Great rites controversy
Encyclopedia
The Great rites controversy took place in 1524 in China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

.

The young and newly empowered Emperor
Emperor
An emperor is a monarch, usually the sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife or a woman who rules in her own right...

 Shizong (Jiajing Emperor
Jiajing Emperor
The Jiajing Emperor was the 11th Ming Dynasty Emperor of China who ruled from 1521 to 1567. Born Zhu Houcong, he was the former Zhengde Emperor's cousin...

) tried to posthumously give his father the title of emperor in order to legitimize his claim to the throne. Due to complications in the succession process, Shizong was not a direct descendant of previous emperors Wuzong or Xiaozong, as he was the only surviving son of Zhu Youyuan the late Prince Xian of Xing and the eldest younger brother of Xiaozong.

His break with tradition caused a huge controversy within the court and pitted Emperor Shizong against the majority of officials who were in agreement with Grand Secretary Yang Tinghe
Yang Tinghe
Yang Tinghe , style name Jiefu, was a Grand Secretary in the Ming Dynasty under the Zhengde and Jiajing emperors...

. Eventually, Yang Tinghe retired, and the remaining dissenters were beaten, imprisoned, or banished. Ultimately, this incident is representative of a power struggle between a young emperor and his court; one was trying to gain power and the other refused to give it up.

The unrelated Chinese Rites controversy
Chinese Rites controversy
The Chinese Rites controversy was a dispute within the Catholic Church from the 1630s to the early 18th century about whether Chinese folk religion rites and offerings to the emperor constituted idolatry...

 has a similar name but took place over a hundred years later and concerned Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...

stances towards traditional Chinese ceremonies.
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