Empress Xiaoyuanzhen (1580–1613), of the Guo clan, was the first wife of the

Taichang Emperor The Taichang Emperor (; 28 August 1582 – 26 September 1620), personal name Zhu Changluo (), was the 15th Emperor of the Ming dynasty. He was the eldest son of the Wanli Emperor and succeeded his father as emperor in 1620. However, his reign c ...

when he was

crown prince A crown prince or hereditary prince is the heir apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The female form of the title is crown princess, which may refer either to an heiress apparent or, especially in earlier times, to the wif ...

. She died before he ascended the throne, but is more commonly known by her posthumous name.

Biography

Lady Guo was selected as concubine to the crown prince, Zhu Changluo, in 1601.Her father, Guo Weicheng, was enfeoffed as

Count Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

of Boping () as a result of her status, and later raised to the rank of

marquis A marquess (; french: marquis ), es, marqués, pt, marquês. is a nobleman of high hereditary rank in various European peerages and in those of some of their former colonies. The German language equivalent is Markgraf (margrave). A woman wi ...

.Zhang Tingyu (1739), Second Biographies She died in 1613.

Titles

*During the reign of the

Wanli Emperor The Wanli Emperor (; 4 September 1563 – 18 August 1620), personal name Zhu Yijun (), was the 14th Emperor of the Ming dynasty, reigned from 1572 to 1620. "Wanli", the era name of his reign, literally means "ten thousand calendars". He was the ...

(r. 1572–1620): **Lady Guo (郭氏; from 1580) **Crown Princess (太子妃; from 1601) **''Crown Princess Gongjing'' (恭靖太子妃; from 1613) *During the reign of the

Tianqi Emperor The Tianqi Emperor (23 December 1605 – 30 September 1627), personal name Zhu Youjiao (), was the 16th Emperor of the Ming dynasty, reigning from 1620 to 1627. He was the eldest son of the Taichang Emperor and a elder brother of the Chongzhe ...

(r. 1621–1627): **''Empress Xiàoyuán Zhāoyì Zhéhuì Zhuāngrén Hétiān Bìshèng Zhēn'' (孝元昭懿哲惠莊仁合天弼聖貞皇后; from 1621)

Issue

*As Crown Princess: **Princess Daoyi of Huaishu (懷淑悼懿公主; 1604–1610), personal name Huijian (徽娟), the Taichang Emperor's second daughter

Burial

Lady Guo died while her husband was still

, and her burial with the accoutrements and rituals of an imperial crown prince's concubine was prevented by her father-in-law, the

. It was not until an assassination attempt against Zhu Changluo in 1615, allegedly orchestrated by his father's favourite concubine

Noble Consort Zheng Noble Consort Zheng (1565–1630), was a Ming dynasty concubine of the Wanli Emperor. She is known for having been his most beloved consort and, in an attempt to please her, he tried to make her son his heir apparent. This act caused over a decade ...

, that popular opinion forced the emperor to acknowledge his eldest son and grant Lady Guo a proper burial. At this time, she was granted the

posthumous name A posthumous name is an honorary name given mostly to the notable dead in East Asian culture. It is predominantly practiced in East Asian countries such as China, Korea, Vietnam, Japan, and Thailand. Reflecting on the person's accomplishments or ...

of ''Crown Princess'' Gongjing. When the

, her husband's son by a concubine, ascended the throne, he granted her the posthumous title of ''Empress'' and had her remains moved to the

Ming tombs The Ming tombs are a collection of mausoleums built by the emperors of the Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol-led ...

, where she was buried alongside the short-lived

and included in the family shrine.

References

Notes

Works cited

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Xiaoyuanzhen, Empress 1580 births 1613 deaths 16th-century Chinese women 16th-century Chinese people 17th-century Chinese women 17th-century Chinese people Ming dynasty posthumous empresses People from Beijing