Soni (1601–1667), also known as Sonin, and rarely Sony ( mnc, ; ), was a

Manchu 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) and ...

noble of the

Hešeri Hešeri (Chinese: 赫舍里; Pinyin: Hesheli; Manchu: ''Hešeri''), is a clan of Manchu nobility with Jianzhou Jurchens roots, originally hailing from the area which is now the modern Chinese provinces of Jilin and Liaoning. It was once one of t ...

clan who served as one of the

Four Regents The Four Regents of the Kangxi Emperor were nominated by the Shunzhi Emperor to oversee the government of the Qing dynasty during the early reign of the Kangxi Emperor before he came of age. The four were Sonin, Ebilun, Suksaha, and Oboi. Backgrou ...

of the

Kangxi Emperor The Kangxi Emperor (4 May 1654– 20 December 1722), also known by his temple name Emperor Shengzu of Qing, born Xuanye, was the third emperor of the Qing dynasty, and the second Qing emperor to rule over China proper, reigning from 1661 to 1 ...

(r. 1661–1722) during 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 ...

(1644–1912). His clan belonged to the

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

Early life

Soni's father Šose (Chinese: Shuose 硕色) and uncle Hife (Xifu 希福), who were both fluent in

Mandarin Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to: Language * Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country ** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China ** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...

, Mongolian and

, served as high officials under Manchu patriarch

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 ...

(1559–1626). Like them, Soni was valued for his linguistic abilities. In 1628, under Nurhaci's successor

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 ...

(1592–1643), Soni led a successful

diplomatic Diplomatics (in American English, and in most anglophone countries), or diplomatic (in British English), is a scholarly discipline centred on the critical analysis of documents: especially, historical documents. It focuses on the conventions, p ...

mission to convince the recently surrendered

Khorchin Mongols The Khorchin ( mn, Хорчин, ''Horçin''; ''Qorčin''; ) are a subgroup of the Mongols that speak the Khorchin dialect of Mongolian and predominantly live in northeastern Inner Mongolia of China. History The Ming dynasty gave Borjigin p ...

to honor their pledge to help the Manchus militarily. In 1629 he was named to the newly created "Literary Office" (Chinese: ''wenguan'' 文館), an institution that kept a detailed record of Manchu history and translated Chinese books about statecraft and Chinese and Korean state documents into Manchu. In 1630 Soni was ordered to remain in recently conquered Chinese cities to supervise surrendered Chinese leaders and commanders. By 1643, Soni had become "grand minister of the imperial bodyguard," and when Hong Taiji died in September of that year, Soni used his allies in the guards unit and the yellow banners to ensure that only a son of Hong Taiji would succeed to the Qing throne. Soon after

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 dynasty) ...

(1612–1650) was chosen as Prince Regent for Hong Taiji's son Fulin—who reigned as the

Shunzhi Emperor The Shunzhi Emperor (15 March 1638 – 5 February 1661) was the second Emperor of China, emperor of the Qing dynasty of China, and the first Qing emperor to rule over China proper, reigning from 1644 to 1661. A Deliberative Council of Prince ...

from 1643 to his death in 1661—the Manchu victory at the

Battle of Shanhai Pass The Battle of Shanhai Pass, fought on May 27, 1644 at Shanhai Pass at the eastern end of the Great Wall of China, Great Wall, was a decisive battle leading to the beginning of the Qing dynasty rule in China proper. There, the Qing prince-regen ...

in late May 1644 allowed the Qing to take control of north China and to move their capital from

Mukden 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 ...

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 ...

. Despite repeated military successes in the south, in 1645 factional struggles started around Dorgon. Deeply involved in many of the factional struggles of the second half of the 1640s, Soni was in turn favored, sentenced to death, pardoned, dismissed from office, reinstated, and dismissed again in 1648, the last time for good.

As regent

Before the

died, Soni was appointed as one of the four regents to support the young

, along with

Suksaha Suksaha (Manchu: ; ; died 1667) was a Manchu official of the early Qing dynasty from the Nara clan. A military officer who participated in the Manchu conquest of China, Suksaha became one of the Four Regents during the early reign of the Kangxi ...

Ebilun Ebilun (Manchu:, Mölendroff: ebilun; ; died 1673) was a Manchu noble and warrior of the Niohuru clan, most famous for being one of the Four Regents assisting the young Kangxi Emperor from 1661 to 1667, during the early Qing dynasty (1644–1912 ...

and

Oboi Oboi (Manchu: , Mölendorff: Oboi; ) (c. 1610–1669) was a prominent Manchu military commander and courtier who served in various military and administrative posts under three successive emperors of the early Qing dynasty. Born to the Guwalgi ...

. Soni was the top of these four regents and ably helped the young emperor defend against Oboi, who wanted to increase his own power over the emperor. During the first years of Kangxi's reign, a power struggle ensued among the regents. Soni was too old to exert his leadership. His son

Songgotu Songgotu (Manchu: ; ; 1636 – 1703) was a minister during the reign of the Kangxi Emperor of the Qing dynasty. He was an uncle of the emperor's primary spouse, Empress Xiaochengren of the Hešeri clan, who died during childbirth. He was also ...

helped the young emperor to get rid of

. On 16 October 1665, the eleven-year-old

took Soni's grand daughter, Lady Hešeri (1653–1674), who was a few months older than him, as his Empress.. Because Soni's powerful family would now presumably support the emperor, this marriage split the regency..

Death

Sonin died on 12 August 1667. His death provoked a series of changes in the regency: just as the other regents, led by Oboi, tried to consolidate their power, the emperor vied to assert his own power.

References

Notes

Works cited

*. *. *. *. *. {{DEFAULTSORT:Sonin 1601 births 1667 deaths 17th-century Chinese people 17th-century viceregal rulers Deliberative Princes and Ministers Manchu Plain Yellow Bannermen Hešeri clan Qing dynasty regents