Zhu Quan (; 27 May 1378 – 12 October 1448), the Prince of Ning (), was a Chinese historian, military commander, musician, and playwright. He was the 17th son of the

Hongwu Emperor The Hongwu Emperor (21 October 1328 – 24 June 1398), personal name Zhu Yuanzhang (), courtesy name Guorui (), was the founding emperor of the Ming dynasty of China, reigning from 1368 to 1398. As famine, plagues and peasant revolts in ...

of the

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 ...

. During his life, he served as a

military commander The commanding officer (CO) or sometimes, if the incumbent is a general officer, commanding general (CG), is the officer in command of a military unit. The commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually given wide latitu ...

feudal lord An overlord in the Kingdom of England, English Feudalism in England, feudal system was a lord of the manor, lord of a manor who had Subinfeudation, subinfeudated a particular Manorialism, manor, Estate in land, estate or fief, fee, to a Leaseho ...

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the stu ...

, and

playwright A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes plays. Etymology The word "play" is from Middle English pleye, from Old English plæġ, pleġa, plæġa ("play, exercise; sport, game; drama, applause"). The word "wright" is an archaic English ...

. He is also remembered as a great tea connoisseur, a

zither Zithers (; , from the Greek word ''cithara'') are a class of stringed instruments. Historically, the name has been applied to any instrument of the psaltery family, or to an instrument consisting of many strings stretched across a thin, flat bo ...

player, and

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

Other names

In addition to Prince of Ning, Zhu Quan was also known as the Strange Scholar of the Great Ming (, ''Da Ming Qi Shi''). As part of his

Taoist Taoism (, ) or Daoism () refers to either a school of philosophical thought (道家; ''daojia'') or to a religion (道教; ''daojiao''), both of which share ideas and concepts of Chinese origin and emphasize living in harmony with the ''Tao'' ...

attempts to avoid death, he adopted the

aliases A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name ( orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individu ...

the Emaciated Immortal (, ''Qúxiān''), the "Master who Encompasses Emptiness" (, ''Hánxūzi''), "Taoist of the Mysterious Continent" or " Taoist of the Mysterious Island" (, ''Xuánzhōu Dàoren''), and "Perfected Gentleman of the Marvelous Way of the Unfathomable Emptiness of the Southern Pole" (, ''Nánjí Chōngxū Miàodào Zhēnjūn'').

Biography

Zhu Quan was initially a military commander in service to his father, the

who founded the

. He was granted the frontier fief of

Ning Ning may refer to: Places * Ning County, county in Gansu, China * Ning River, tributary of Mei River, originating and running through Xingning, China * Ningxia, abbreviated as Ning, Hui autonomous region of China * Nanjing, abbreviated as Ning, ca ...

with his capital at Daning in present-day

Chifeng Chifeng ( zh, s=赤峰市), also known as Ulanhad ( mn, (Улаанхад хот), ''Ulaɣanqada qota'', , "red cliff"), is a prefecture-level city in Southeastern Inner Mongolia, People's Republic of China. It borders Xilin Gol League to the ...

, Inner Mongolia in 1391. He was famous for his mastery of art and war and played an important role during the unrest surrounding the ascension of his teenage nephew,

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 ...

, in 1399. Under the advice of his Confucian advisors, the Jianwen Emperor summoned his uncle to an audience in the imperial capital

Nanjing Nanjing (; , Mandarin pronunciation: ), alternately romanized as Nanking, is the capital of Jiangsu province of the People's Republic of China. It is a sub-provincial city, a megacity, and the second largest city in the East China region. T ...

. Wary of the emperor's intentions, as other uncles were demoted or executed the same year, Zhu Quan refused and lost three of his divisions for insubordination.

Zhu Di 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 dyna ...

, the

Prince of Yan Prince or King of Yan () was a Chinese feudal title referring to the ancient Chinese State of Yan and to its fiefs including the capital Yanjing (located within modern Beijing). Typically, the title is translated as "King of Yan" for rulers pri ...

, was preparing for his own uprising against the emperor and considered it a major point to neutralize Zhu Quan, a talented leader of well-trained troops located behind his lines. Taking advantage of

Wu Gao Wu may refer to: States and regions on modern China's territory *Wu (state) (; och, *, italic=yes, links=no), a kingdom during the Spring and Autumn Period 771–476 BCE ** Suzhou or Wu (), its eponymous capital ** Wu County (), a former county i ...

's attack on Yongping near modern

Shanhaiguan Shanhai Pass or Shanhaiguan () is one of the major passes in the Great Wall of China, being the easternmost stronghold along the Ming Great Wall, and commands the narrowest choke point in the Liaoxi Corridor. It is located in Shanhaiguan Di ...

, the Prince of Yan after crushing Wu Gao's force rode hastily to Daning and feigned defeat and distress. After several days, his forces were in position and successfully captured Zhu Quan as he was seeing his brother off. The official history of the Ming records Daning's evacuation, with Zhu Quan's harem and courtiers removed to Songtingguan and the prince himself kept in the Yan capital at

Beiping "Beijing" is from pinyin ''Běijīng,'' which is romanized from , the Chinese name for this city. The pinyin system of transliteration was approved by the Chinese government in 1958, but little used until 1979. It was gradually adopted by various ...

, but passes over Zhu Di's setting of the entire city to the torch and the destruction of Zhu Quan's extensive library.Wang, Richard G.
The Ming Prince and Daoism: Institutional Patronage of an Elite
'. Oxford Univ. Press, 2012. . Accessed 14 Oct 2012. From that point, Zhu Quan assisted his brother in his uprising, with 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 ...

'' recording that the Prince of Yan offered to split the entire empire between them. After his elevation as 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 ...

in 1402, however, he swiftly reneged and refused to appoint his brother to lordship over

Suzhou Suzhou (; ; Suzhounese: ''sou¹ tseu¹'' , Mandarin: ), alternately romanized as Soochow, is a major city in southern Jiangsu province, East China. Suzhou is the largest city in Jiangsu, and a major economic center and focal point of trade ...

or Qiantang, instead giving him a choice only of backwater appointments. He settled upon

Nanchang Nanchang (, ; ) is the capital of Jiangxi Province, People's Republic of China. Located in the north-central part of the province and in the hinterland of Poyang Lake Plain, it is bounded on the west by the Jiuling Mountains, and on the east ...

, the capital of

Jiangxi Jiangxi (; ; formerly romanized as Kiangsi or Chianghsi) is a landlocked province in the east of the People's Republic of China. Its major cities include Nanchang and Jiujiang. Spanning from the banks of the Yangtze river in the north int ...

. After a scare where he was accused of practicing ''wugu'' sorcery,A kind of Chinese

black magic Black magic, also known as dark magic, has traditionally referred to the use of supernatural powers or magic for evil and selfish purposes, specifically the seven magical arts prohibited by canon law, as expounded by Johannes Hartlieb in 145 ...

where poisonous insects were kept together in a small container until only the deadliest was left. The last surviving insect was then burned and used in the preparation of a potion. Zhu Quan essentially retired from any interference with the realm, devoting his time instead to cultural pursuits.Zhu Quan
. ''

'', Folio 117, p.14a. Taiwan ed, p. 3591. Accessed 14 Oct 2012. Meeting daily with local or visiting scholars, he pursued immortality. He treasured and revised his ''Secret Book of Origins'' (, ''Yuánshǐ Mìshū''), a text which survived the fire of Daning and sharply attacked

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...

as a foreign "mourning cult" at odds with Chinese culture and proper governance. His encyclopedia of

Taoism Taoism (, ) or Daoism () refers to either a school of Philosophy, philosophical thought (道家; ''daojia'') or to a religion (道教; ''daojiao''), both of which share ideas and concepts of China, Chinese origin and emphasize living in harmo ...

, the ''Most Pure and Precious Books on the Way of August Heaven'' (, ''Tiānhuáng Zhìdào Tàiqīngyù Cè''), was so esteemed it joined the

Taoist canon Daozang (), meaning 'Taoist Canon', consists of around 1,400 texts that were collected (after the ''Daodejing'' and ''Zhuangzi'' and Liezi which are the core Taoist texts). They were collected by Taoist monks of the period in an attempt to brin ...

. His brother ordered him to complete the ''Comprehensive Mirror of Extensive Essays'' (''Tongjian Bolun'') and was also credited with writing ''Family Advice'' (''Jia Xun''), ''Ceremonial Customs of the Country of Ning'' (''Ningguo Yifan''), ''The Secret History of the Han and Tang'' (, ''Hàn-Táng Mìshǐ''), ''History Breaks Off'' (''Shi Duan''), a ''Book of Essays'' (, ''Wén Pǔ''), a ''Book of Poetry'' (, ''Shī Pǔ''), and several other annotated anthologies. His most successful was his '' Tea Manual'' (, ''Chá Pǔ''). In addition, he personally funded the publication of many rare books and composed several operas. Zhu Quan is an important figure in the history of the Chinese zither, or ''

guqin The ''guqin'' (; ) is a plucked seven-string Chinese musical instrument. It has been played since ancient times, and has traditionally been favoured by scholars and literati as an instrument of great subtlety and refinement, as highlighted b ...

'', for his compilation of the important ''Manual of the Mysterious and Marvellous'' (, ''Shénqí Mì Pǔ'') in 1425. This is the earliest known large scale collection of qin scores to have survived to the present day.

Family

Consort: *Lady Zhang (), Commander of the Wardens Zhang Tai's () daughter, died before his own death. Sons: * 1st son: Zhu Panshi (; 16 October 1395 – 23 February 1437), Hereditary Prince of Ning () (created May 1404), posthumously initially honored Hereditary Prince Zhuanghui () (honored 1437), later honored Prince Hui of Ning () (honored 1449). ** Married Commander of the East City Wardens Yu Sheng's () daughter as Hereditary Princess of Ning () in March 1417 * 2nd son: Died young * 3rd son: Zhu Panye (), originally the Prince Kangxi of Linchuan (), later demoted to commoner rank (demoted 1461). ** Married Deputy Commander of the North City Wardens Huang Fu's () daughter (d. January 1440) in August 1426, later married Company Comander Wang Xing's () daughter in May 1455. * 4th son: Zhu Panyao (; October 1414 – July 1492), Prince Anjian of Yichun () (created August 1428). His mother was Lady Wang (). ** Married Jinwu Rear Guard Commander Liu Xun's () daughter in October 1430 * 5th son: Zhu Panzhu (; October 1419 – 1459), Prince Anxi of Xinchang () (created October 1430). His title later cancelled due to his not having a son, but he had a daughter, Princess Nankang (). ** Married Xiaoling Guard Commander Ge Tan's () daughter in March 1437 * 6th son: Zhu Panmou (; 1420 – January 1439), Prince Daohui of Xinfeng () (created October 1432). His title later cancelled due to his not having a son. His mother was Lady You (). Daughters: * 1st daughter: Princess Yongxin () (created July 1427) ** Married Jinxiang Guard Drafter Gao Heling () * 2nd daughter: Princess Yushan () (created July 1427) ** Married Chief Commissioner Drafter Fang Jingxiang () * 3nd daughter: Princess Qingjiang () (created February 1427) ** Married Xi'ning Guard Commander Chen Tong's () younger brother Chen Yi () * 4th daughter: Princess Fengxin () (created 2 March 1427) ** Married Wang Shuang () * 5th daughter: Princess Jinxi (; d. August 1449) (created February 1427) ** Married the Right Army Commissioner Han Guan's () younger brother Han Fu () * 6th daughter: Princess Taihe () (created February 1427) ** Married Wang Yencheng of Poyang County's () son Wang Zhanran () * 7th daughter: Princess Pengze () (created February 1427) ** Married Longxiang Guard Commander Wang Gang's () nephew Wang Zhi () * 8th daughter: Princess Luling () (created February 1427) ** Married Qizhou Guard Commander Tian Sheng's () younger brother Tian Yu () * 9th daughter: Princess Xinyu () (created February 1427) ** Married Ganzhou Prefecture Record Keeper Hu Yu's () son Hu Guangji () * 10th daughter: Princess Xincheng () (created February 1427) ** Married Regent (Liushou) Central Guard Commander Li Jun's () son Li Huan () * 11th daughter: Princess Fuliang () (created July 1427) * 12th daughter: Died young, no title * 13th daughter: Princess Nanfeng () (created February 1427) ** Married Jiangxi Military Commissioner Zhang Xiang's () son Zhang Wen () * 14th daughter: Princess Yongfeng () (created June 1438)

Descendants

*1st Prince: Zhu Quan, Prince Xian of Ning **Hereditary Prince: Zhu Panshi, Prince Hui of Ning ***2nd Prince: Zhu Dianpei, Prince Jing of Ning ****3rd Prince: Zhu Kunjun, Prince Kang of Ning *****4th Prince:

Zhu Chenhao Zhu Chenhao (; 1 July 1476 – 12 January 1521), or Prince of Ning (), art name Weitian (畏天), was a member of the Ming dynasty's imperial family. He was the 5th generation descendant of Zhu Quan, the 17th son of the Hongwu Emperor. He attem ...

, Prince of Ning Zhu Quan is also the ancestor of the famous Chinese painter

Zhu Da Bada Shanren (; 1626 – 1705), born Zhu Da (), was a Chinese Buddhist monk, calligrapher, and painter of the ink wash painting style. He was of royal descent, being a direct offspring of the Ming dynasty prince Zhu Quan who had a feudal establi ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zhu, Quan 1378 births 1448 deaths 15th-century Chinese dramatists and playwrights 15th-century Chinese historians Chinese food writers Chinese military leaders Chinese tea masters Guqin players Historians from Jiangsu Lords Ming dynasty historians Ming dynasty imperial princes Ming dynasty musicians Ming dynasty Taoists Musicians from Nanjing Writers from Nanjing 15th-century Chinese musicians Sons of emperors

Other names

Biography

Family

Descendants

See also

References