Sun Jiagan (, 1683–1753) was a Chinese politician 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 ...

. Born in

Taiyuan Taiyuan (; ; ; Mandarin pronunciation: ; also known as (), ()) is the capital and largest city of Shanxi Province, People's Republic of China. Taiyuan is the political, economic, cultural and international exchange center of Shanxi Province. ...

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 ...

, Sun was son of a family that was so poor that he had to work hard all day collecting firewood, and could only study at night. In 1713, he graduated as a ''

jinshi ''Jinshi'' () was the highest and final degree in the imperial examination in Imperial China. The examination was usually taken in the imperial capital in the palace, and was also called the Metropolitan Exam. Recipients are sometimes referre ...

'' in the

imperial examination The imperial examination (; lit. "subject recommendation") refers to a civil-service examination system in Imperial China, administered for the purpose of selecting candidates for the state bureaucracy. The concept of choosing bureaucrats by ...

during the 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 ...

and rose to the position of ''Libu Shilang'' for his frankness and uprightness. During the reign of 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 ...

, Sun rose to the position of ''Xingbu Shangshu'' by , and later to Libu Shangshu in 1738.Histories: Sun Jiagan dies
. Retrieved 9 Nov 2013. After holding various posts, in 1741 Sun became

Viceroy of Huguang The Viceroy of Huguang, fully referred to in Chinese as the Governor-General of Hubei and Hunan Provinces and the Surrounding Areas; Overseeing Military Affairs, Food Production; Director of Civil Affairs, was one of eight regional Viceroys in C ...

, where he introduced the system of subsidized chiefs, in order to keep the aborigines under control. In 1743, he was relieved from his position due to shielding his men, yet was recalled to be head of the

Imperial Clan Court The Imperial Clan Court or Court of the Imperial Clan was an institution responsible for all matters pertaining to the imperial family under the Ming and Qing dynasties of imperial China. This institution also existed under the Nguyễn dynasty o ...

in 1744., but resumed office and served as ''Gongbu Shangshu'' in 1750.

Notes

References

*Herbert Allen Giles, ''A Chinese Biographical Dictionary'', p. 687. * Qing dynasty politicians from Shanxi 1683 births 1753 deaths 18th-century Chinese people Politicians from Taiyuan Assistant Grand Secretaries Viceroys of Huguang Viceroys of Zhili {{china-politician-stub