Xia Yuanji (; 1366–1430) was a

Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last ort ...

government minister. He was born in Xiangyin County,

Hunan Hunan (, ; ) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the South Central China region. Located in the middle reaches of the Yangtze watershed, it borders the province-level divisions of Hubei to the north, Jiangxi to ...

Province, which was then part of

Huguang Province Huguang was a province of China during the Yuan and Ming dynasties. It was founded by the Yuan dynasty in 1274. During the Yuan dynasty it included the areas of modern Hubei south of the Yangtze river, Hunan, Guizhou, and Guangxi. During the Ming ...

. His

ancestral home An ancestral home is the place of origin of one's extended family, particularly the home owned and preserved by the same family for several generations. The term can refer to an individual house or estate, or to a broader geographic area such as a ...

was

Dexing, Jiangxi Dexing () is a county-level city in the northeast of Jiangxi province, China, bordering Zhejiang province to the east. It is under the jurisdiction of the prefecture-level city of Shangrao. Administrative divisions In the present, Dexing City h ...

. Xia read the ''

Classic of Poetry The ''Classic of Poetry'', also ''Shijing'' or ''Shih-ching'', translated variously as the ''Book of Songs'', ''Book of Odes'', or simply known as the ''Odes'' or ''Poetry'' (; ''Shī''), is the oldest existing collection of Chinese poetry, c ...

'' and became a Xiucai at the age of 23, joining the

Guozijian The Guozijian,Yuan, 194. sometimes translated as the Imperial College, Imperial Academy, Imperial University, National Academy, or National University, was the national central institution of higher learning in Chinese dynasties after the Su ...

. Early in his career, he saw service under the Hongwu Emperor and

Jianwen Emperor The Jianwen Emperor (5 December 1377 – ?), personal name Zhu Yunwen (), was the second Emperor of the Ming dynasty, reigned from 1398 to 1402. The era name of his reign, Jianwen, means "establishing civility" and represented a sharp chan ...

. After the

Yongle Emperor The Yongle Emperor (; pronounced ; 2 May 1360 – 12 August 1424), personal name Zhu Di (), was the third Emperor of the Ming dynasty, reigning from 1402 to 1424. Zhu Di was the fourth son of the Hongwu Emperor, the founder of the Ming dyn ...

came to the throne, he was sent to inspect Suzhou Creek. Xia opposed both Zheng He's overseas voyages and the

Yongle Emperor's campaigns against the Mongols Yongle Emperor's campaigns against the Mongols (1410–1424), also known as Emperor Chengzu's Northern (Mobei) Campaigns (), or the Yongle's Northern Expeditions (), was a military campaign of the Ming dynasty under the Yongle Emperor against th ...

. In 1421, Xia Yuanji was imprisoned for voicing his opposition against the

's decision to undertake the third Mongol military campaign, which would add another expenditure to the existing ones.. After the advice of Xia Yuanji, the

Hongxi Emperor The Hongxi Emperor (16 August 1378 – 29 May 1425), personal name Zhu Gaochi (朱高熾), was the fourth Emperor of the Ming dynasty, reigned from 1424 to 1425. He succeeded his father, the Yongle Emperor, in 1424. His era name "Hongxi" means ...

ordered the cessation of the

Ming treasure voyages The Ming treasure voyages were the seven maritime expeditions undertaken by Ming China's treasure fleet between 1405 and 1433. The Yongle Emperor ordered the construction of the treasure fleet in 1403. The grand project resulted in far-reachi ...

on 7 September 1424, the day of his accession to the throne.. On 8 September 1424, he released Xia Yuanji from his imprisonment.. When the succeeding

Xuande Emperor The Xuande Emperor (16 March 1399 31 January 1435), personal name Zhu Zhanji (朱瞻基), was the fifth Emperor of the Ming dynasty, reigned from 1425 to 1435. His era name "Xuande" means "proclamation of virtue". Ruling over a relatively ...

ordered the seventh voyage, he went against the general court opinion. This was after the death of Xia Yuanji, a prominent critic of the maritime expeditions, on 19 February 1430..

References

Bibliography

* * * {{Authority control 1366 births 1430 deaths People from Xiangyin County Ming dynasty politicians Treasure voyages