Noble Consort Zheng

Noble Consort Zheng (1565-1630), was a Ming Dynasty concubine of the Wanli Emperor. She is known for having been his most beloved consort and, in an attempt to please her, he tried to make her son his heir apparent. This act caused over a decade of conflict and factionalism in the imperial court.[1]

In this Chinese name, the family name is Zheng (鄭).
Noble Consort Zheng
鄭貴妃
Born1565 (1565)
Daxing, Beijing
Died1630 (aged 64–65)
Burial
Seven Tombs of Imperial Concubines, Changping District
SpouseWanli Emperor
IssueZhu Xuanshu, Princess Yunhe (1584-1590
Zhu Changxu (1585)
Zhu Changxun, Prince of Fu (1586-1641)
Zhu Changzhi (1587-1588)
Zhu Xuanyao, Princess Lingqiu (1588-1589)
Zhu Xuanwei, Princess Shouning (1592-1634)
Posthumous name
Imperial Noble Consort Gōngkè huìróng héjìng
恭恪惠榮和靖皇貴妃 (1630)
Grand Empress Dowager Xiàonìng wēnmù zhuānghuì cíyì xiàntiān yùshèng
孝寧溫穆莊惠慈懿憲天裕聖太皇太后 (1644)
ClanZheng (鄭)
FatherZheng Chengxian (鄭承憲)

Early life

Zheng was born in Daxing District of southern Beijing in 1565. In 1581, the imperial court opened selections for the emperor's harem and Zheng was selected.

Imperial life

Soon after arrival in the imperial harem, Zheng was elevated to the status of Imperial Concubine with the honorific name Shu (淑).[2] Her father was made a member of the Jinyiwei, with authority over 1,000 households.[3] In 1582, Zheng was given the rank of Virtuous Consort (Chinese: 德妃) and her father was awarded a command.[4]

In January 1584, the Wanli Emperor ordered the Ministry of Rites to confer the rank of Noble Consort upon Zheng,[5] to celebrate the birth of the Princess Yunhe. The Wanli Emperor also gave his seneschal 100,000 silver taels to organise celebrations. In 1585, Zheng gave birth to the emperor's second son. The child died soon after birth and was given the posthumous title Prince Ai of Bin. In early 1586, she gave birth to another son, named Zhu Changxun. In 1589, Zheng's one year-old daughter Zhu Xuanyao died. She was posthumously given the title Princess Lingqiu.[6]

Zheng died in 1630. She was entombed at Yinquan Mountain within the Ming Tombs, but in the area for imperial consorts.[7]

Imperial succession

In 1586, Zheng was pregnant and the emperor decreed that she should be made Imperial Noble Consort. His advisers argued that doing so was not appropriate, as this would raise her in status above Consort Gong, who had given birth to the emperor's eldest son.[8] This was widely perceived as a precursor to the emperor declaring Zheng's son, Zhu Changxun, heir apparent, skipping over his eldest son by Gong.[9] Officials argued that, if Zheng were to be made Imperial Noble Consort, then the emperor should simultaneously elevate Gong to Noble Consort.[10] The emperor, however, rejected his officials advice.

Over the succeeding decade, the emperor's officials also attempted to persuade him that abandoning the tradition of primogeniture had made Zheng the object of anger and disgust, not only in the court, but also across the country.[11]

Finally, the emperor declared his eldest son heir apparent in 1601 and gave Zhu Changxun the title Prince of Fu (福). However, he was not made to leave the imperial court in keeping with tradition until 1614, when Zhu's household moved to Luoyang.[12] From 1613, the Wanli Emperor had persisted in making his disapproval of Zhu Changluo evident by preventing the burial of Crown Princess Guo in a manner befitting a crown princess — she was finally interred in 1615, after Noble Consort Zheng's son left the palace.[13] Zhu was killed by Li Zicheng in 1641.

Media
  • Portrayed by Ma Yili in the 2005 Chinese television series Jing Yiwei
  • Portrayed by Chen Hao in the 2007 Chinese television series Emperor My Second

References

Notes
  1. Huang (1988), pp. 516-517.
  2. History Office (1620s), volume 122.
  3. History Office (1620s), volume 122.
  4. History Office (1620s), volume 140.
  5. History Office (1620s), volumes 151 & 152.
  6. History Office (1620s), volume 217.
  7. Zhang (1739).
  8. History Office (1620s), volume 171.
  9. Huang (1988), pp. 516.
  10. History Office (1620s), volume 171.
  11. History Office (1620s), volume 266.
  12. History Office (1620s), volume 364.
  13. zhaoxiaoyan (2 February 2015). "朱常洛嫡妃孝元皇后郭氏简介 孝元贞皇后生平" [Biography of Empress Xiaoyuan of the Guo clan, first concubine of Zhu Changluo: life of Empress Xiaoyuanzhen]. Qulishi. Retrieved 2 September 2017.

Works cited
  • History Office, ed. (1620s). 明實錄：明神宗實錄 [Veritable Records of the Ming: Veritable Records of Shenzong of Ming] (in Chinese). Ctext.
  • Huang, Ray (1988). "The Lung-ch'ing and Wan-li reigns, 1567–1620". In Mote, Frederick W.; Twitchett, Denis (eds.). The Ming Dynasty, 1368–1644, Part 1. The Cambridge History of China. 7. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 511–584. doi:10.1017/CHOL9780521243322.008. ISBN 9781139054751.
  • Zhang Tingyu, ed. (1739). "《明史》卷一百十四 列传第二" [History of Ming, Volume 114, Historical Biography 2]. Lishichunqiu Net (in Chinese). Lishi Chunqiu. Retrieved 23 February 2017.
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