Yongzheng
Yongzheng ( Chinese雍正, Yōngzhèng, maiden name: Yinzhen , born December 13, 1678 in Beijing ; † October 8, 1735 ibid) was the fourth son of Emperor Kangxi from February 5, 1723, as the emperor of the Qing dynasty .
Allegedly, as a result of a palace intrigue, he succeeded his father. However, this seems unfounded. Although Kangxi did not name his son heir to the throne until his deathbed, Prince Yinzhen had already held the rank of regent during his father's absence and was (unlike his brothers) involved in state affairs. It is therefore much more likely that Yinzhen had long been planned as his successor, but that Kangxi only made this official shortly before his death in order to avoid arguments with his sons.
His tenure was marked by distrust of his family environment. In particular, Yongzheng punished every allegation of alleged usurpation of the dragon throne with relentless harshness. On the other hand, the very hard-working emperor managed to restructure the broken state budget through rigid austerity. Under his rule the state reserves had amounted to 60 million tael of silver; which only sank to 9 million tael until the Taiping uprising in 1850. He also reformed the imperial administrative system in order to be more effective. In 1727 he concluded the Treaty of Kjachta with Russia , in which this far-reaching trade privileges were granted. In 1729 he passed a first law to curb the opium trade and consumption. For all these reasons, Yongzheng is considered one of the most capable rulers of the Qing period.
Although an upright Confucian, he also studied various schools of Buddhism , in particular Zen Buddhism and (Tibetan-Mongolian) Vajrayana . Christianity , which has been preached by missionaries in China since the 16th century , was increasingly opposed by him as a result of the rites dispute . During his reign the famous encyclopedia “Complete collection of writings and works of art from old and modern times” ( Gujin tushu jicheng ) was created.
literature
- Wolfram Eberhard , Alide Eberhard: History of China. From the beginnings to the present (= Kröner's pocket edition . Volume 413). Kröner, Stuttgart 1971, DNB 456503854 .
- Jacques Gernet : The Chinese World. Suhrkamp, Frankfurt am Main 1988, ISBN 3-518-38005-2
- Gisela Gottschalk : China's great emperor. Pawlak, Herrsching 1985, ISBN 3-88199-229-4
- Jonathan D. Spence : China's Path to Modernity. Hanser, Munich 1995, ISBN 3-446-16284-4
Web links
| predecessor | Office | successor |
|---|---|---|
| Kangxi |
Emperor of China 1722 - 1735 |
Qianlong |
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Yongzheng |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Yinzhen; Xiandi; Shizong; 雍正 (Chinese) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Emperor of China |
| DATE OF BIRTH | December 13, 1678 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Beijing |
| DATE OF DEATH | October 8, 1735 |
| Place of death | Beijing |