Noble Consort Yu

Noble Consort Yu (15 June 1714 – 9 July 1792) was a consort of the Qianlong Emperor of the Qing dynasty.

Life

Noble Consort Yu was born in the Mongol Keliyete clan (珂里葉特氏), which was under the Mongol Bordered Blue Banner. Her personal name is unknown. Her father, E'erjitu (額爾吉圖), served as a yuanwailang (員外郎) in the Qing government. Sometime during the reign of the Yongzheng Emperor (r. 1722–1735), Lady Keliyete became a concubine of Hongli, the emperor's fourth son, and received the title of a gege.

In 1735, the Yongzheng Emperor died and was succeeded by Hongli, who was enthroned as the Qianlong Emperor. After his coronation, the emperor granted Lady Keliyete the rank of changzai under the title "Changzai Hai" (海常在). A year later, she was promoted to "Noble Lady Hai" (海貴人).

In 1741, Lady Keliyete gave birth to the Qianlong Emperor's fifth son, Yongqi (1741–1766). She was promoted to Imperial Concubine under the title "Imperial Concubine Yu" (愉嬪) within that year. Yongqi became the Qianlong Emperor's favourite son because of his diligence and proficiency in various arts. Despite not being the firstborn son, he was the first among the Qianlong Emperor's sons to be made a qinwang (first-rank prince). In 1745, the Qianlong Emperor promoted Lady Keliyete to "Consort Yu" (愉妃).

Following Yongqi's early death in 1766, Lady Keliyete gradually lost the Qianlong Emperor's favour and became neglected. She died in 1792 at the age of 78 in Yonghe Palace (永和宮) in the Forbidden City. The emperor granted her the posthumous title "Noble Consort Yu" in 1793 and had her interred in the Yuling Mausoleum at the Eastern Qing tombs.

See also

• Ranks of imperial consorts in China#Qing
• Royal and noble ranks of the Qing dynasty

References

• Zhao, Erxun (1928). Draft History of Qing (Qing Shi Gao) (in Chinese).