Prince Shen of the Second Rank (

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 ...

: ; ''doroi ginggulehe giyūn wang''), or simply Prince Shen, was the title of a princely peerage used in China during the

-led

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 ...

(1636–1912). It was renamed to "Prince Zhi of the Second Rank" in 1772 and upgraded to Prince Zhi of the First Rank (or simply Prince Zhi) in 1789. Since the peerage was not awarded "iron-cap" status, this meant that each successive bearer of the title would normally start off with a title downgraded by one rank ''vis-à-vis'' that held by his predecessor. However, the title would generally not be downgraded to any lower than a ''feng'en fuguo gong'' except under special circumstances. The first bearer of the title was Yunxi (允禧; 1711–1758), the 21st son 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 ...

. In 1735, Yunxi was granted the title "Prince Shen of the Second Rank" by his nephew, the

Qianlong Emperor The Qianlong Emperor (25 September 17117 February 1799), also known by his temple name Emperor Gaozong of Qing, born Hongli, was the fifth Emperor of the Qing dynasty and the fourth Qing emperor to rule over China proper, reigning from 1735 t ...

. As his two sons died early, Yunxi adopted the Qianlong Emperor's sixth son,

Yongrong Yongrong (28 January 1744 – 13 June 1790) was a Manchu prince and calligrapher of the Qing dynasty in China. He was born in the Aisin Gioro clan as the sixth son of the Qianlong Emperor; his mother was Imperial Noble Consort Chunhui. Bi ...

(1744–1790), as his grandson. Yongrong inherited the peerage in 1772 as "Prince Zhi of the Second Rank" and was promoted to a ''qinwang'' (first-rank prince) in 1789. The title was passed down over eight generations and held by eight persons.

Members of the Prince Shen peerage

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* Yunxi (允禧; 1711 – 1758), the

's 21st son, initially a ''beizi'' (4th-rank prince), promoted to ''beile'' (3rd-rank prince), held the title Prince Shen of the Second Rank from 1735 to 1758, posthumously honoured as Prince Shen Jing of the Second Rank (慎靖郡王) ** Hong'ang (弘昴; 1728 – 1742), Yunxi's first son ** Hongxun (弘旬; 1731 – 1749), Yunxi's second son ** ''(adoption)'' ***

(1744 – 1790), the

's sixth son and adopted as Yunxi's grandson & heir, initially a ''beile'' (3rd-rank prince), promoted to second-rank prince in 1772, held the title Prince Zhi of the First Rank from 1789 to 1790, posthumously honoured as Prince Zhi Zhuang of the First Rank (質莊親王) ****

Mianqing Aisin Gioro Mianqing (綿慶; 17 June 1779 – 27 November 1804) was Yongrong's fifth son and Qianlong Emperor's grandson. Mianqing was the third in Prince Shen peerage and the second holder of Prince Zhi of the Second Rank title. Life Mianqi ...

(綿慶; 1779 – 1804), Yongrong's fifth son, succeeded & held the title as Prince Zhi of the Second Rank from 1790 to 1804, posthumously honoured as Prince Zhi Ke of the Second Rank (質恪郡王) ***** Yiqi (奕綺; 1802 – 1842), Mianqing's eldest son, succeeded & held the title of a ''beile'' (3rd-rank prince) from 1809 to 1839, stripped of his title in 1839, posthumously restored of his title in 1842 ****** Zaihua (載華; 1829 – 1888), Yilun's (from Prince Cheng's peerage & adoptive

Prince Lü Prince Lü of the First Rank, or simply Prince Lü, was the title of a princely peerage used in China during the Manchu-led Qing dynasty (1636–1912). As the Prince Lü peerage was not awarded "iron-cap" status, this meant that each successive b ...

's peerage) 11th son and adopted as Yiqi's heir & son, succeeded & held the title of a ''beizi'' (4th-rank prince) from 1845 to 1865, stripped of his title in 1865 ******* Putai (溥泰; born 1848), Zaigang's eldest son and adopted as Zaihua's heir & son, initially a first class bulwark general from 1868 to 1882, promoted & succeeded as a grace defender duke in 1882, stripped of his title in 1883 ******* Puling (溥齡; 1849 – 1897), Zaigang's second son and Putai's younger brother & successor, initially a first class bulwark general from 1872 to 1883, promoted & succeeded as a grace defender duke in 1883 ******** Yuheng (毓亨; 1875–?), Puling's eldest son, succeeded & held the title of a grace defender duke from 1897

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References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Shen, Prince Qing dynasty princely peerages

Members of the Prince Shen peerage

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Family tree

See also

References