Hung Taiji

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Hung Taiji (1592-1643) (Chinese; Huáng Tàijí 皇太極) was an Emperor of Qing Dynasty in China between 1626 and 1643. He was also the first emperor of the Manchu Qing dynasty.

Hung Taiji was responsible for consolidating the empire that his father, Nurhaci, had founded. He laid the groundwork for the conquering of the Ming dynasty in China, although he died before this was accomplished. He was responsible for changing the name of his people from Jurchen to Manchu in 1635 as well as that of the dynasty to Qing in 1636.^[1]

1 Name and Titles
2 Life
3 Family
4 References
5 See also

[edit] Name and Titles

In Chinese, Hung Taiji is also known as Hóng Tàijí (洪太極) or Huáng Táijí (黃台吉). Hung Taiji is written as in the Manchu language. Hung Taiji is also sometimes referred erroneously to as Abahai in Western literature. He was First Khan of the Later Jin and then Emperor of the Qing Dynasty, after he changed its name.

His posthumous name evolved to become longer and longer:

1643: Yingtian-xingguo-hongde-zhangwu-kuanwen-rensheng-ruixiao Wen Emperor (應天興國弘德彰武寬溫仁聖睿孝文皇帝)
1662: Yingtian-xingguo-hongde-zhangwu-kuanwen-rensheng-ruixiao-longdao-xiangong Wen Emperor (應天興國弘德彰武寬溫仁聖睿孝隆道顯功文皇帝)
- "Prosperous Way and Manifestation of Might" was added
1723: Yingtian-xingguo-hongde-zhangwu-kuanwen-rensheng-ruixiao-jingming-longdao-xiangong Wen Emperor (應天興國弘德彰武寬溫仁聖睿孝敬敏隆道顯功文皇帝)
- "Reverence and Diligent" was added
1735: Yingtian-xingguo-hongde-zhangwu-kuanwen-rensheng-ruixiao-jingming-zhaoding-longdao-xiangong Wen Emperor (應天興國弘德彰武寬溫仁聖睿孝敬敏昭定隆道顯功文皇帝)
- "Illustrious stability" was added

[edit] Life

Hung Taiji was the eighth son of Nurhaci, born November 28, 1592. Hung Taiji succeeded Nurhaci as the second ruler of the Later Jin dynasty in 1626. Although it was always thought of as gossip, he was said to be involved in the suicide of Prince Dorgon's mother, Lady Abahai in order to block the succession of his younger brother. This is speculated because at the time of Nurhaci's death, there werw 4 Lords/Baei Le with Huang Taji as the lowest rank, but also the most fit one. In the end, Huang Taji had control over the 2 strongest/highest class banners- the Plain/Bordered Yellow Banner. From there, he slowly got rid of his competitor's powers.

He continued the expansion of the state in the region later known as Manchuria, pushing deeper into Mongolia and raiding Korea and Ming China. His personal military abilities were widely praised and he effectively developed the military-civil administration known as the Eight Banners or Banner system. This system was well-suited to accept the different peoples, primarily Chinese and Mongols, who joined the Manchu state either following negotiated agreements or military defeat.

Although the historical record is unclear on the matter, it is quite possible that it was the ongoing incorporation of different peoples into the Later Jin state that encouraged Hung Taiji to change the name of both his people and the dynasty.

In 1635, Hung Taiji changed the name of his people from Jurchen to Manchu, or Manju in the Manchu language. The original meaning of Manju is not known and so the reasons for its adoption remain opaque. There are many theories as to the reason for the choice of name but two of the most commonly cited are its sounding similar to the Manchu word for "brave" and a possible connection with the Bodhisattva Manjusri, the Bodhisattva of Wisdom, of whom Nurhaci claimed to be an incarnation.

The dynastic name Later Jin was a direct reference to the Jin dynasty founded by the Jurchen people, who ruled northern China from 1115 to 1234. As such, the name was likely to be viewed as closely tied to the Jurchens and would perhaps evoke hostility from Chinese who viewed the Song dynasty, rival state to the Jin, as the legitimate rulers of China at that time. Hung Taiji's ambition was to conquer China proper and overthrow the Ming dynasty, and to do that required not only a powerful military force but also an effective bureaucratic administration. For this, he used the obvious model, that of the Ming government, and recruited Ming officials to his cause. If the name of Later Jin would prove an impediment to his goal among many Chinese, then it was not too much to change it. Whatever the precise motivation, Hung Taiji proclaimed the establishment of the Qing dynasty in 1636. The reasons for the choice of Qing as the new name are likewise unclear, although it has been speculated that the sound - Jin and Qing are pronounced similarly in Manchu - or wuxing theory - traditional ideas held that fire, associated with the character for Ming, was overcome by water, associated with the character for Qing - may have influenced the choice.

In 1636, Hung Taiji invaded the Joseon Dynasty(see the Second Manchu invasion of Korea), because the Joseon Dynasty did not accept that Hung Taiji had become an emperor. Due to the fact that the Joseon Dynasty surrendered to the Qing Dynasty in 1637, Hung Taiji succeeded in making the Joseon Dynasty cut off the relations with the Ming Dynasty, and the Joseon Dynasty became Qing's protectorate. Also during this period, Huang Taji also took over Inner Mongolia (leaving Outer Mongolia for Kangxi conquer) with 3 main wars, each of them victories. As the emperor, he is commonly recognized as having abilities similiar to the best emperors such as Yongle, Tang Taizong because of his effective rule, effective use of talent, and effective warring skills. As the emperor, he is the holder of 3 banners out of 8. He controlled the Upper 3 Banners or the Elite banners of the time which were the Plain/Bordered Yellow Banner and Plain Blue Banner.

Hung Taiji died on September 21st, possibly at the hands of one of his officials, just a few months before his army would seize control of Beijing. He therefore did not live to see his ambition of conquering Ming China come about, although his son, the Shunzhi Emperor, succeeded him and became the first of the Qing dynasty emperors to govern China. That the Qing state succeeded not only in conquering China but also in establishing a capable administration was due in large measure to the foresight and policies of Hung Taiji.

[edit] Family

Father: Nurhaci, founder of the Later Jin dynasty (Qing)
Mother: Empress Monggu, from the Yehenala clan
Prominent Consorts:

Empress Jere, post-humously known as Empress Xiao Duan Wen
Concubine Zhuang, who later became the Xiao Zhuang Grand Imperial Dowager Empress (Manchu: Hiyoošungga Ambalinggū Genggiyenšu Hūwanghu), the daughter of a Mongol prince of the Borjigit clan (the descendants of Chinggis Khan's brother Jöchi Khasar)
Princess Hai Lan Zhu