Yongle Emperor

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About Yongle Emperor

Lifespan: 1360-1424 A.D

Reign Years: 1402 – 1424 A.D

Given Name: Zhu Dì

Reign Name: Yongle

Yongle Emperor – Ming Dynasty

Zhu Di was also known as the Yongle Emperor. He was Ming Dynasty’s third ruler, whose reign lasted from 1402 to 1424. Zhu Di was the Hongwu Emperor’s fourth son, who was specifically the dynasty’s founder.

Originally, Zhu Di was enfeoffed as the Yan Prince in May 1370. Back then, the capital was in Beiping, today’s Beijing.

The Life of Zhu Di before His Reign

Zhu Di was born from a total of 26 princes. Experts claim that he was likely born by a second consort from Korea.

In the classic Chinese style, he always treated his father’s principal consort as the legal mother. This individual was the influential and revered Empress Ma.

Zhu Di as the Prince of Yan

In 1370 when Zhu Di was ten years old, he was appointed as the Prince of Yen. That’s because it was the ancient name of the Beijing region.

Upon growing up, the new Ming Dynasty was established, and a government-based apparatus came forth. It was also when the new socio-economic order was instituted. The latter was defined by authoritarian reconstructions in a variety of sections.

He grew up influenced by his remarkable father, who was vigorous, robust, and temperamental. Yongle then became the favorite of his father since his natural leadership qualities outshined that of his other brothers.

When he was young, Zhu Di’s spent most of his time in the army. That’s because his father was focused on attacking other forces.

Zhu Di as the Lord of Beijing

When Zhu Di turned 20, he was given the position of the Lord of Beijing City. It was to protect the Ming Empire from nomadic groups.

He participated in multiple battles and acquired a lot of knowledge in the process. This was most evident when he cooperated with the outstandingly notable generals from the Ming Empire.

When Zhu Di and his brothers were staying in their fiefs, they worked to defend the empire. As for their eldest brother, Zhu Biao, he lived with Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang as the crown prince. There, he assisted the emperor in running and managing the country.

Zhu Di was a remarkable marshal with notable military successes. He was also a faithful son to Emperor Hongwu and was a kind and well-behaved sibling.

Victory against the Mongols

In 1380, Zhu Di secured the northern borders with his father-in-law’s help, General Xu Da. He was a talented and skilled general who helped establish the Ming Dynasty.

When 1390 came, Zhu Di, together with his half-brother, the Prince of Chin, engaged in a joint command expedition. It was a necessary action to patrol over the Great Wall.

In 1393, they assumed power over the defenses of the entire central area of the north frontier.

The success of Zhu Di against the Mongol troops impressed his father greatly. That also goes for his heightened energy, leadership, and skill to assess risks. Even the men of Zhu Di praised and acclaimed his efficiency and effectiveness.

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Succession to the Throne

In 1392, the Prince of Jin died because of illness, which eventually raised concerns regarding the imperial succession. A few historians assume that Emperor Hongwu thought of violating the imperial rules that he implemented. Then, he set the Prince of Yen as the new heir.

After holding back for months, the Emperor followed tradition. He declared the dead crown prince’s son, Emperor Jianwen, as his successor. When his two older brothers died, Zhu Di grew increasingly boastful.

Emperor Hongwu died in June 1398, causing pandemonium at the imperial court. It was an issue as to who would be the next ruler. That’s because even if Hongwu had 26 sons, his finely groomed heir Zhu Biao, died prematurely in 1392.

With that, Zhu Di claimed himself to be the de facto ruler of the imperial clan. So, he expected to have deferential treatment from his nephew, who was the heir apparent. And as soon as the Prince of Jin’s son was crowned as Emperor Jianwen, a deadly feud ensued.

Instead of opting for his son, Hongwu chose the eldest son of Zhu Biao. Of course, this issue became the convention of the Ming dynasty.

From there, they decided that the empress’ oldest son inherits the throne. But if he dies before the ascension, the title would go to Zhu Biao’s oldest son. So when Hongwu died in 1398, Zhu Yunwen succeeded and ruled as Emperor Jianwen.

Jingnan Campaign

After Zhu Di’s nephew, Zhu Yunwen, ascended the throne, he dissolved Zhu Yuanzhang’s sons’ authority and titles. He did this within a year, with that, Zhu Di realized that he could easily be removed from power. As a king who had independent troops, he was a huge and definite threat to the new ruler.

He planned out a scheme and acted like he’d gone mad during that time. While fooling others, he sent his spies to observe the new emperor. It was the time when he was secretly plotting his rebellion.

Eventually, he allied with his brother and started a rebellion against Emperor Zhu Yunwen. It was called the Jingnan Campaign or Jingnan Rebellion.

Zhu Di and Battles

Zhu Di joined a lot of battles in the past together with his father. He even led both the seventh and eighth North Expedition. These were also the wars that his father started against the former Mongolian empire.

Because of this, his troops were highly experienced and aggressive too.

On the other hand, Emperor Zhu Yunwen was extremely young and never had any military experience. In fact, the remarkable and notable marshals from the Ming’s central government have already departed. They have died either of sickness or were executed by Emperor Hongwu.

Not only that, but the young emperor gave his best troops to an incompetent general. He continued losing in battles and eventually surrendered to Zhu Di. And after years of extreme battles, Zhu Di led his army outside the capital city of Ming.

Zhu Yunwen and a huge group of his loyal soldiers were determined to push back and wait for reinforcements. It was also when another prince and a cowardly general joined forces to attack. This somehow opened the gate and brought opportunities for Zhu Di.

Due to their incapacity and ineptness, Zhu Di easily assaulted and captured the city of Nanjing.

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Reign of the Yongle Emperor

The Yongle Emperor made lasting offerings to Chinese history. These include shifting the capital to Beijing and starting the construction of the Forbidden City. Later, it became the imperial residence of the ruler.

The emperor also opened China to the world. There, he notably sponsored the different voyages of the known explorer, Zheng He.

Yet, there were expensive battles in both the northern and southern areas of China. There were even lavish construction projects that commenced. Because of all the expenses, Emperor Yongle’s successors were left with inadequate amounts of cash than what they needed.

With that, they had issues facing the resurgent Mongol troops in the middle of the 15th century.

Relationship with Tibet

Yongle greatly patronized Tibetan Buddhism.

In 1403, the Yongle Emperor sent various presents, messages, and envoys to Tibet. It was to invite the fifth Gyalwa Karmapa, Deshin Shekpa, to visit the imperial capital. It was after seeing a vision of the Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva.

After a lengthy trip, Deshin Shekpa arrived in April 1407. He reached the imperial palace riding an elephant, where thousands of monks welcomed him.

Deshin Shekpa convinced and educated the Yongle Emperor that different religions were present for different people. So, one religion was not better than the others.

The emperor presented him with various precious silver objects and gave him the title, ‘Precious Religious King. Other titles he had included the Mighty Buddha of Peace and the Great Loving One of the West.

A Khatvanga was one of the items given to the Karmapa. It’s now kept safely in the British Museum.

Cultural Traditions

The Yongle Emperor developed both Buddhism and Taoism in coordination with his predecessors’ deeds. Accepting the different religions served as a way to put together the different people in the empire.

The Yongle Emperor even established an exam to manage his people’s knowledge when it comes to Confucianism. The tests focused on the basics of Confucianism and served as one’s code for everyday living. It also served as a code of good relations for those in the government.

Overall, the exam had a positive and vital effect since it urged the people to become more literate.

Mimicking the Mongol Khans, Yongle Emperor called for a Tibetan Lama to the court. As for intellect, the strongest influence on him came from his favorite personal advisor, the Daoist priest named Tao Yen.

The tolerance of Yongle when it came to Chinese ideas that didn’t agree with his philosophies was greatly known. Even if he immensely favored Confucianism, he still treated it, along with Daoism and Buddhism, equally.

Because of his actions, the strict and serious Confucianists considered it as a form of hypocrisy. Yet, thanks to his open-minded approach, he was able to win the people’s support, thus, unifying the country.

He went out of his way to remove the Mongol culture from the preceding Yuan Empire. With that, he forbade the use of popular Mongolian habits, names, clothing, and language.

Stabilization of the New Economy

After the Yongle Emperor overthrew Emperor Jianwen, the countryside of China ended up devastated. The economy had to strive with low depopulation and low production. So, Yongle had to come up with a plan to stabilize and strengthen the economy.

Yet before he did this, he first silenced the dissension.

Elimination of Corrupt and Disloyal Officials

The Yongle Emperor re-established the military spy agency of his father, Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang. Then, he built a monitoring system.

His father used the agency to fight all corrupt officials. Yet Yongle, on the other hand, used it for killing those against his throne.

He was as ruthless as his father when removing any dissent in the state’s bureaucracy. But Yongle swept and took out any official he considered loyal to Jianwen, his nephew.

Right after taking the throne, the emperor began his infamous purge. Here, the known Confucian scholar-official Fang Xiarou was executed via dismemberment. Yongle had him killed since he declined and disapproved drafting the emperor’s enthronement.

Any of the known government associates of Xiarou were executed as well. That also goes for all his relatives to the 10th degree.

Other than that, Yongle had other officials executed. That’s if they passed their civil service exams during the time Xiarou was their overseer. Because of what he did, the death toll rose to thousands.

Yongle ensured the removal of corrupt officers that spread rumors. He even dispatched his trusted officials to destroy or reveal secret societies. These also include loyalists and bandits who were linked to his other relatives.

Although many killings occurred during his rule, Yongle did projects to strengthen and improve the economy. He battled population decline, utilizing as much from the current labor force. Of course, he maximized agricultural and textile production as well.

Construction of the Forbidden City

In 1409, Zhu Di shifted the empire’s capital from Nanking and back to Beijing. It was done to try and dominate the Mongol empire just like what they did to the Chinese Empire.

According to legends, the capital was changed when the Yongle Emperor’s advisers took him to the hills encircling Nanjing. There, they pointed out the palace, showing its vulnerability to artillery attacks.

With that, Yongle planned on building a huge network of structures in the Beijing area. There, government offices, officials, and the imperial family would reside.

So after the arduously lengthy construction from 1407 to 1420, the Forbidden City came forth. It then became the imperial capital of the empire for the next 500 years.

Structure of the Forbidden City

As the name suggests, the area is a micro-city that measures 961m long and 753m wide. The city comprises over 90 palace compounds, which include various buildings. It’s surrounded by a moat that’s about 52m wide.

The Forbidden City is surrounded and secured by defensive layers. Its center is where the royal family and emperors stay.

Around it was even the larger Imperial City where government/court officials and staff worked and resided. In 1553, the Outer City was included to the south, and a wall also surrounded it.

Then, surrounding the walled areas of the city was unwalled land. Although less protected, there stood important temples such as the Temple of Sun and Temple of Moons. These were the areas that commoners lived in.

The walled zones & fortifications, plus the guards and troops, functioned as shields for those in the Forbidden City.

Reconstruction of the Grand Canal

The Yongle Emperor also worked to reclaim regions rich in production like the Lower Yangtze Delta. He even called for a huge reconstruction of the Grand Canal. During his rule, the Grand Canal was almost complete, so eventually, imported goods were flowing from all over the world.

The emperor’s short-term goal was to refresh the north urban centers, especially the newest Beijing capital.

Before the canal was rebuilt, grain was transported in two different ways. One was via the East China Sea: from Liujiagang port near Suzhou.

The other way was a more tedious one since grains were transferred from big to smaller shallow barges. Then, these were transferred to large river barges again on the Yellow River before they reached Beijing.

Tribute shipments of grain to the north every year was necessary. So both processes eventually became highly inefficient.

A memorandum was sent to Yongle in Jining, Shandong, by a magistrate. It was a protest over the process of shipping grains, which the emperor granted immediately.

Military Accomplishments

The Yongle Emperor’s military achievements were just as notable. He initiated battles that greatly extended his domain.

Then, he held a huge military parade that several foreign monarchs attended.

Wars against Mongolia

Despite having numerous accomplishments, Mongols continued causing problems for the Ming Dynasty. And to ease himself of this issue, Zhu Di, the Ming Dynasty emperor, focused on eliminating the threat.

He mounted military expeditions straight to the Mongol steppes, crushing the remaining people of the Yuan Dynasty. They escaped to the north after the defeat versus Emperor Hongwu.

He repaired the defenses up north, then forged alliances to prevent the Mongols from attacking. It was also to keep them at bay for his men to establish in an army.

His plan was to force the Mongols into depending economically on the Chinese. Then, this would launch initiatives to Mongolia to disable their offensive power.

He tried pressuring Mongolia to become a Chinese tributary. There, all the tribes would submit and claim that they’re vassals of the Ming. This was also to isolate and contain the Mongols.

Through engaging in battles, the Ming Dynasty emperor learned to appreciate cavalry. So, he eventually started spending his resources to keep a good supply of horses.

The Yongle Emperor spent his life battling with the Mongols. Successes and failures came and went. But after his second battle against the Mongols, the Ming Dynasty lived in peace for more than seven years.

Yongle cited Tang Taizong as his role model for being familiar with China and the steppe people. Tang was also referred to as Heavenly Qaghan and was imitated by the Ming emperor.

Conquest of Vietnam

Vietnam was one of the sources of difficulties during the rule of the Yongle Emperor. In 1406, he responded to numerous formal petitions from those of the Tran Empire. Yet upon arriving in Vietnam, the Tran prince and Chinese ambassador were killed in an ambush.

In response to the incident, which the Yongle Emperor considered an insult, he sent armies to conquer Vietnam. These were led by Mu Sheng and Zhang Fu.

After executing the Tran royal family, Vietnam was set as one of China’s provinces.

In 1407, when the Ho monarch was defeated, the Chinese started a sustained effort to sinicize the people. Numerous ancient sites like the Bao Minh pagoda were looted then destroyed.

In December 1407, Zhu Di of the Ming Dynasty ordered Zhang Fu not to harm any innocent Vietnamese. He noted that the family members of those rebels should be spared. These include young males and those who didn’t join in the rebellions.

In early 1418, Le Loi, the founder of the Le Dynasty, began a huge rebellion against the Ming Empire. When the Yongle Emperor died in 1424, the rebels under Le Loi’s rule captured almost all areas of the province.

By 1427, Emperor Xuande gave up the efforts begun by his grandfather. So, he finally acknowledged Vietnam’s independence but only on a condition: they take the vassal status.

Choosing the New Heir of the Throne

When the time came for choosing the new heir, Yongle wanted Zhu Gaoxu, his second son, on the throne. His son possessed an athletic and warrior-like attitude, which greatly contrasted his brother’s humanitarian and intellectual nature.

A lot of counsel and suggestions from his advisers were given. However, the Ming Dynasty emperor went for Zhu Gaozhi, his eldest son, as the heir apparent. The Chief Grand Secretary Xie Jin mainly influenced his choice.

This resulted in Zhu Gaoxu becoming infuriated. Thus, refused to surrender, jockeying for Yongle’s favor, and declined to move to Yunnan province. It’s where his princedom was set.

Zhu Gaoxu even went as far as undermining Xie Jin’s counsel, eventually killing him too.

Death of the Yongle Emperor

In April 1424, the Yongle Emperor began another large campaign towards the Gobi Desert. The reason for this was to chase a troop of escaping Oirats.

Growing frustrated due to not catching up with his enemies, Yongle became depressed, which led to illness. This occurrence likely caused a series of minor strokes.

In August 1424, the Yongle Emperor died and was entombed in Changling. It was a place located northwest of Beijing.

Generally, the Yongle Emperor was a great monarch in the history of China. However, his ways of achieving the throne was indeed a cruel and illegal process.