Xianfeng Emperor
Emperor of China from 1850 to 1861 / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The Xianfeng Emperor (17 July 1831 – 22 August 1861), also known by his temple name Emperor Wenzong of Qing, personal name Yizhu, was the eighth emperor of the Qing dynasty, and the seventh Qing emperor to rule over China proper, reigned from 1850 to 1861. During his reign, the Qing dynasty experienced several wars and rebellions including the Taiping Rebellion, Nian Rebellion, and Second Opium War. He was the last Chinese emperor to exercise sole power.
Xianfeng Emperor 咸豐帝 | |||||||||||||||||
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Emperor of the Qing dynasty | |||||||||||||||||
Reign | 9 March 1850 – 22 August 1861 | ||||||||||||||||
Predecessor | Daoguang Emperor | ||||||||||||||||
Successor | Tongzhi Emperor | ||||||||||||||||
Born | (1831-07-17)17 July 1831 (9th day of the 6th month of the 11th year of the Dao'guang era) Chengjing Studio, Old Summer Palace, Beijing, Qing dynasty | ||||||||||||||||
Died | 22 August 1861(1861-08-22) (aged 30) (17th day of the 7th month of the 11th year of the Xian'feng era) Yanbozhishuang Hall, Chengde Mountain Resort, Hebei, Qing dynasty | ||||||||||||||||
Burial | Ding Mausoleum, Eastern Qing tombs | ||||||||||||||||
Spouses | |||||||||||||||||
Issue | Tongzhi Emperor Princess Rong'an of the First Rank | ||||||||||||||||
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House | Aisin Gioro | ||||||||||||||||
Dynasty | Qing | ||||||||||||||||
Father | Daoguang Emperor | ||||||||||||||||
Mother | Empress Xiaoquancheng |
Xianfeng Emperor | |||||||||||
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Traditional Chinese | 咸豐帝 | ||||||||||
Simplified Chinese | 咸丰帝 | ||||||||||
Literal meaning | “Universal Prosperity” Emperor | ||||||||||
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The fourth son of the Daoguang Emperor, Xianfeng assumed the throne in 1850 and inherited an empire in crisis. A few months after his ascension, the Taiping Rebellion rebellion broke out in southern China, which rapidly spread and culminated in the fall of Nanjing in 1853. Contemporaneously, the Nian Rebellion began in the north, followed by ethnic uprisings (the Miao Rebellion and the Panthay Rebellion) in the south. The revolts ravaged large parts of the country, caused millions of deaths and would not be quelled until well into the reign of Xianfeng's successor. Qing defeat during the first phase of the Second Opium War led to the 1858 Treaty of Tientsin and Treaty of Aigun, the latter of which resulted in the cession of much of Manchuria to the Russian Empire. Negotiations broke down and hostilities resumed soon after, and in 1860 Anglo-French forces entered Beijing and burned the Old Summer Palace. The emperor was forced to flee for the imperial resort at Jehol, and the Convention of Peking was negotiated in his absence.
Xianfeng's health was already in rapid decline in the face of mounting Qing losses. He died in 1861 in Jehol at the age of 30 and was succeeded by his surviving six-year-old son, who assumed the throne as the Tongzhi Emperor. On his deathbed, Xianfeng appointed eight men to a regency council to assist his young successor. A few months later, Empress Dowagers Cixi and Ci'an along with Prince Gong instigated the Xinyou Coup and ousted the regents. Cixi ultimately rose to sole power and consolidated control over the Qing government.