Nurhaci

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Nurhaci

Nurhaci ( Chinese  努爾哈赤  /  努尔哈赤 , Pinyin Nǔ'ěrhāchì , W.-G. Nu-erh-ha-ch'ih ; * 1559 ; † September 30, 1626 ) was a tribal prince of the Jurchen and founder of the Qing dynasty . Under his rule, most of the Jurchen tribes were united to form a people officially called Manchu since 1635 (under the rule of his eighth son, Huang Taiji ) , who overthrew the Ming dynasty in 1644 and thus took control of the Chinese Empire .

Around 1582/83 several leaders fought for power over the Jurchen, with the Ming interfering in the interests of their border protection. A Jurche Nikan Wailan attacked the city of Gure (Ku-le) together with the Ming commander Li Cheng-liang in 1583. A neutral tribal chief named Giocangga, who had rushed into the city to protect his granddaughter, was also killed.

Giocangga ( 覺 昌 安  /  觉 昌 安 , Juéchāng'ān ) was the head of the Ningguta-i Beile / Liu Wang in Hetu Ala (also: Hetuala) on the upper Suksuhu River, a subgroup of the Jianzhou Jurchen. Since his son Taksi had died with him, it was now his eldest son, Nurhaci, who had died. The 25-year-old attacked Nikan Wailan and forced him to flee to the Ming. When they politely refused to extradite him, he assembled, ordered and trained troops and forced their execution (1586).

Nurhaci particularly had to deal with the equally emerging Yehe-Jurchen, who dominated the Hulun Confederation. General Li Cheng-liang's († 1618) policy also tried to prevent the rise of the Yehe in the interests of the Ming dynasty, which Nurhaci came in handy. The Yehe and its eight allies finally attacked Nurhaci with 30,000 men, but were defeated (1593).

In the interests of protection, Nurhaci Ming-China submitted and between 1590 and 1615 personally brought the tribute to Beijing eight times (Manchurian: Gemun Ketshen). He also offered the Ming his support against the Japanese Toyotomi Hideyoshis in Korea (1592–1598). However, for security reasons, the Chinese declined to provide support.

Nurhaci organized his army into four or " eight banners " ( 八旗 制度 ), in which Manchurian , Mongolian and Han-Chinese soldiers were integrated. The prince's success relied not only on his military organization but also on the prosperity of the Jianzhou Jurchen. In addition to normal farming and horse breeding, they also traded in pearls, furs and mining products, as well as growing and selling ginseng .

In half a dozen clashes, Nurhaci finally united almost all of the Jurchen into a people who were already renamed Manchu in his day . The name was not officially renamed until 1635. In 1616 Nurhaci founded his own dynasty ( Da Jin ) ( Great Golden ) and challenged the Ming at the same time.

In the spring of 1619 he defeated four Chinese armies advancing simultaneously on different roads on the Sarhu / Sa'erhu mountain between Mukden and Xingjing ( 興 京  /  兴 京 , Xìngjīng , Hsingching , Stange Hingking = Manchurian Yenden ). They were under the command of General Yang Hao and comprised 200,000 soldiers, including 20,000 Koreans and 20,000 Yehe-Jurchen. Another number speaks of 500,000 men. Yang Hao was then arrested and replaced by Xiong Tingbi. In the autumn of 1619 Nurhaci conquered the first Chinese cities, in the following year 1620 there were already 70 small and large cities in Liaoning .

Nurhaci's government was initially based on his brother Surhaci (1564-1611) and his son Cuyen (1580-1615), who acted as co-regents. Both were executed, with Cuyen at the request of his brothers Taisan, Manggultai, Hung Taiji and a cousin. There were also five major ministers from different origins. A Han Chinese intellectual by the name of Fan Wencheng († 1666) served Nurhaci after 1618, and he eventually became Grand Secretary or Chancellor.

With the further expansion of the Manchurian Empire in Liaoning there were internal problems. The Han Chinese were simply enslaved and deported to their home country, so that the cultivation of the land came to a halt. On Nurhaci's orders, as many Han Chinese as possible, who appeared unreliable, were killed, but the deportation was canceled.

In April 1625 Mukden was made the capital. Nurhaci died there on September 30, 1626 in the newly built imperial palace as a result of a cannon shot in a lost battle near Ningyuan. He was followed by his eighth son Abahai (Huang Taiji, * 1592 / † 1643).

See also

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Andrej Rudnev, Imago Mundi: A Manchu Itinerary. Volume 12. pp. 161–170 (article consists of 20 pages). Published by: Imago Mundi, Ltd, 1955
predecessor Office successor
- Khan Jin
1616 - 1626 		Hong Taiji
personal data
SURNAME Nurhaci
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Manchurian ruler
DATE OF BIRTH 1559
DATE OF DEATH September 30, 1626