Zhang Yushu (, 22 July 1642 – 2 July 1711) was a

Han Chinese The Han Chinese () or Han people (), are an East Asian ethnic group native to China. They constitute the world's largest ethnic group, making up about 18% of the global population and consisting of various subgroups speaking distinctive va ...

politician and

scholar A scholar is a person who pursues academic and intellectual activities, particularly academics who apply their intellectualism into expertise in an area of study. A scholar can also be an academic, who works as a professor, teacher, or researche ...

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 ...

. He was one of the chief editors of the

Kangxi Dictionary The ''Kangxi Dictionary'' ( (Compendium of standard characters from the Kangxi period), published in 1716, was the most authoritative dictionary of Chinese characters from the 18th century through the early 20th. The Kangxi Emperor of the Qing d ...

alongside

Chen Tingjing Chen Tingjing (, 31 December 1638 – 23 May 1712) was a Han Chinese politician and scholar who served as tutor to the Kangxi Emperor and was chief editor of the Kangxi Dictionary. Biography Chen Jing was born in Zezhou in Shanxi province. H ...

Biography

A native of Dantu,

Jiangsu Jiangsu (; ; pinyin: Jiāngsū, Postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Kiangsu or Chiangsu) is an Eastern China, eastern coastal Provinces of the People's Republic of China, province of the China, People's Republic of China. It is o ...

, Zhang took 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 ...

and earned 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 ...

'' degree in 1661. He appointed as a bachelor of the

Hanlin Academy The Hanlin Academy was an academic and administrative institution of higher learning founded in the 8th century Tang China by Emperor Xuanzong in Chang'an. Membership in the academy was confined to an elite group of scholars, who performed sec ...

and was promoted to the rank of compiler three years later. He served in that role for the next twelve years before being made a tutor in the Imperial Academy. He was appointed director-general of the Historiographical Board in 1679 and tasked with helping compile 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 ...

with Ye Fang'ai and Xu Yuanwen. He was promoted to expositor in the Hanlin Academy soon after and made a sub-chancellor in the

Grand Secretariat The Grand Secretariat (; Manchu: ''dorgi yamun'') was nominally a coordinating agency but ''de facto'' the highest institution in the imperial government of the Chinese Ming dynasty. It first took shape after the Hongwu Emperor abolished the off ...

in 1681. In 1684, he became vice-president of the

Ministry of Rites The Ministry or Board of Rites was one of the Six Ministries of government in late imperial China. It was part of the imperial Chinese government from the Tang (7th century) until the 1911 Xinhai Revolution. Along with religious rituals and cour ...

and also served concurrently as chancellor of the Hanlin Academy. In the same year, his father died and he took retirement to mourn. In 1687, Zhang returned to government service to become

Minister of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a v ...

. He assumed the role of Minister of Rites two years later in 1689. During this time, he was posted to Gaoyao, Jiangsu, with Xiong Cili to inspect the river conservancy work there by Jin Fu. In 1690, Zhang became Grand Secretary of Wenhua Hall as well as Minister of Revenue. In 1696, Zhang travelled to

Mongolia Mongolia; Mongolian script: , , ; lit. "Mongol Nation" or "State of Mongolia" () is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south. It covers an area of , with a population of just 3.3 million, ...

, joining 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 his expedition against

Galdan Erdeniin Galdan (1644–1697, mn, Галдан Бошигт хаан, , ), known as Galdan Boshugtu Khan (in Mongolian script: ) was a Choros Dzungar- Oirat Khan of the Dzungar Khanate. As fourth son of Erdeni Batur, founder of the Dzungar Kha ...

. In 1697, alongside fellow grand secretaries Li Tianfu and Xiong Cili, he was made a director-general in charge of compiling the ''Pingding shuomo fang lüe'' (平定朔漠方略), an official account detailing the Qing military campaigns against the

Dzungars The Dzungar people (also written as Zunghar; from the Mongolian words , meaning 'left hand') were the many Mongol Oirat tribes who formed and maintained the Dzungar Khanate in the 17th and 18th centuries. Historically they were one of major tr ...

. Zhang retired the following year to mourn his late mother, but returned to official life in 1700. He joined the emperor on his fourth tour of the south in 1703 and also travelled to

Rehe Rehe (), also romanized as Jehol, was a former Chinese special administrative region and province. Administration Rehe was north of the Great Wall, west of Manchuria, and east of Mongolia. Its capital and largest city was Chengde. The second ...

with him in 1708, leaving behind a highly detailed account of the Kangxi Emperor's mountain estate there. Zhang's later career was spent directing the compilation of the Peiwen Yunfu and the

. He died in 1711 whilst accompanying the emperor on a trip to Jehol. Zhang was honoured with posthumous name ''Wenzhen'' (文貞‎) and his name was included in the Temple of Eminent Statesmen during the reign of

Yongzheng , regnal name = , posthumous name = Emperor Jingtian Changyun Jianzhong Biaozhen Wenwu Yingming Kuanren Xinyi Ruisheng Daxiao Zhicheng Xian()Manchu: Temgetulehe hūwangdi () , temple name = Shizong()Manchu: Šidzung () , house = Aisin Gioro ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zhang, Yushu Grand Secretaries of the Qing dynasty Qing dynasty historians 1642 births 1711 deaths