Qing Dynasty imperial succession during the Kangxi Era from the perspective of movements among banner princes and powerful clans

Abstract

This article takes up the issue of imperial succession during the Qing Dynasty's Kangxi Era (1662-1722), in an attempt to clarify 1) why the selection of the crown prince was executed by the reigning Emperor Kangxi according to the custom of earlier Chinese dynasties, rather than through the consensus of powerful leaders based on the Qing tradition and 2) why Eighth Prince Yin Si gained popularity within the court after the disinheritance of the crown prince, Second Prince Yin Reng. The discussion will hopefully better elucidate the power structure within the imperial court during this period. The author takes up a theme that has been largely ignored in the research to date; that is, an analysis of Prince An of the imperial family's Plain Blue Banner, which shows that Prince An 1) was one of the most powerful leaders of the Banner with leading clans serving under him, 2) enjoyed strong influence at court, which was made possible in part by the formation of marital ties with the Mongol royal family, the family of the grand empress dowager, and 3) also formed a marital relationship with the Heseri clan, the maternal clan of the crown prince, and, thus supported Yin Reng together with the vassals of the royal banner family for several decades. The alliance formed between Prince An and the Heseri clan may appear at a glance to have enabled selection of the crown prince as in the earlier Chinese dynasties ; however, in reality the act amounted to none other than installation based on the consensus of the era's powerful leaders. As the An-Heseri alliance weakened, however, the status of Crown Prince Yin Reng also wavered. The popularity won by the Eighth Prince Yin Si, whose mother was of low status, after the disinheritance of the crown prince stemmed from the marital relationship formed between Yin Si and Prince An. The "rejection" of the Manchurian custom of consensus in the selection of the crown prince during the Kangxi Era has been seen as a display of the kind of respect afforded to Emperor Kangxi and to the Chinese imperial institution. However, in actuality, there was no substantive change whatsoever from the practices adopted during the early years of the Qing Dynasty. That is to say, the crown prince of the Kangxi Era was supported by imperial authority, but also was selected through the support of the powerful banner princes and clans, like his Qing Dynasty predecessors. Their speculations and interests continued to exert strong influence on the successor to the emperor. The author concludes that the power structure of the early Qing Dynasty therefore essentially survived up to the end of the Kangxi Era.