Noble Lady Shun (3 January 1748 – 1790), of the Manchu

Niohuru clan The Niohuru ( Manchu: ; in Manchu) were a prominent Manchu clan during the Qing dynasty. The clan had inhabited the Changbai Mountains since as early as the Liao dynasty. The clan was well known during the Qing dynasty for producing a variety ...

, was a consort of the Qianlong Emperor 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 ...

Life

Family background

Noble Lady Shun was born in the Manchu

. Her personal name is unknown. Her father was Aibida (愛必達), a governor (總督) and grandson of

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 (1644–191 ...

. Her great-aunt was

Empress Xiaozhaoren Empress Xiaozhaoren (1653 – 18 March 1678), of the Manchu Bordered Yellow Banner Niohuru clan, was a posthumous name bestowed to the wife and second empress consort of Xuanye, the Kangxi Emperor. She was Empress consort of China during the Q ...

, the second empress 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 ...

. Lady Niohuru's ancestry and family was filled with prestigious officials and respectable individuals.

Qianlong era

Lady Niohuru was born on 3 January 1748 during the reign of the Qianlong Emperor. She entered the

Forbidden City The Forbidden City () is a palace complex in Dongcheng District, Beijing, China, at the center of the Imperial City of Beijing. It is surrounded by numerous opulent imperial gardens and temples including the Zhongshan Park, the sacrifi ...

in 1766 and was granted the rank of "Noble Lady Chang" (常貴人). Originally, Empress Dowager Chongqing suggested that she be selected as empress, as the previous empress had died that same year and the only one leading the imperial harem was Imperial Noble Consort Ling, a Han woman who could never legally marry the emperor. Qianlong rejected Lady Niohuru, stating that he would never promote anyone to the position of empress again, and continued to leave palace affairs to the Imperial Noble Consort. In 1768 Lady Niohuru was promoted to "Imperial Concubine Shun" (順嬪). In 1771, the Emperor took a southern tour of the country, bringing only six consorts with him. Among them was Lady Niohuru. In 1776 she became pregnant, but suffered a miscarriage. That same year, the emperor elevated her to the status of "Consort Shun" (順妃), perhaps to comfort her. A similar occurrence happened to Consort Yu in 1759. The promotion ceremony was set to be held in the following year but was delayed by two years because of the death of the empress dowager in 1777. In 1780 Consort Shun lead the Silkworm Worship Ceremony, which was usually held by the empress herself. The Qianlong Emperor was said to have a great relationship with Consort Shun. There is a record that the emperor personally hunted two ducks and gave them to her as a gift. She was one of the twelve consorts out of Qianlong's fifty to be drawn in the painting " Portraits of the Qianlong Emperor and His Twelve Consorts" by Giuseppe Castiglione. In 1788 Lady Niohuru was demoted to "Imperial Concubine Shun" (順嬪) for unknown reasons. 16 days later she was demoted to "Noble Lady Shun" (順貴人). She died in 1790 at the age of forty-one or forty-two and was interred in the Yuling Mausoleum for imperial consorts in the Eastern Qing Tombs.

Titles

* During the reign of the Qianlong Emperor (r. 1735–1796): ** Lady Niohuru (鈕祜祿氏; from 1748) ** Noble Lady Chang (; from 1766), sixth rank consort ** Imperial Concubine Shun (; from 1768), fifth rank consort ** Consort Shun (; from 1776), fourth rank consort ** Imperial Concubine Shun (順嬪; from 1788), fifth rank consort ** Noble Lady Shun (; from 1788), sixth rank consort

In popular culture

*Portrayed by Jenny Zhang in 2018 Chinese TV series '' Story of Yanxi Palace''.

References