Fan Wencheng (,

courtesy name A courtesy name (), also known as a style name, is a name bestowed upon one at adulthood in addition to one's given name. This practice is a tradition in the East Asian cultural sphere, including China, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam.Ulrich Theo ...

: Xiandou 憲斗, 1597–1666) was a

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-speak ...

Scholar-Official The scholar-officials, also known as literati, scholar-gentlemen or scholar-bureaucrats (), were government officials and prestigious scholars in Chinese society, forming a distinct social class. Scholar-officials were politicians and governmen ...

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is ...

and

Grand Secretary The Grand Secretariat (; Manchu: ''dorgi yamun'') was nominally a coordinating agency but ''de facto'' the highest institution in the imperial government of the Chinese Ming dynasty. It first took shape after the Hongwu Emperor abolished the o ...

''(Daxue Shi)''. His official career went through four generation of

emperors through

Nurhaci Nurhaci (14 May 1559 – 30 September 1626), also known by his temple name as the Emperor Taizu of Qing (), was a Jurchen chieftain who rose to prominence in the late 16th century in Manchuria. A member of the House of Aisin-Gioro, he reigned ...

Hong Taiji Hong Taiji (28 November 1592 – 21 September 1643), also rendered as Huang Taiji and sometimes referred to as Abahai in Western literature, also known by his temple name as the Emperor Taizong of Qing, was the second khan of the Later Jin ...

, Shunzhi, and Kangxi. Many rules and regulations in the early days 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-speak ...

were drafted by him.

Early life

Nurhaci's appreciation

He was born in an official family in

Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last ort ...

, claiming himself to be a descendant of Fan Zhongyan (989-1052), a famous statesmen in the

Northern Song Dynasty Northern may refer to the following: Geography * North, a point in direction * Northern Europe, the northern part or region of Europe * Northern Highland, a region of Wisconsin, United States * Northern Province, Sri Lanka * Northern Range, a ...

. However, the Fan family had exiled and migrated to

Manchuria Manchuria is an exonym (derived from the endo demonym " Manchu") for a historical and geographic region in Northeast Asia encompassing the entirety of present-day Northeast China (Inner Manchuria) and parts of the Russian Far East (Outer M ...

by early 17th century. (The specific position is in

Shenyang Shenyang (, ; ; Mandarin pronunciation: ), formerly known as Fengtian () or by its Manchu name Mukden, is a major Chinese sub-provincial city and the provincial capital of Liaoning province. Located in central-north Liaoning, it is the provi ...

city in China.) Fan Wencheng's great-grandfather was the President of the Board of War during the Ming dynasty who surrendered to

Manchu army The Manchus (; ) are a Tungusic East Asian ethnic group native to Manchuria in Northeast Asia. They are an officially recognized ethnic minority in China and the people from whom Manchuria derives its name. The Later Jin (1616–1636) a ...

(led by Nurhachi) when it conquered the North Pass (

Fushun Fushun (, formerly romanised as ''Fouchouen'', using French spelling, also as Fuxi ()) is a prefecture level city in Liaoning province, China, about east of Shenyang, with a total area of , of which is the city proper. Situated on the Hun Rive ...

) in 1618. Fan Wencheng loved reading when he was a young. He was very intelligent and decisive and became a scholar () of Shenyang City. In 1618, When Nurhaci overcame Fushun from the Ming dynasty, Fan Wencheng was brought to Nurhaci's headquarters. Nurhaci was respected and recognized Fan's wisdom and knowledge after speak with him. Nurhaci also learned of Fan's ancestral connections to the

Song A song is a musical composition intended to be performed by the human voice. This is often done at distinct and fixed pitches (melodies) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs contain various forms, such as those including the repetiti ...

official Fan Zhongyan, with whose story Nurhaci is depicted as being casually familiar. The

khan Khan may refer to: *Khan (inn), from Persian, a caravanserai or resting-place for a travelling caravan *Khan (surname), including a list of people with the name *Khan (title), a royal title for a ruler in Mongol and Turkic languages and used by ...

was delighted and said to the gathered nobles( out of Fan's hearing, evidently, "This is the descendant of a famous minister, and you are to greet him most cordially." Soon, Fan was promoted from a

flunky In modern English, sycophant denotes an "insincere flatterer" and is used to refer to someone practising sycophancy (i.e., insincere flattery to gain advantage). The word has its origin in the legal system of Classical Athens. Most legal cases o ...

to a statesman by Nurhaci, because Fan's idea of defeating the Ming cajoled the Jin khans into pursuing this "great enterprise."

Defeating the Ming dynasty

Fan Wencheng was familiar with the political and military situations in the Ming Dynasty and the

Liaodong The Liaodong Peninsula (also Liaotung Peninsula, ) is a peninsula in southern Liaoning province in Northeast China, and makes up the southwestern coastal half of the Liaodong region. It is located between the mouths of the Daliao River (the ...

area. So he was chosen by Nurhaci as a counselor for a war. After Nurhaci died, his son

became the emperor. Hong Taiji called Fan Wencheng to help him deal with the affairs of the court. Fan's courage and wisdom Fan Wencheng's tactics and wisdom on the battlefield helped the Qing Dynasty to defeat the Ming Dynasty many times.

Helping Qing Rule

Respecting Traditional Han culture

When the Qing Dynasty was just established, Fang Wencheng emphasized the importance of respecting the traditional Han culture to the new Manchu emperors, and consequently the Han Chinese during the early Qing Dynasty were ironically somewhat grateful to him After Hong Taiji died, his son Shunzhi became the emperor of Qing dynasty. Shunzhi emperor called Fan family attached to the

Bordered Yellow Banner The Bordered Yellow Banner () was one of the Eight Banners of Manchu military and society during the Later Jin and Qing dynasty of China. The Bordered Yellow Banner was one of three "upper" banner armies under the direct command of the emperor ...

. When

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 ...

was in command of the Qing army to crusade against the Ming Dynasty, Fan submitted a written statement to Shunzhi claimed that now people are destitute, before, Qing Dynasty used massacres to suppress the insurgency, so the people were suspicious of the purpose of the Qing Dynasty. Therefore, this expedition requires that soldiers strictly abide by the discipline. The Qing army should respect the Han people and do not infringe on the wealth of the Han people. Therefore, People will know the intention of the Qing dynasty. According to the

Draft History of Qing The ''Draft History of Qing'' () is a draft of the official history of the Qing dynasty compiled and written by a team of over 100 historians led by Zhao Erxun who were hired by the Beiyang government of the Republic of China. The draft was publ ...

, Fan suggested that the official in the

Ming Dynasty The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last ort ...

can continue to be an official to help people to get rid of poverty, and the Qing should widely recruit capable and talented people to join the Qing Dynasty.

Retirement

After Fan Wencheng retired, Emperor Shunzhi also pursued him as Grand Tutor () and Grand Guardian of the Heir Apparent (). These positions are the first grade of the Qing government office, symbolizing the highest honor of the entire empire. The Grand Tutor is the Emperor's teacher, and the Grand Guardian of the Heir Apparent protects the security of the crown prince. Fan Wencheng died aged 70 after Kangxi became Emperor in 1666.

Contribution

As a Han Chinese, Fan Wencheng was placed in a high position in the court by the Manchu ruler in a long time of period. Fan Wencheng was responsible for many of the important enterprises of the Qing court during its first 30 years. Fan Wencheng himself was Prime Minister to Emperor Shunzhi for almost 10 year, It is undeniable that his intelligence and strategy greatly helped the

Qing emperors The Qing dynasty (1636–1912) was a Manchu-led imperial Chinese dynasty and the last orthodox dynasty of China. It was officially founded in 1636 in what is now Northeast China, but only succeeded the Ming dynasty in China proper in 1644. The Qi ...

to rule

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...

. Fan drafted the document in which the regent Dorgon announced the new regime's intent to assume the throne in Beijing.

Bibliography

*History of China () the tenth volume, the Qing Dynasty, chapter 8 "Fan Wenchen
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"Fan Wencheng zhuang" () *Qing Governors and Their Provinces: The Evolution of Territorial Administration in China, 1644-1796 by R. Kent Gu
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fan, Wencheng Qing dynasty politicians from Liaoning Han Chinese Bordered Yellow Bannermen Grand Secretaries of the Qing dynasty 1597 births 1666 deaths Politicians from Shenyang Ming dynasty people Deliberative Princes and Ministers