Tan Yuling
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Tan Yuling (谭玉龄) (1920 – 14 August 1942) was a concubine of the Emperor of Manchukuo, Puyi. Her name is sometimes transliterated into English as “Jade Years”.
[edit] Biography
An ethnic Manchu of the Tatala clan, Yuling changed her Manchurian clan to a common Han last name "Tan" (谭) based on their similarity of pronunciation, due to anti-Manchuism in China following the Xinhai Revolution which overthrew the Manchu Qing dynasty. In 1927, while still a child, she entered the service of the court, and she accompanied the court to the Japanese puppet state of Manchukuo when it was formed in 1932.
On 6 April 1937, she was selected by Puyi as imperial concubine, and was granted the title of Imperial Concubine Xiang (祥貴人), which meant she was a consort of the Fifth Degree. She died six years after her marriage while being treated for typhoid fever. Puyi felt that the death was suspicious, since she died shortly after an injection given by her Japanese doctor. Tan Yuling was known to have resented the Japanese control over the Emperor, and Puyi came under pressure from the Japanese Kwantung Army to select a Japanese as her replacement. [1]
After her death, Ta Yuling was posthumously elevated to the rank of "Gui-Fei", meaning: "Noble Concubine" (Consort of the Second Degree) and was given the name of "Ming-Xian" (明賢).
In 2004, the descendants of the Imperial Qing House further posthumously elevated her to the rank of "Huang-Gui-Fei", meaning: "Imperial Noble Consort" (皇貴妃) (Consort of the First Degree).
[edit] References
- Behr, Edward (1977). The Last Emperor. Bantam. ISBN 0553344749.
- Puyi, Edward; Paul Kramer (1967). the Last Manchu; the Autobiography of Henry Pu Yi, Last Emperor of China. Putnam. ASIN: B000NRUCZ8.
- Emperor Xuantong
| Preceded by Empress Wan Rong and Wen Xiu |
Wife of Puyi | Succeeded by Li Yuqin |
