Zhu Yujian (1602 – 6 October 1646), nickname Changshou, originally the Prince of Tang, later reigned as the Longwu Emperor of the Southern Ming dynasty from 18 August 1645, when he was enthroned in

Fuzhou Fuzhou is the capital of Fujian, China. The city lies between the Min River (Fujian), Min River estuary to the south and the city of Ningde to the north. Together, Fuzhou and Ningde make up the Eastern Min, Mindong linguistic and cultural regi ...

, to 6 October 1646, when he was captured and executed by a contingent of the Qing army. He was an eighth generation descendant of Zhu Jing, Prince Ding of Tang, who was the 23rd son of Ming founder Zhu Yuanzhang (Hongwu Emperor)., note 24.

Early life

Before ascending to the throne, he followed his father as the Prince of Tang, their

fief A fief (; ) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a form of feudal alle ...

being situated in Nanyang prefecture, in

Henan Henan; alternatively Honan is a province in Central China. Henan is home to many heritage sites, including Yinxu, the ruins of the final capital of the Shang dynasty () and the Shaolin Temple. Four of the historical capitals of China, Lu ...

province. In 1636, he was stripped of his title by the Chongzhen Emperor and put under house arrest in Fengyang. His former title was transferred to his younger brother Zhu Yumo (). In 1641, Zhu Yumo committed suicide when Li Zicheng invaded Nanyang. After the death of the Chongzhen Emperor 1644, his successor on the Ming throne, the Hongguang Emperor, released the Prince of Tang from his arrest.

Reign

When Qing forces captured

Nanjing Nanjing or Nanking is the capital of Jiangsu, a province in East China. The city, which is located in the southwestern corner of the province, has 11 districts, an administrative area of , and a population of 9,423,400. Situated in the Yang ...

in June 1645, he fled to

Hangzhou Hangzhou, , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ; formerly romanized as Hangchow is a sub-provincial city in East China and the capital of Zhejiang province. With a population of 13 million, the municipality comprises ten districts, two counti ...

. However, when

fell to the Qing on 6 July 1645, the Prince of Tang managed to escape by land to the southeastern province of Fujian. In August of the same year, at the behest of several high officials, he ascended to the Ming throne in

, taking the reign title "Longwu" (隆武; pinyin: Lóngwǔ). His era name means "plentiful and martial". After a promising start,

Fujian Fujian is a provinces of China, province in East China, southeastern China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its capital is Fuzhou and its largest prefe ...

's geographical position on the margin of the empire, cut off from the heartland by several mountain ranges, as well as his lack of effective troops and the failure on part of the officialdom to find a united stance doomed the Longwu government. When Qing forces invaded Fujian in the late summer of 1646, Zheng Zhilong, the emperor's strongest ally, surrendered while his son Zheng Chenggong (the famous Koxinga) retreated to the sea. The Prince of Tang was left with a dwindling court. On 6 October 1646, he was captured and immediately executed.

Personality

Against the Ming policy of keeping imperial princes out of politics, the Prince of Tang early on showed interest in the government of the empire and strove for a larger role of the princes in it. His initiatives had brought him under house arrest during the reign of the Chongzhen Emperor, but his knowledge of history and of Ming institutions, paired with a diligent personality, made him take his imperial role seriously.. Zhu Yujian is said to have had a very close relationship with his wife, who had shared his hardship when he was incarcerated. Contrary to Chinese custom, he steadfastly declined to take any concubines.

Family

Consorts and issue

* Empress Xiaoyixiang, of the Zeng clan (孝毅襄皇后曾氏; d. 1646) ** Zhu Linyuan, Crown Prince Zhuangjing (莊敬太子朱琳源; 1646－1646), first son * Concubine, of the Shen clan (沈嫔) * Concubine, of the Chen clan (陳嬪)

Ancestry

Zhu Yujian was the senior-most male-line descendants of Zhu Jing, Prince Ding of Tang, the 23rd son of Zhu Yuanzhang, after his father's death. Therefore, he was an eighth cousin of the

Wanli Emperor The Wanli Emperor (4 September 1563 – 18 August 1620), also known by his temple name as the Emperor Shenzong of Ming, personal name Zhu Yijun, art name Yuzhai, was the 14th List of emperors of the Ming dynasty, emperor of the Ming dynasty, reig ...

. This chart only showed the latest actual title of the person(s). # Zhu Yuanzhang, the Hongwu Emperor, 1328–1398 # Zhu Jing, Prince Ding of Tang, 1386–1415 (23rd son) # Zhu Qiongda, Prince Xian of Tang, 1412–1475 (4th son & 2nd son as son by primary consort) # Zhu Zhizhi, Prince Zhuang of Tang, 1432–1485 (2nd son) # Zhu Miqian, Comm. Prince Gongjing of Wencheng, d.1516 (3rd son) # Zhu Yuwen, Prince Jing of Tang, 1490–1560 # Zhu Zhouyong, Prince Shun of Tang, 1538–1564 # Zhu Shuohuang, Prince Duan of Tang, d.1630 # Zhu Qisheng, the Hereditary Prince of Tang, d.1629 (1st son) # Zhu Yujian, the Longwu Emperor, 1602–1646 (1st son)

Notes

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Zhu, Yujian Southern Ming emperors 1602 births 1646 deaths Executed people from Henan People executed by the Qing dynasty People from Nanyang, Henan 17th-century Chinese monarchs 17th-century executions by China Executed monarchs