Zhu Changxun (1586–1641) was the third son 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 ...

Wanli Emperor The Wanli Emperor (; 4 September 1563 – 18 August 1620), personal name Zhu Yijun (), was the 14th Emperor of the Ming dynasty, reigned from 1572 to 1620. "Wanli", the era name of his reign, literally means "ten thousand calendars". He was the ...

. His mother,

Noble Consort Zheng Noble Consort Zheng (1565–1630), was a Ming dynasty concubine of the Wanli Emperor. She is known for having been his most beloved consort and, in an attempt to please her, he tried to make her son his heir apparent. This act caused over a decade ...

, was a favoured concubine and, in efforts to please her, the emperor attempted to have Zhu made

heir apparent An heir apparent, often shortened to heir, is a person who is first in an order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person; a person who is first in the order of succession but can be displaced by the b ...

, but failed to overturn the rule of

primogeniture Primogeniture ( ) is the right, by law or custom, of the firstborn legitimate child to inherit the parent's entire or main estate in preference to shared inheritance among all or some children, any illegitimate child or any collateral relativ ...

. After the fall of the Ming, however, Zhu's son,

Zhu Yousong The Hongguang Emperor (; 1607–1646), personal name Zhu Yousong (), childhood nickname Fuba (福八), was the first emperor of the Chinese Southern Ming dynasty. He reigned briefly in southern China from 1644 to 1645. His era name, ''Hongguang'' ...

, became emperor of the

Southern Ming The Southern Ming (), also known as the Later Ming (), officially the Great Ming (), was an imperial dynasty of China and a series of rump states of the Ming dynasty that came into existence following the Jiashen Incident of 1644. Shun forces ...

Biography

Zhu Changxun was born in 1586 to

. He was her third child and the third son of the Chinese

. He was made Prince of Fu (福) in 1601. He was married in August 1604, for which his father levied taxes to fund the celebrations and wedding gifts. His first son, Yousong, was born to a

concubine Concubinage is an interpersonal and sexual relationship between a man and a woman in which the couple does not want, or cannot enter into a full marriage. Concubinage and marriage are often regarded as similar but mutually exclusive. Concubi ...

and enfeoffed as Prince of Dechang (德昌) in 1613. He moved his household to

Luoyang Luoyang is a city located in the confluence area of Luo River (Henan), Luo River and Yellow River in the west of Henan province. Governed as a prefecture-level city, it borders the provincial capital of Zhengzhou to the east, Pingdingshan to the ...

in 1614, when he governed

Henan Henan (; or ; ; alternatively Honan) is a landlocked province of China, in the central part of the country. Henan is often referred to as Zhongyuan or Zhongzhou (), which literally means "central plain" or "midland", although the name is al ...

as a

fiefdom A fief (; la, feudum) 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 o ...

. Zhu was killed in 1641 during an uprising led by

Li Zicheng Li Zicheng (22 September 1606 – 1645), born Li Hongji, also known by the nickname, Dashing King, was a Chinese peasant rebel leader who overthrew the Ming dynasty in 1644 and ruled over northern China briefly as the emperor of the short-li ...

. After his soldiers fell to Li's army, Zhu fled to Ying'en Temple () with his eldest son. Whilst Zhu was captured, his son managed to escape. The next day, Zhu was executed in front of a large crowd, presided over by Li Zicheng, at Zhougong Temple (). Reports claim that Zhu was killed, then his body boiled with that of a deer to make stew, and his flesh was eaten by Li Zicheng and his soldiers. A memorial stone erected by the

Hongguang Emperor The Hongguang Emperor (; 1607–1646), personal name Zhu Yousong (), childhood nickname Fuba (福八), was the first emperor of the Chinese Southern Ming dynasty. He reigned briefly in southern China from 1644 to 1645. His era name, ''Hongguang'' ...

states that his body was interred near Mt. Mang (邙), but was moved to

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 ...

later on.

Succession dispute

In 1586, the

decreed that Zhu's mother should be given the title of Imperial Noble Consort. However, this met with much opposition, as the mother of the emperor's eldest son was only referred to as Consort. The emperor's actions were perceived as the precursor to declaring Zhu

, instead of his elder brother, Zhu Changluo. The emperor's advisers argued that, if

Zheng Zheng may refer to: *Zheng (surname), Chinese surname (鄭, 郑, ''Zhèng'') *Zheng County, former name of Zhengzhou, capital of Henan, China *Guzheng (), a Chinese zither with bridges *Qin Shi Huang (259 BC – 210 BC), emperor of the Qin Dynasty, ...

were to be made Imperial Noble Consort, then the emperor should simultaneously elevate

Gong A gongFrom Indonesian and ms, gong; jv, ꦒꦺꦴꦁ ; zh, c=鑼, p=luó; ja, , dora; km, គង ; th, ฆ้อง ; vi, cồng chiêng; as, কাঁহ is a percussion instrument originating in East Asia and Southeast Asia. Gongs ...

to Noble Consort. Over the next decade, advisers also attempted to persuade the emperor that abandoning the tradition of

had made Zheng the object of anger and disgust, not only in the court, but also across the country. Finally, the emperor declared his eldest son heir apparent in 1601 and gave Zhu Changxun the title Prince of Fu. However, Zhu was not made to leave the imperial court in keeping with tradition until 1614, when he moved his household to

.History Office (1620s), volume 364.

Family

*Consorts # Lady Yao (姚氏) or Tian (田氏), the primary consort and mother of Zhu Yousong. Posthumously honoured as "Empress Dowager Xiaocheng Duanhui Cishun Zhenmu" (孝誠端惠慈順貞穆皇太后) by Zhu Yousong,

Zhu Youlang The Yongli Emperor (; 1623–1662; reigned 18 November 1646 – 1 June 1662), personal name Zhu Youlang, was a royal member to the imperial family of Ming dynasty, and the fourth and last commonly recognised emperor of the Southern Ming, reign ...

changed the posthumous title to "Empress Xiaocheng Duanhui Cishun Zhenmu Futian Dusheng Gong" (孝誠端惠慈順貞穆符天篤聖恭皇后) # Lady Zou (鄒氏) the primary consort. Honoured as Empress Dowager with the title Empress Dowager Kezhen Renshou (恪貞仁壽皇太后) by Zhu Yousong *Issues: #

succeeded the title of Prince of Fu, later enthroned as the Hongguang Emperor of

by Lady Yao # Zhu Youju (朱由榘) (26 July 1609 - 1618), held the commandery princely title under the title Comm. Prince of Yingshang (潁上郡王). Later posthumously bestowed as "Prince Chong of Ying" (潁沖王) by Zhu Yousong # Zhu Youhua (朱由樺), held the commandery princely title under the title Comm. Prince of Dechang (德昌郡王). Later posthumously bestowed as "Prince Huai of De" (德懷王) by Zhu Yousong

Notes

References

Citations

Works cited

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Zhu, Changxun 1586 births 1641 deaths Ming dynasty imperial princes 17th-century executions by China Executed Ming dynasty people Executed people from Beijing Cannibalised people Sons of emperors