Bolo (
Manchu: ''Bolo''; 1613 – 23 April 1652), formally known as
Prince Duanzhong, was a
Manchu prince of the
Qing dynasty
The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-spea ...
. He was born in the
Aisin Gioro clan, the imperial clan of the Qing dynasty, as the third son of
Abatai
Abatai (Manchu: ; 27 July 1589 – 10 May 1646) was a Manchu prince and military general of the early Qing dynasty. Although an inconsistent and dissolute malcontent, he nevertheless showed considerable ability as a military leader and a ...
.
Life
Bolo was conferred the title of a
''beizi'' (fourth-rank prince) in 1636 and took part in the campaigns against the Mongols, Chinese, and Koreans.
In 1644, Bolo followed
Dorgon
Dorgon (, ; 17 November 1612 – 31 December 1650), was a Manchu prince and regent of the early Qing dynasty. Born in the House of Aisin-Gioro as the 14th son of Nurhaci (the founder of the Later Jin dynasty, predecessor of the Qing dynast ...
to
Beijing
}
Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...
. He accompanied
Dodo
The dodo (''Raphus cucullatus'') is an extinct flightless bird that was endemic to the island of Mauritius, which is east of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean. The dodo's closest genetic relative was the also-extinct Rodrigues solitaire. The ...
in pursuit of
Li Zicheng
Li Zicheng (22 September 1606 – 1645), born Li Hongji, also known by the nickname, Dashing King, was a Chinese peasant rebel leader who overthrew the Ming dynasty in 1644 and ruled over northern China briefly as the emperor of the short-li ...
, and was promoted to the status of a
''beile'' (third-rank prince) for his achievement. In 1645, he followed Dodo to
Nanjing
Nanjing (; , Mandarin pronunciation: ), alternately romanized as Nanking, is the capital of Jiangsu province of the People's Republic of China. It is a sub-provincial city, a megacity, and the second largest city in the East China region. T ...
where he was given command of half the army to pacify nearby cities. He succeeded in taking
Changzhou
Changzhou ( Changzhounese: ''Zaon Tsei'', ) is a prefecture-level city in southern Jiangsu province, China. It was previously known as Yanling, Lanling and Jinling. Located on the southern bank of the Yangtze River, Changzhou borders the provin ...
,
Suzhou, and
Hangzhou
Hangzhou ( or , ; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ), also romanized as Hangchow, is the capital and most populous city of Zhejiang, China. It is located in the northwestern part of the province, sitting at the head of Hangzhou Bay, whic ...
, but returned to Beijing late the same year. In 1646, he was again sent to
Zhejiang
Zhejiang ( or , ; , Chinese postal romanization, also romanized as Chekiang) is an East China, eastern, coastal Provinces of China, province of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Hangzhou, and other notable citie ...
, this time as commander-in-chief of the Qing troops with the title "Great General Who Pacifies the South" (平南大將軍). His aim was to conquer Zhejiang and
Fujian
Fujian (; alternately romanized as Fukien or Hokkien) is a province on the southeastern coast of China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its cap ...
and this he accomplished in 1646. From Fujian he sent a detachment south, which took
Guangzhou
Guangzhou (, ; ; or ; ), also known as Canton () and alternatively romanized as Kwongchow or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of Guangdong province in southern China. Located on the Pearl River about north-northwest of Hong Kon ...
from remaining
Southern Ming
The Southern Ming (), also known as the Later Ming (), officially the Great Ming (), was an imperial dynasty of China and a series of rump states of the Ming dynasty that came into existence following the Jiashen Incident of 1644. Shun force ...
forces early in 1647.
On his triumphal return to Beijing, Bolo was promoted to a
''junwang'' (second-rank prince) and given the title "
Prince Duanzhong of the Second Rank". In 1648, he and
Ajige
Ajige (Manchu:, Mölendroff: ajige; 28 August 1605 – 28 November 1651) was a Manchu prince and military general of the early Qing dynasty. He was born in the Aisin Gioro clan as the 12th son of Nurhaci, the khan of the Later Jin dynasty (the ...
were commissioned to inquire into the situation in Mongolia, however a rebellion broke out simultaneously in
Datong,
Shanxi, and both laid siege to the city to quell the rebellion. When Dorgon personally conducted the siege of Datong in 1649 he promoted Bolo to the status of a
''qinwang'' (first-rank prince), and placed him in command of an expedition to suppress another uprising in Shanxi. After those who were rebelling were subdued late in 1649, Bolo returned to Beijing. The following year he was entrusted with the supervision of the Six Boards of the central government but was soon demoted to the status of a ''junwang'' for failing to inform against the president of a Board, who had disobeyed orders. Early in 1651, he was reinstated as a ''qinwang''. He and the princes Nikan and Mandahai were trusted by Dorgon and were left in power after the latter died. Before long, however, Bolo aligned himself with the princes who had opposed Dorgon. Later he was once more demoted to ''junwang'', this time for failure to report that Ajige, then in prison, was in possession of weapons. Eventually, his rank of a ''qinwang'' was restored to him. After Dorgon's death in 1650, Bolo married one of his consorts, the Korean princess
Yi Ae-suk.
[Veritable Records of Hyeongjong, volume 5, day 18, month 5, year 3 of Hyeongjong's reign.] After his death in 1652, he was granted the posthumous name ''Ding'' (定), and his title was passed on to one of his sons. But when it was disclosed that Bolo while living had appropriated for his own use property which had belonged to Dorgon, he was posthumously deprived of all honours, and his descendants were also deprived of their ranks in 1659.
A small work written in 1673, entitled ''Guoxu Zhi'' (過墟志), tells the story of a Manchu prince who engaged in the conquest of south China, and married a Chinese widow surnamed Liu (劉). This work did not disclosed the name of the prince in question, but according to internal evidence, some historians believe Bolo is the prince described in the work.
See also
*
Royal and noble ranks of the Qing dynasty
The Qing dynasty (1636–1912) of China developed a complicated peerage system for royal and noble ranks.
Rule of inheritance
In principle, titles were downgraded one grade for each generation of inheritance.
* Direct imperial princes wit ...
*
Ranks of imperial consorts in China#Qing
References
Suggested readings
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bolo (prince)
Deliberative Princes and Ministers
Qing dynasty imperial princes
1613 births
1652 deaths
Prince Duanzhong