there were a series of mining uprisings in Fujian, Zhejiang, and Jiangxi. After Emperor Yingzong was captured in a war with the Mongols in 1449, the new government restricted mining once again. However, when Emperor Yingzong returned to power in 1457, the restrictions were lifted. Despite this, mining yields remained low. The government's decision to allow payment in silver resulted in

19600-600: The main central administrative system generally known as the Three Departments and Six Ministries system, which was instituted by various dynasties since late Han (202 BCE – 220 CE), the Ming administration had only one department, the Secretariat, that controlled the six ministries. Following the execution of the Chancellor Hu Weiyong in 1380, the Hongwu Emperor abolished the Secretariat,

19775-615: The military to expand China's borders. This included the brief occupation of Vietnam , from the initial invasion in 1406 until the Ming withdrawal in 1427 as a result of protracted guerrilla warfare led by Lê Lợi , the founder of the Vietnamese Lê dynasty . The Oirat leader Esen Tayisi launched an invasion into Ming China in July 1449. The chief eunuch Wang Zhen encouraged the Zhengtong Emperor (r. 1435–49) to lead

19950-414: The military commander of Yunnan, was ordered to attack Möng Mao with an army of conscripts from Guizhou and Huguang. Initially, the Ming army was successful in defeating the enemy, but they soon encountered supply problems and struggled to adapt to the subtropical climate. As a result, the weakened Ming army suffered a heavy defeat in 1440. Wang Zhen believed that Grand Empress Dowager Zhang's tax policy

20125-606: The most influential eunuch in the Directorate of Ceremonial acted as a de facto dictator over the state. Although the imperial household was staffed mostly by eunuchs and palace ladies, there was a civil service office called the Seal Office, which cooperated with eunuch agencies in maintaining imperial seals, tallies, and stamps. There were also civil service offices to oversee the affairs of imperial princes. The Hongwu emperor from 1373 to 1384 staffed his bureaus with officials gathered through recommendations only. After that

20300-422: The north and huge peasant revolts in the provinces, essentially fell apart. Unpaid and unfed, the army was defeated by Li Zicheng—now self-styled as the Prince of Shun —and deserted the capital without much of a fight. On 25 April 1644, Beijing fell to a rebel army led by Li Zicheng when the city gates were opened by rebel allies from within. During the turmoil, Chongzhen , the last Ming emperor, accompanied only by

20475-457: The northeast, with forces large enough (numbering hundreds of thousands) to threaten invasion of the newly founded Ming dynasty in order to restore the Mongols to power in China. The Ming decided to defeat him instead of waiting for the Mongols to attack. In 1387 the Ming sent a military campaign to attack Naghachu , which concluded with the surrender of Naghachu and Ming conquest of Manchuria. The early Ming court could not, and did not, aspire to

20650-412: The nuanced history of Sino-Tibetan relations during the Ming era. Modern scholars debate whether the Ming dynasty had sovereignty over Tibet. Some believe it was a relationship of loose suzerainty that was largely cut off when the Jiajing Emperor (r. 1521–67) persecuted Buddhism in favor of Daoism at court. Others argue that the significant religious nature of the relationship with Tibetan lamas

20825-720: The official records or "donated" their lands to tax-exempt eunuchs or temples. Haijin laws intended to protect the coasts from Japanese pirates instead turned many into smugglers and pirates themselves. By the 16th century, the expansion of European trade —though restricted to islands near Guangzhou such as Macau —spread the Columbian exchange of crops, plants, and animals into China, introducing chili peppers to Sichuan cuisine and highly productive maize and potatoes , which diminished famines and spurred population growth. The growth of Portuguese , Spanish , and Dutch trade created new demand for Chinese products and produced

21000-598: The organizers of the coup, but once he solidified his position as the leader of the government, he gradually removed them one by one. Xu Youzhen was dismissed in August 1457, Shi Heng died in prison in February 1460, and Cao Jixiang and his family were executed for treason in August 1461. However, the new regime wasted no time in purging the Jingtai Emperor's followers, many of whom were innocent, such as Yu Qian. Even

21175-406: The palace until the coup against the Jingtai Emperor in 1457 known as the "Wresting the Gate Incident". The former emperor retook the throne under the new era name Tianshun (r. 1457–64). Tianshun proved to be a troubled time and Mongol forces within the Ming military structure continued to be problematic. On 7 August 1461, the Chinese general Cao Qin and his Ming troops of Mongol descent staged

21350-462: The payment of land tax in silver instead of rice in the most tax-burdened prefectures. From 1436, the officers of the Beijing garrison were paid in silver. In the same year, the land tax in South Zhili, Zhejiang , Jiangxi , and Huguang was also converted to silver; this transition was accompanied by a tax cut. According to historian Ray Huang , this was a concession to southern landowners and

21525-461: The proclamation of the Republic of China . Described as "one of the greatest eras of orderly government and social stability in human history" by Edwin O. Reischauer , John K. Fairbank and Albert M. Craig , the Ming emperors took over the provincial administration system of the Yuan dynasty, and the thirteen Ming provinces are the precursors of the modern provinces. Throughout the Song dynasty,

21700-406: The protest on behalf of a number of concerned officials. They believed that the emperor's participation in the expedition was an unacceptably risky adventure. However, Emperor Yingzong defended his decision by citing precedents—all previous Ming emperors, except for the Jianwen Emperor , had personally led armies into battle. On 3 August, the emperor entrusted his younger brother, Zhu Qiyu , with

21875-553: The provinces as virtual provincial governors began in the 1420s. By the late Ming dynasty, there were central government officials delegated to two or more provinces as supreme commanders and viceroys, a system which reined in the power and influence of the military by the civil establishment. Governmental institutions in China conformed to a similar pattern for some two thousand years, but each dynasty installed special offices and bureaus, reflecting its own particular interests. The Ming administration utilized Grand Secretaries to assist

22050-485: The provinces. For young schoolchildren there were printed multiplication tables and primers for elementary vocabulary; for adult examination candidates there were mass-produced, inexpensive volumes of Confucian classics and successful examination answers. As in earlier periods, the focus of the examination was classical Confucian texts, while the bulk of test material centered on the Four Books outlined by Zhu Xi in

22225-400: The provisional administration of Beijing and departed the city on 4 August. However, due to a storm, he arrived at Xuanfu seven days later. The emperor was accompanied by 20 experienced generals, most of whom held noble titles, and an equal number of high-ranking officials. They were also accompanied by hundreds of lower-ranking dignitaries. While the number of mobilized soldiers is unknown, it

22400-423: The rapid decline of banknotes, much to the dismay of the statesmen. By the 1430s, banknotes had practically disappeared from use, with the state only using them to pay employees to a limited extent and withdrawing them as a compulsory payment for trade fees. However, these small transactions were relatively isolated from the country's economy. While silver was used for large payments and taxes, copper coins remained

22575-557: The re-publishing of sets of Buddhist and Taoist classics was completed. Specifically, in 1440, the Buddhist collection Chinese Buddhist Canon ( 大藏經 ; Dàzàngjīng ; 'Great Storage of Scriptures') consisting of 6361 volumes in 636 books was published, with a preface written by the emperor. In 1445, the Taoist collection Zhengtong-era Daoist Canon ( 正統道藏 ; Zhèngtǒng dàocáng ) was published in 481 books of 5305 volumes. Additionally, in 1443,

22750-468: The region as part of a colonization effort. By the end of the 14th century, some 200,000 military colonists settled some 2,000,000 mu (350,000 acres) of land in what is now Yunnan and Guizhou . Roughly half a million more Chinese settlers came in later periods; these migrations caused a major shift in the ethnic make-up of the region, since formerly more than half of the population were non-Han peoples. Resentment over such massive changes in population and

22925-543: The region; in 1421 the Yongle Emperor commissioned 26 officials to travel the empire and uphold similar investigatory and patrimonial duties. By 1430 these xunfu assignments became institutionalized as " grand coordinators ". Hence, the Censorate was reinstalled and first staffed with investigating censors, later with censors-in-chief. By 1453, the grand coordinators were granted the title vice censor-in-chief or assistant censor-in-chief and were allowed direct access to

23100-458: The release of the former ruler and sent two delegations to China to negotiate his return. However, it was not until September 1450 that Emperor Yingzong was successfully returned. During his twelve and a half months in captivity, he was treated fairly by the Oirats and returned to China as their friend. On 19 September, Emperor Yingzong arrived in Beijing. Officials were forbidden to greet him, and only two or three people were sent to meet him with

23275-448: The resulting government presence and policies sparked more Miao and Yao revolts in 1464 to 1466, which were crushed by an army of 30,000 Ming troops (including 1,000 Mongols) joining the 160,000 local Guangxi . After the scholar and philosopher Wang Yangming (1472–1529) suppressed another rebellion in the region, he advocated single, unitary administration of Chinese and indigenous ethnic groups in order to bring about sinification of

23450-416: The right to establish a new dynasty . In 1363, Zhu Yuanzhang eliminated his archrival and leader of the rebel Han faction, Chen Youliang , in the Battle of Lake Poyang , arguably the largest naval battle in history . Known for its ambitious use of fire ships , Zhu's force of 200,000 Ming sailors were able to defeat a Han rebel force over triple their size, claimed to be 650,000-strong. The victory destroyed

23625-547: The scarcity of old coins, merchants had no choice but to use them, even at a nominal value . Some merchants refused to accept Ming coins altogether, while others only accepted silver. The shortage of currency resulted in a return to barter in certain regions, including Yunnan , Guizhou , Sichuan , Jiangxi , Huguang , Shaanxi , and Shanxi . Private mints in Ming China also had an impact on foreign trade, as their coins were accepted as currency in other countries, despite

23800-456: The scholar-officials who populated the many ranks of bureaucracy were recruited through a rigorous examination system that was initially established by the Sui dynasty (581–618). Theoretically the system of exams allowed anyone to join the ranks of imperial officials (although it was frowned upon for merchants to join); in reality the time and funding needed to support the study in preparation for

23975-464: The scope of their leases. In March 1448, the Deng brothers rebelled and began to conquer one county after another. The government attempted to calm the situation by forgiving unpaid taxes and granting a three-year exemption from compulsory labor for the population in the region. However, the more radical faction of the rebels, numbering several hundred thousand men, refused to back down. The local militia

24150-414: The scrutiny of recorded evaluation, although they were expected to confess any of their faults. There were over 4,000 school instructors in county and prefectural schools who were subject to evaluations every nine years. The Chief Instructor on the prefectural level was classified as equal to a second-grade county graduate. The Supervisorate of Imperial Instruction oversaw the education of the heir apparent to

24325-564: The second to fourth campaigns in the Luchuan–Pingmian campaigns from 1441 to 1449. This was the first time in the history of the Ming dynasty that a civil official was given supreme command of the troops. Under Wang Ji's leadership, a Ming army of 50,000 soldiers successfully defeated the Shans. Si Renfa was captured by the Burmese state and the Ming ally of Ava, and the territory of Luchuan

24500-405: The secretaries having to take his opinions into account. Lady Zhang, however, viewed Wang Zhen's influence on the emperor as dangerous and attempted to restrict him, even going so far as to order him to commit suicide in 1437. Despite this, the emperor, with the support of some officials, managed to prevent the order from being carried out. The political landscape underwent significant changes in

24675-455: The state's coin production. In the northern cities, particularly Beijing, coins were the primary form of currency during the 15th century. This led officials to criticize them as the reason for the failure of banknotes. In 1447, the Governor of North Zhili called for a renewed campaign against coinage, citing its exclusive use in trade in Beijing and the Grand Canal cities as the cause of

24850-583: The steppe in November 1449. The Ming government restored the border but did not take any further offensive action. Historians at the time, in an effort to avoid what is an obvious taboo of the country's head of state becoming a prisoner of war, referred to this chapter of Emperor Yingzong's life as the "Northern Hunt" ( 北狩 ). In Chinese historiography, the consequences of the Tumu crisis are often referred to as Tumu zhi bian . The term bian means "to turn" and

25025-517: The terms that he return to service. The agreement soon broke down when a local magistrate had thirty-six of his fellow rebels executed; Li's troops retaliated by killing the officials and continued to lead a rebellion based in Rongyang, central Henan province by 1635. By the 1640s, an ex-soldier and rival to Li— Zhang Xianzhong (1606–1647)—had created a firm rebel base in Chengdu , Sichuan , with

25200-426: The throne under the era name Jingtai (r. 1449–57); the Oirats were also repelled once the Jingtai Emperor's confidant and defense minister Yu Qian (1398–1457) gained control of the Ming armed forces. Holding the Zhengtong Emperor in captivity was a useless bargaining chip for the Oirats as long as another sat on his throne, so they released him back into Ming China. The former emperor was placed under house arrest in

25375-555: The throne. According to the 17th century Chinese historian Mao Qiling , Zhu Zhanshan was supported by the Grand Empress Dowager Zhang , who was both his and Xuande's mother. However, Empress Dowager Sun quickly intervened and prevented Zhu Zhanshan's ascension, resulting in Zhu Qizhen being crowned as the new emperor. Despite this, Lady Zhang still held significant influence in the government. In contrast,

25550-408: The throne; this office was headed by a Grand Supervisor of Instruction, who was ranked as first class of grade three. Historians debate whether the examination system expanded or contracted upward social mobility. On the one hand, the exams were graded without regard to a candidate's social background, and were theoretically open to everyone. In actual practice, the successful candidates had years of

25725-530: The use of coins was officially not allowed until 1436, in response to a petition from a prefect of Guangxi , the government had actually stopped the production of coins in either 1433 or 1436. With the closure of the mints, the shortage of coins worsened over time. Entrepreneurs responded to the demand for coins by producing them privately, which was illegal. Despite the efforts of disgruntled officials in Beijing, they were unable to suppress this private production. However, they also did not take action to restore

25900-456: The validity of the theory that silver shortages caused the downfall of the Ming dynasty. Famines became common in northern China in the early 17th century because of unusually dry and cold weather that shortened the growing season—effects of a larger ecological event now known as the Little Ice Age . Famine, alongside tax increases, widespread military desertions, a declining relief system, and natural disasters such as flooding and inability of

26075-464: The victims by remitting taxes in large quantities, particularly during the regency of Grand Empress Dowager Zhang, who consistently showed concern for the impoverished. However, despite these efforts, dissatisfaction among the population continued to grow. This was largely due to the compulsory work system, which placed an unbearable burden on the people in some regions. As a result, artisans evaded state demands and peasants abandoned their land, leading to

26250-640: The wake of a Mongol-Tibetan alliance initiated in 1578, an alliance which affected the foreign policy of the subsequent Manchu Qing dynasty (1644–1912) in their support for the Dalai Lama of the Yellow Hat sect. By the late 16th century, the Mongols proved to be successful armed protectors of the Yellow Hat Dalai Lama after their increasing presence in the Amdo region, culminating in

26425-405: The war was Esen's request for an imperial princess for his son. After the death of the Yongle Emperor, the state of defense along the northern borders began to deteriorate gradually. The quality of training, as well as the weapons and equipment, were declining. In fact, soldiers from the Beijing garrison were even being used for the construction of government and private buildings. At this time,

26600-423: The young prince, followed by the entire court. Emperor Yingzong's ascension to the throne was in accordance with the rules, as he was the eldest son of the deceased emperor and the officially created crown prince. However, the laws established by the founder of the dynasty, the Hongwu Emperor , enshrined a system of government in which a strong and decisive monarch was expected to make decisions independently, with

26775-536: Was Tianshun , which means "obedience to Heaven". The following month, the Jingtai Emperor died. Emperor Yingzong ruled for another seven years before his death in 1464 at the age of thirty-six. His eldest son, the Chenghua Emperor , then ascended to the imperial throne. Zhu Qizhen was born on 29 November 1427, as the elder of the two sons of the Xuande Emperor . His mother, Lady Sun , was one of

26950-546: Was a matter of uncles promoting nephews. The Heishanhui Society in Peking sponsored the temple that conducted rituals for worshiping the memory of Gang Tie, a powerful eunuch of the Yuan dynasty. The Temple became an influential base for highly placed eunuchs, and continued in a somewhat diminished role during the Qing dynasty. During the last years of the Wanli era and those of his two successors, an economic crisis developed that

27125-451: Was a penniless peasant and Buddhist monk who joined the Red Turbans in 1352; he soon gained a reputation after marrying the foster daughter of a rebel commander. In 1356, Zhu's rebel force captured the city of Nanjing , which he would later establish as the capital of the Ming dynasty. With the Yuan dynasty crumbling, competing rebel groups began fighting for control of the country and thus

27300-606: Was allowed to fall into disrepair while forced labor constructed the Liaodong palisade and connected and fortified the Great Wall into its modern form. Wide-ranging censuses of the entire empire were conducted decennially, but the desire to avoid labor and taxes and the difficulty of storing and reviewing the enormous archives at Nanjing hampered accurate figures. Estimates for the late-Ming population vary from 160 to 200 million, but necessary revenues were squeezed out of smaller and smaller numbers of farmers as more disappeared from

27475-579: Was called the Eastern Depot at the beginning of the dynasty, later the Western Depot. This secret service was overseen by the Directorate of Ceremonial, hence this state organ's often totalitarian affiliation. Eunuchs had ranks that were equivalent to civil service ranks, only theirs had four grades instead of nine. Emperor Yingzong of Ming Emperor Yingzong of Ming (29 November 1427 – 23 February 1464), personal name Zhu Qizhen ,

27650-412: Was captured and on 3 September was sent to Esen's main camp near Xuanfu. After reclaiming the area, the Ming troops recovered tens of thousands of firearms, armor, and other equipment. Despite their initial success, the Mongols failed in their attempts to occupy Xuanfu and Datong by using the captured Emperor Yingzong. They were also unsuccessful in their pursuit of Beijing and eventually retreated back to

27825-478: Was centered on a sudden widespread lack of the empire's chief medium of exchange: silver. The Portuguese first established trade with China in 1516. Following the Ming Emperor's decision to ban direct trade with Japan, Portuguese traders acted as an intermediary between China and Japan by buying Chinese silks from China and selling it to Japan for silver. After some initial hostilities gained consent from

28000-537: Was divided among other Shan states. As a reward for his success, Wang Ji was promoted to the rank of Count of Jingyuan, and his deputy Xu Xi took over as Minister of War. Any criticism that resources were being drained from the North to fund the war in the South was suppressed. In 1443–1444 and 1445, the war continued with Ming troops unsuccessfully fighting against Ava. Another campaign took place in 1448–1449, during which

28175-536: Was in comparison to the 100,000 shengyuan ('government students'), the lowest tier of graduates, by the 16th century. The maximum tenure in office was nine years, but every three years officials were graded on their performance by senior officials. If they were graded as superior then they were promoted, if graded adequate then they retained their ranks, and if graded inadequate they were demoted one rank. In extreme cases, officials would be dismissed or punished. Only capital officials of grade 4 and above were exempt from

28350-497: Was later seen as a golden age by future generations. The eunuch Wang Zhen served as the teacher, tutor, and confidant of the emperor. He was from the northern Chinese province of Shanxi , just like Lady Zhang, and was significantly younger than the other members of the Imperial Council, being in his thirties. It quickly became evident that the emperor placed complete trust in him, leading to an increase in his power and

28525-456: Was less than 200 km from Beijing, the defense system lacked depth and relied on a quick and decisive response to any potential attack. In the summer of 1449, unrest was spreading on the northern border. On 20 July, news arrived of a Mongol raid led by Esen. In response, the emperor ordered four generals and 45,000 soldiers from the Beijing garrison to advance to Datong and Xuanfu to guard the border. However, on 30 July, news reached Beijing that

28700-423: Was more ambitious than his father, and in 1443 and 1445, he launched attacks on Hami , an important city on the route from China to Central Asia near the Chinese border. In 1448, he successfully conquered it. He also attempted to gain the support of the Mongol divisions in the Ming army in western Gansu . In the east, his influence extended all the way to the borders of Korea. In Beijing, the unification of Mongolia

28875-431: Was no one after him skilled enough to maintain the stability of these alliances; officials soon banded together in opposing political factions. Over time Wanli grew tired of court affairs and frequent political quarreling amongst his ministers, preferring to stay behind the walls of the Forbidden City and out of his officials' sight. Scholar-officials lost prominence in administration as eunuchs became intermediaries between

29050-503: Was not conquering territory from the Yuan dynasty but rather from the rebel warlords. He used this line of argument to attempt to persuade Yuan loyalists to join his cause. The Ming used the tribute they received from former Yuan vassals as proof that the Ming had taken over the Yuan's legitimacy. Tribute missions were regularly celebrated with music and dance in the Ming court. Hui Muslim troops settled in Changde , Hunan , after serving

29225-448: Was organized parallel to but was not subject to the civil service bureaucracy. Although there were several dictatorial eunuchs throughout the Ming, such as Wang Zhen , Wang Zhi, and Liu Jin , excessive tyrannical eunuch power did not become evident until the 1590s when the Wanli Emperor increased their rights over the civil bureaucracy and granted them power to collect provincial taxes. The eunuch Wei Zhongxian (1568–1627) dominated

29400-499: Was perceived as a threat by Wang Zhen's opponents. The Mongols were primarily interested in free trade with China, specifically exchanging horses for luxury goods such as tea and silk. Some Mongols who resided along the border relied on agriculture for their livelihood and sought support from the Ming authorities. However, the Ming government focused on trading tea for horses in Gansu, with tribes in present-day Qinghai , rather than on

29575-497: Was the Forbidden City , the palatial residence of the emperor and his family. By 1553, the Outer City was added to the south, which brought the overall size of Beijing to 6.5 by 7 kilometres (4 by 4 + 1 ⁄ 2 miles). Beginning in 1405, the Yongle Emperor entrusted his favored eunuch commander Zheng He (1371–1433) as the admiral for a gigantic new fleet of ships designated for international tributary missions . Among

29750-443: Was the first Chinese peasant uprising aimed at challenging class relations within the village. The miners' revolt was ultimately suppressed by August 1449, and the remaining Fujian rebels were dispersed by 1452. The emperor's successes in the southeast and southwest may have led him to overestimate the strength of the Ming troops and his own willingness to personally lead the army. The Mongols were divided into three main groups:

29925-479: Was the leader of the council, which consisted of three Grand Secretaries and three eunuchs. The Grand Secretaries, known as the "Three Yangs"—Yang Shiqi, Yang Rong, and Yang Pu—had been in their positions for many years, with Yang Pu serving as Grand Secretary since 1424 and the other two since 1402. They were highly skilled, influential, and respected. The eunuchs, Wang Jin , Fan Hong , and Jin Ying , were in charge of

30100-486: Was the sixth and eighth emperor of the Ming dynasty . He ruled as the Zhengtong Emperor from 1435 to 1449, and as the Tianshun Emperor from 1457 until his death in 1464. He was the eldest son and successor of the Xuande Emperor . After ascending the throne, he adopted the era name Zhengtong , which means "right governance". During his first reign, the empire was at its height of prosperity and power. As

30275-474: Was then appointed as Minister of War and successfully stabilized the situation by organizing the defense of Beijing with a new army. On 17 September, Zhu Qiyu ascended the throne as the Jingtai Emperor and declared the captured brother as Tàishàng Huángdi ( 太上皇帝 ; 'Emperor Emeritus'). The new Jingtai regime aimed to discredit the previous ruler, who had been deemed a failure. Border commanders were instructed not to communicate with him. Esen attempted to secure

30450-404: Was too lenient and saw the war as an opportunity to increase state revenue. As a result, he pushed for a new campaign to be launched. Reinforcements were sent from Sichuan, Guizhou, and Huguang to Yunnan, and in early 1441, Minister of War Wang Ji was placed in overall command. Wang Ji was an experienced civil official who had held the position of Minister of War since 1435. He had also commanded

30625-514: Was unable to handle the situation, prompting the government to send an army of 50,000 to the southeast in September 1448. In late 1448, the rebel miners were defeated by troops on the border between Fujian and Jiangsu. The Deng brothers were captured in February 1449, and their successors were defeated in May of the same year. According to Japanese historian Tanaka Masayoshi, the Deng brothers' revolt

#565434