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-lived
Shun dynasty
The Shun dynasty (), officially the Great Shun (), was a short-lived Chinese dynasty that existed during the Ming–Qing transition. The dynasty was founded in Xi'an on 8 February 1644, the first day of the lunar year, by Li Zicheng, the leade ...
before his death a year later.
Biography
Li Zicheng was born in 1606 as Li Hongji to an impoverished family of farmers in Li Jiqian village, Yan'an prefecture, northeast Shaanxi province. Li Zicheng had a brother who was 20 years his senior and raised Li Zicheng alongside his son and Zicheng’s nephew, Li Guo. While Li Zicheng was literate, the source of his education is disputed. Over the course of his late adolescence and early adulthood, Li worked on a farm, in a wine shop, in a blacksmith's shop, and as a mailman for the state courier system.
According to folklore, in 1630, Li was put on public display in an iron collar and shackles for failing to repay loans to a usurious magistrate. The magistrate, a man by the name of Ai, struck a guard who tried to give Li shade and water. A group of sympathetic peasants freed Li from his shackles, spirited him to a nearby hill, and proclaimed him their leader. Although they were only armed with wooden sticks, Li and his band managed to ambush a group of government soldiers sent to arrest them, and obtained their first real weapons.
By the late Ming dynasty era, the government had been weakened financially, and struggled to deal with the economic issues, environmental problems, and widespread disease (smallpox and possibly the plague) that afflicted peasant populations.
In 1639, an epidemic that would later become known as the
Chongzhen Great Plague hit the Yangzi region and spread across the north. Famine and drought compounded the social discontent caused by the epidemic. Environmental disaster, disease, and the failure of the Chongzhen government to protect its people led to major peasant uprisings across Northern China beginning in 1628, with the Shaanxi province as an epicenter of rebellion.
Li Zicheng and
Zhang Xianzhong
Zhang Xianzhong (张献忠 or Chang Hsien-chung; 18 September 1606 – 2 January 1647), nickname Huanghu (literally 'Yellow Tiger'), was a Chinese peasant leader who led a peasant revolt from Yan'an wei, Shaanxi (today Yulin, Shaanxi province) ...
, also from Shaanxi province, were two of the major leaders in the peasant rebellions under the late Ming dynasty.
In 1633, Li joined a rebel army led by Gao Yingxiang (高迎祥), nicknamed "Dashing King.” He inherited Gao's nickname and command of the rebel army after Gao's death.
Within three years, Li succeeded in rallying more than 30,000 men to form a rebel army. They attacked and killed prominent government officials, such as
Sun Chuanting, in the
Henan
Henan (; or ; ; alternatively Honan) is a landlocked province of China, in the central part of the country. Henan is often referred to as Zhongyuan or Zhongzhou (), which literally means "central plain" or "midland", although the name is al ...
,
Shanxi
Shanxi (; ; formerly romanised as Shansi) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the North China region. The capital and largest city of the province is Taiyuan, while its next most populated prefecture-lev ...
, and
Shaanxi
Shaanxi (alternatively Shensi, see #Name, § Name) is a landlocked Provinces of China, province of China. Officially part of Northwest China, it borders the province-level divisions of Shanxi (NE, E), Henan (E), Hubei (SE), Chongqing (S), Sichu ...
provinces. As Li won more battles and gained more support, his army grew larger. Historians attribute this growth in numbers to Li’s reputation as a Robin Hood style figure who showed compassion to the poor and only attacked Ming officials.
Li advocated the slogan of "dividing land equally and abolishing the grain taxes payment system" which won great support from the peasants. The song of "killing cattle and sheep, preparing tasty wine and opening the city gate to welcome the Dashing King" was widely spread at that time.
The
1642 Kaifeng flood, caused by breaches of the
Yellow River
The Yellow River or Huang He (Chinese: , Standard Beijing Mandarin, Mandarin: ''Huáng hé'' ) is the second-longest river in China, after the Yangtze River, and the List of rivers by length, sixth-longest river system in the world at th ...
dikes by both sides, ended the siege of
Kaifeng
Kaifeng () is a prefecture-level city in east-central Henan province, China. It is one of the Eight Ancient Capitals of China, having been the capital eight times in history, and is best known for having been the Chinese capital during the Nort ...
and killed over 300,000 of its 378,000 residents. After the battles of Luoyang and Kaifeng, the Ming government was unable to stop Li's rebellion, as most of its military force was involved in the battle against the
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 ...
s in the north.
In 1643, Li captured
Xiangyang
Xiangyang is a prefecture-level city in northwestern Hubei province, China and the second largest city in Hubei by population. It was known as Xiangfan from 1950 to 2010. The Han River runs through Xiangyang's centre and divides the city no ...
and proclaimed himself "King of Xinshun" (新順王).
![Southern Ming](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2a/Southern_Ming.png)
In April 1644, Li's rebels sacked the Ming capital of
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 ...
, and the
Chongzhen Emperor
The Chongzhen Emperor (; 6 February 1611 – 25 April 1644), personal name Zhu Youjian (), courtesy name Deyue (),Wang Yuan (王源),''Ju ye tang wen ji'' (《居業堂文集》), vol. 19. "聞之張景蔚親見烈皇帝神主題御諱字德 ...
committed suicide. Li proclaimed himself the emperor of the
Shun dynasty
The Shun dynasty (), officially the Great Shun (), was a short-lived Chinese dynasty that existed during the Ming–Qing transition. The dynasty was founded in Xi'an on 8 February 1644, the first day of the lunar year, by Li Zicheng, the leade ...
. Li, as all contenders for the throne were required, claimed to have the Mandate of Heaven bestowed upon him. Firstly, Li hailed from the Shaanxi province of China, which strengthened his legitimacy to the throne versus the foreign Manchus. Li also gained the support of scholar officials which was important in leading over the people of China as a Confucian state. The name of the dynasty is translated to mean "Obedient to Heaven".
Li's army was defeated on 27 May 1644 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 ...
by the combined forces of the defecting Ming general
Wu Sangui
Wu Sangui (; 8 June 1612 – 2 October 1678), courtesy name Changbai () or Changbo (), was a notorious Ming Dynasty military officer who played a key role in the fall of the Ming dynasty and the founding of the Qing dynasty in China. In Chinese ...
and Prince
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) ...
leading the Manchus. The Ming and Manchu forces captured Beijing on 6 June and
Fulin ascended to the throne to establish the
Shunzhi
The Shunzhi Emperor (15 March 1638 – 5 February 1661) was the second emperor of the Qing dynasty of China, and the first Qing emperor to rule over China proper, reigning from 1644 to 1661. A committee of Manchu princes chose him to succee ...
reign with the Dorgon prince as regent.
When Wu Sangui and the Dorgon Prince took control of Beijing, Li fled to Xi'an
in Shaanxi. It is not exactly known how or if Li died in this period, and there are multiple accounts of his death which vary and some are exaggerated by folklore. Across multiple sources, the year of his death is said to be in 1645. One account states that in the summer of 1645 Li went to raid a village in search of sustenance with his remaining followers and was killed by soldiers guarding the village.
Another theory was that Li Zicheng became a monk and died in 1674.
Historiography
Although the success of the
Ming-Qing transition
The transition from Ming to Qing, alternatively known as Ming–Qing transition or the Manchu conquest of China, from 1618 to 1683, saw the transition between two major dynasties in Chinese history. It was a decades-long conflict between the em ...
was attributed to the weakening of the
Ming dynasty (exacerbated by Li Zicheng's rebellion), official historiography 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 ...
regarded Li as an illegitimate usurper and outlaw. This view sought to discourage and demonize notions of rebellion against the Qing government, by propagating that the Manchus put an end to Li's illegitimate rule and restore peace to the empire, thus receiving the
Mandate of Heaven
The Mandate of Heaven () is a Chinese political philosophy that was used in ancient and imperial China to legitimize the rule of the King or Emperor of China. According to this doctrine, heaven (天, ''Tian'') – which embodies the natural ...
to rule China.
In the ''
History of Ming
The ''History of Ming'' or the ''Ming History'' (''Míng Shǐ'') is one of the official Chinese historical works known as the ''Twenty-Four Histories''. It consists of 332 volumes and covers the history of the Ming dynasty from 1368 to 1644. It ...
'', Li Zicheng was described as having high cheekbones, deep-set eyes and a jackal-like voice.
In popular culture
Li appears as a bandit in
Baifa Monü Zhuan
''Baifa Monü Zhuan'' is a wuxia novel by Liang Yusheng. It was serialised between 5 August 1957 and 10 December 1958 in the Hong Kong newspaper ''Sin Wun Pao''. It is closely related to ''Qijian Xia Tianshan'' and '' Saiwai Qixia Zhuan''. The no ...
, a wuxia novel by
Liang Yusheng
Chen Wentong (5 April 1924 – 22 January 2009), better known by his pen name Liang Yusheng, was a Chinese writer. Credited as the pioneer of the "New School" (新派) of the ''wuxia'' genre in the 20th century, Chen was one of the best known ...
, where the heroine comments he is worthy of being a king.
Li is featured as a character in some of the works of
Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...
''
wuxia
( ), which literally means "martial heroes", is a genre of Chinese fiction concerning the adventures of martial artists in ancient China. Although is traditionally a form of historical fiction, its popularity has caused it to be adapted f ...
'' writer
Jin Yong (Louis Cha). Li's rebellion against the
Ming dynasty is featured in ''
Sword Stained with Royal Blood
''Sword Stained with Royal Blood'' is a wuxia novel by Jin Yong (Louis Cha). It was first serialised in the Hong Kong newspaper '' Hong Kong Commercial Daily'' between 1 January 1956 and 31 December 1956.The date conforms to the data published ...
'' and his personality is analysed from the point of view of
Yuan Chengzhi, the protagonist. In ''
The Deer and the Cauldron
''The Deer and the Cauldron'', also known as ''The Duke of Mount Deer'', is a comic historical novel by Jin Yong (Louis Cha), the longest of his novels and the last to be published but chronologically it is the eighth novel. It was initially pub ...
'', set in 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 ...
during the early reign 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 ...
, Li is revealed to have survived and fathered a daughter,
A'ke, with
Chen Yuanyuan
Chen Yuanyuan (1624–1681) was a Chinese courtesan who lived during the late Ming and early Qing dynasties. She was the concubine of Wu Sangui, the Ming dynasty general who surrendered Shanhai Pass to the Manchu-led Qing dynasty, and later reb ...
. Li is also briefly mentioned by name in ''
Fox Volant of the Snowy Mountain
''Fox Volant of the Snowy Mountain'', also known as ''Flying Fox of Snowy Mountain'', is a wuxia novel by Jin Yong (Louis Cha). It was first serialised between 9 February and 18 June 1959 in the Hong Kong newspaper ''New Evening Post''.
''Flyi ...
'' and ''
The Young Flying Fox
''The Young Flying Fox'' is a wuxia novel by Jin Yong (Louis Cha). The novel was first serialised in Hong Kong in 1960The date conforms to the data published in Chen Zhenhui (陳鎮輝), ''Wuxia Xiaoshuo Xiaoyao Tan'' (武俠小說逍遙談), 200 ...
''.
Li is the main character of the historical epic novel ''Li Zicheng'' by
Yao Xueyin
Yao Xueyin (; 10 October 1910 – 29 April 1999) was a Chinese novelist who was a member of China Writers Association. Yao was a member of the 5th, 6th, and 7th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference. Yao u ...
.
In folklore
There are many stories and folklore attributed to Li Zicheng. One such story claims that when Li Zicheng was young he killed one of his classmates and was promptly disowned by his family and shunned by his community.
References
Further reading
*
External links
Maoist era propaganda posters glorifying Li Zicheng
{{DEFAULTSORT:Li, Zicheng
1606 births
1645 deaths
People from Yan'an
Assassinated people
Deaths by blade weapons
Revolutionaries
Ming dynasty people
Qing dynasty people
Ming dynasty rebels
Chinese emperors
17th-century Chinese monarchs
Politicians from Yulin, Shaanxi
Monarchs killed in action
Shun dynasty
Founding monarchs