Empress Xiao Hui
Encyclopedia
Empress Xiaohuizhang was the second Empress Consort of the Shunzhi Emperor
of the Qing Dynasty
.
Borjigit
clan. Her personal name is unknown. Her grandfather was Manzhuxili (滿珠習禮), a jasagh
of the Khorchins and a son of Jaisang (宰桑), the father of Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang. Her father was Jorji (綽爾濟), a duke among the Khorchins who was later promoted to the status of a beile (貝勒; lord). She had an older brother Eji'er (鄂緝爾), who inherited their father's beile title. Her younger sister was also a concubine of the Shunzhi Emperor and was known as Consort Shuhui (淑惠妃).
In 1653 the Shunzhi Emperor demoted his first empress (known as Borjigit, Demoted Empress
) to the rank of a consort. A year later, the future Empress Xiaohuizhang entered the Forbidden City
and became a concubine of Shunzhi. One month later she was officially instated as the Shunzhi Emperor's second Empress Consort. However Shunzhi showed little interest in Empress Xiaohuizhang because he favoured Consort Donggo.
When the Shunzhi Emperor died in 1661 he was succeeded by his third son Xuanye (born to Empress Xiaokangzhang), who became the Kangxi Emperor
. Empress Xiaohuizhang was granted the title of Empress Dowager Renxian (仁憲皇太后). She remained as empress dowager for the rest of her life. She died in 1717 in the Forbidden City at the age of 76, and was interred in a separate tomb in the Huiling Mausoleum in Hebei
.
Shunzhi Emperor
The Shunzhi Emperor was the third emperor of the Manchu-led Qing dynasty, and the first Qing emperor to rule over China, which he did from 1644 to 1661. "Shunzhi" was the name of his reign period...
of the Qing Dynasty
Qing Dynasty
The Qing Dynasty was the last dynasty of China, ruling from 1644 to 1912 with a brief, abortive restoration in 1917. It was preceded by the Ming Dynasty and followed by the Republic of China....
.
Biography
By birth, Empress Xiaohuizhang was a Khorchin Mongol, a branch of the MongolMongols
Mongols ) are a Central-East Asian ethnic group that lives mainly in the countries of Mongolia, China, and Russia. In China, ethnic Mongols can be found mainly in the central north region of China such as Inner Mongolia...
Borjigit
Borjigin
Borjigin , also known as the Altan urug , were the imperial clan of Genghis Khan and his successors....
clan. Her personal name is unknown. Her grandfather was Manzhuxili (滿珠習禮), a jasagh
Jasagh
A jasagh was the head of a Mongol banner or khoshun during the Qing Dynasty and Boghda Khaanate of Mongolia. The term is rendered "zhasake" in contemporary Chinese documents. The position was held by hereditary succession by certain Mongol princes, most of whom were descendants of Genghis Khan...
of the Khorchins and a son of Jaisang (宰桑), the father of Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang. Her father was Jorji (綽爾濟), a duke among the Khorchins who was later promoted to the status of a beile (貝勒; lord). She had an older brother Eji'er (鄂緝爾), who inherited their father's beile title. Her younger sister was also a concubine of the Shunzhi Emperor and was known as Consort Shuhui (淑惠妃).
In 1653 the Shunzhi Emperor demoted his first empress (known as Borjigit, Demoted Empress
Borjigit, Demoted Empress
Borjigit, Demoted Empress refers to the first empress of the Shunzhi Emperor of the Qing Dynasty. She was a Khorchin Mongol, a branch of the Mongol Borjigit clan that claimed descent from Hasar, a younger brother of Genghis Khan. Her personal name was unknown...
) to the rank of a consort. A year later, the future Empress Xiaohuizhang entered the Forbidden City
Forbidden City
The Forbidden City was the Chinese imperial palace from the Ming Dynasty to the end of the Qing Dynasty. It is located in the middle of Beijing, China, and now houses the Palace Museum...
and became a concubine of Shunzhi. One month later she was officially instated as the Shunzhi Emperor's second Empress Consort. However Shunzhi showed little interest in Empress Xiaohuizhang because he favoured Consort Donggo.
When the Shunzhi Emperor died in 1661 he was succeeded by his third son Xuanye (born to Empress Xiaokangzhang), who became the Kangxi Emperor
Kangxi Emperor
The Kangxi Emperor ; Manchu: elhe taifin hūwangdi ; Mongolian: Энх-Амгалан хаан, 4 May 1654 –20 December 1722) was the fourth emperor of the Qing Dynasty, the first to be born on Chinese soil south of the Pass and the second Qing emperor to rule over China proper, from 1661 to 1722.Kangxi's...
. Empress Xiaohuizhang was granted the title of Empress Dowager Renxian (仁憲皇太后). She remained as empress dowager for the rest of her life. She died in 1717 in the Forbidden City at the age of 76, and was interred in a separate tomb in the Huiling Mausoleum in Hebei
Hebei
' is a province of the People's Republic of China in the North China region. Its one-character abbreviation is "" , named after Ji Province, a Han Dynasty province that included what is now southern Hebei...
.
Posthumous title
Empress Xiaohuizhang's full posthumous title is:- Empress Xiaohuirenxianduanyicishugong'anchundeshuntianyishengzhang
(孝惠仁憲端懿慈淑恭安純德順天翼聖章皇后)