Hongzhi Emperor

Zhu Youtang (1470–1505) was the ninth emperor of the Ming dynasty. He succeeded his father, the Chenghua Emperor, in 1487 and ruled under the era name Hongzhi from 1488 until his death in 1505. His temple name is Xiaozong.

Chinese historians have counted him among the best of the Ming emperors: hard-working, frugal, willing to listen to criticism and careful in his choice of ministers. He is also remembered for an unusual private life. He took no concubines, and is often described as the only monogamous emperor in Chinese history.

A Hidden Childhood

Zhu Youtang's mother, Lady Ji, came from a non-Han family of the far south and had been brought to the palace as a captive; there she served as a keeper of one of the palace storehouses. The Chenghua Emperor noticed her, and she became pregnant by him.

The emperor's favourite, Consort Wan, dominated the inner palace, and according to the traditional account she was determined that no other woman should bear the emperor a surviving son. The story goes that Lady Ji's pregnancy was concealed, and that after the birth in 1470 the child was hidden in the palace with the help of eunuchs and of the deposed Empress Wu, who had herself fallen victim to Consort Wan's influence.

In 1475, when the boy was five, the emperor, who believed himself without an heir, learnt of his existence and received him with joy. Lady Ji died suddenly the same year, and it was widely suspected that Consort Wan had her poisoned. The child was then brought up under the protection of the emperor's mother, the Empress Dowager Zhou.

Crown Prince

Zhu Youtang was named crown prince in 1475 and received a careful Confucian education. Consort Wan, fearing what he might do once he came to power, is said to have urged the emperor to replace him with another son. In the mid-1480s a series of earthquakes struck the region of Mount Tai, the sacred mountain of the east, and the emperor, taking them as a warning from Heaven, left the succession as it was.

Consort Wan died early in 1487, and the Chenghua Emperor a few months later. Zhu Youtang came to the throne in September 1487 at the age of seventeen.

The Reign of the Hongzhi Emperor

The new emperor began by clearing out the favourites of his father's last years: court clerics, dubious officials who had been appointed through irregular channels, and those who had grown rich from palace patronage. He then governed in the Confucian manner his officials hoped for. He attended audiences diligently, reduced palace expenditure and some taxes, and invited frank advice, even when it was critical of himself.

He chose able ministers and kept them in office, among them the grand secretaries Liu Jian, Xie Qian and Li Dongyang and the minister of personnel Wang Shu. Relations between the emperor and his officials were unusually harmonious, and later writers spoke of the reign as the Hongzhi Restoration.

Abroad, the reign was largely defensive. The Ming did not seek new territory, but the northern frontier remained under pressure from the Mongols, and in the north-west the court contended with the rulers of Turfan for control of the oasis of Hami.

The Monogamous Emperor

Chinese emperors kept many consorts, partly to ensure the succession. Hongzhi married Lady Zhang in 1487, shortly before he became emperor, and made her his empress. He took no other consorts, which is why he is often described as the only monogamous emperor in Chinese history.

Why he did so is not recorded. Many historians have linked it to his own childhood, when the rivalries of his father's harem cost his mother her life.

A Popular Story

A widely repeated modern claim credits the Hongzhi reign with the invention of the bristle toothbrush, in 1498. We have not found a contemporary source for it, and it should be treated with caution.