Foreword: Regarding the Daoguang Emperor, there has always been a saying in the folk, "Daoguang Daoguang, ten years and nine wildernesses.". The simple eight words reveal the hardships of the people's lives during the Daoguang years, and can also make people feel the atmosphere of the decline of the Qing Dynasty. The Daoguang Emperor had the intention of reversing the decline, but unfortunately he did not have the ability of his great-grandfather Yongzheng Emperor, and could only rely on the word "frugality" to slow down the decline to a certain extent.
If a Guinness World Record is awarded for the emperor's frugality, the Daoguang Emperor's award is well-deserved! However, whether it is a country or a home, only know frugality, do not know open source, and certainly can not get good development. The Daoguang Emperor was a typical frugality, even if he even patched the dragon robe, he still could not stop the decline of the Qing Dynasty, and even the door of the country was "forced" to open. It is said that a generation is stronger than a generation, and the country is so difficult, why didn't the Daoguang Emperor choose a more capable King Gong to inherit the throne?
Michimitsu-tei Image
Some people say that the Guangdi is like his great-grandfather, the Yongzheng Emperor, and when you think about it, there are really some similarities. Although the two of them were very different in ability, the situation when they succeeded to the throne was not very good, and both of them were very frugal and thrifty, and they were also diligent rulers. Under normal circumstances, a diligent emperor would not have many heirs, after all, time and energy were not allowed. The Yongzheng Emperor lived to be 57 years old and gave birth to 10 sons, and the Daoguang Emperor lived to be 69 years old and gave birth to 9 sons.
In ancient times, health and medical conditions were poor, and the average life expectancy of people was far less than it is now. According to relevant data, during the Qing Dynasty, the average life expectancy of men was only 48 years. The life expectancy of the Daoguang Emperor is exactly 21 years longer than the average, considering that ancient men were married early, it is not difficult to see that some of the sons of the Daoguang Emperor will certainly not live to the time when the Daoguang Emperor dies, and this is also the case.
Portrait of the Xianfeng Emperor
The eldest Yiwei died in Daoguang eleven years, only 24 years old. The elder Eryi Gang died in Daoguang for six years, only 2 years old. Old San Yiji died in Daoguang nine years, less than half a year old. In addition to these 3 princes, the other 6 princes of the Daoguang Emperor were Lao Si Yixuan (Xianfeng Emperor), Lao Wuyi (who passed out), Lao Liu Yichen (Prince Gong), Lao Qiyizhen (Prince Of Alcohol, The biological father of the Guangxu Emperor), Lao Ba Yixuan and Lao Jiuyizhen.
Equivalent to the death of the Daoguang Emperor, the Xianfeng Emperor became the de facto boss at the age of 20, and King Gong became the second eldest at the age of 18, after all, the Yi Xie in the middle could not be regarded as the son of the Daoguang Emperor from a legal point of view. In addition, Yi Zhen, Yi Zhen and Yi Chen were only 10 years old, 6 years old and 5 years old at that time. In the patriarchal system, the eldest son is very dominant, don't look at the Xianfeng Emperor is only 2 years older than King Gong, even if it is only one day older, it is also big.
The lineage of the Daoguang Emperor
The Daoguang Emperor was still relatively well controlled in terms of the scale of the harem. The Daoguang Emperor reigned for 30 years, and there were 23 recorded concubines, less than 1/3 of the Kangxi Emperor. There are 4 empresses, 1 imperial concubine, 3 noble concubines, 3 concubines, 5 concubines, 4 nobles, 1 Chang Zai, 1 promise and 1 official woman. In terms of harem rank, the empress was certainly the most honorable, the emperor's wife.
In ancient times, it was emphasized that a son was noble by his mother, and the higher the rank of a concubine, the higher the status of his children, especially the children born to the empress, that is, the concubines and concubines of the Eight Classics of the Zheng'er. Let's first look at the 4 empresses of the Daoguang Emperor, the first empress niuhulu was his wife, but unfortunately she died before the Daoguang Emperor succeeded to the throne, leaving no son and half daughter.
Qing Dynasty harem concubine rank table
The second empress, Tong Jiashi, was also a person with a thin destiny, and her empress name was also posthumously honored after the Daoguang Emperor succeeded to the throne, and she actually gave birth to a daughter. The third empress's surname, like the first, was also the Nyūrō clan. Although she was also a member of the NiuHulu clan, she was much more blessed, since Daoguang entered the palace in the second year, she was favored by the Daoguang Emperor, and was promoted to a noble concubine in only 2 years, and when Daoguang was thirteen years old, she began to be a mother. She gave birth to 1 son and 2 daughters to the Daoguang Emperor, who was the future Xianfeng Emperor.
The fourth empress, Borjigit, was not an empress of the Eight Classics of Zheng'er, her highest status in the Daoguang Dynasty was only that of an imperial concubine, and later she was crowned empress dowager in the Xianfeng Dynasty, and was posthumously honored as empress by the Xianfeng Emperor after her death, and she was the birth mother of King Gong. Under the patriarchal system, it is important to pay attention to a "concubine to grow up and not to be virtuous", which means that when choosing an heir, the largest of the concubines should be chosen, rather than decided by talent. As a result, The Xianfeng Emperor's status as a concubine was much higher than that of King Gong.
Portrait of Empress Xiaochengquan, the biological mother of the Xianfeng Emperor
No matter who it is, there will be various "labels" on the body, such as "mediocrity", "intelligence", "filial piety" and so on. These labels have a distinction between high and low, good or bad, poor "labels" will reduce their impression score, and good "labels" will increase their impression scores. Since the "label" is so important, there will naturally be all kinds of "white lies", even if you do not have a certain "label" trait, but you can deliberately do something related to it.
Do more things, and others will label you the "label" you want. Whether many things in this world can be satisfactory depends on the relationship between people. When you get the approval of others, what you want is likely to become what you have, in short, you have to learn to do what you like and package yourself. The Sui Dynasty Emperor Yang Guang was very good at this, obviously he was a hedonist, but when he competed with his brother Yang Yong for the right to inherit the throne, he had to package himself as a very simple person, only because his father and mother liked simplicity.
He was not thin, but the ministers were still pooping
The same was true of the Xianfeng Emperor, who believed that he was inferior to his sixth brother in terms of martial arts and martial arts, and that if he wanted to win the succession to the throne, he could only package himself in a different way. At the suggestion of his teacher, he unswervingly revolved around the two points of "benevolence" and "benevolence" in an attempt to get the Daoguang Emperor and his courtiers to label him with these two "labels".
The Daoguang Emperor organized the hunting activities, and the Xianfeng Emperor could "do nothing", and in the face of the Daoguang Emperor's questioning, he said that the season was when the birds and beasts began to breed, and he could not bear to hurt them. As soon as these words came out, the Daoguang Emperor and his courtiers felt that the Xianfeng Emperor was a "benevolent" person. In his later years, the Daoguang Emperor often examined the lessons of his sons, but the Xianfeng Emperor did not answer the questions head-on, but wept bitterly, and when others asked, he said that he was worried about his father's body. In this way, he also has the "label" of "benevolence and filial piety".
Statue of Prince Gong
The Daoguang Emperor reigned for 30 years, and his performance was average, at best, he could only be counted as a "Shoucheng King". In the face of the problem of corruption among officials, he never thought of making a bold move like Zhu Yuanzhang, but hoped that by giving play to his leading role, he would let the officials learn from them, and he did not know the reason that serious diseases needed to be taken with strong medicine. Officials can buy patched court clothes at a high price to win the favor of the Daoguang Emperor, but in private they should still be greedy as much as they want, which is simply a joke!
In the face of the problem of smoking bans, he is not unaware of the implications here, but he has changed the order day by day, one moment strict, one moment loose, what effect can such a measure have? He is not unaware of the existence of problems, nor is he unaware that problems need to be solved, he does not want to take risks to become the "King of Zhongxing", he just wants to be a "shoucheng king" who is not good or bad, as long as the Qing Dynasty does not perish at his hands.
Frugal Emperor = Extravagant Mausoleum?
The Daoguang Emperor himself was a conservative emperor who was cautious and did not dare to take any risks, and he also hoped that his heirs would be like him. Cognition determines behavior, in his cognition, all reforms will have great risks, once not well controlled, it will cause worse results, rather than reform, it is better to gradually improve, regardless of whether the improvement can be successful, as long as there is no greater risk.
King Gong was both literate and ambitious, and if he were to inherit the throne, he would certainly not be "shoucheng" or "conservative" like the Daoguang Emperor, and would certainly have learned from Emperor Xuan of Han, Emperor Wuzong of Tang, and Emperor Shenzong of Song to engage in "Zhongxing". The Xianfeng Emperor was not talented, ambitious, and "benevolent", and if he were to inherit the throne, he would certainly not have much ambition and "ambition". In contrast, the Daoguang Emperor was naturally more willing to let the Xianfeng Emperor inherit his throne, because the Xianfeng Emperor was more in line with his "standards".
When he was not smoking, he exiled Lin Zexu to Ili
In summary, although the talent of the Xianfeng Emperor was far inferior to that of King Gong, he had the guarantee of the system and the love of the Daoguang Emperor. Throughout the dynasties, outstanding talent has never been a decisive condition for the succession of the crown prince. If Tang Taizong Li Shimin had not launched the Xuanwumen Revolution, I am afraid that he would not have been the one who finally sat on the throne, right? Was The talent of Emperor Gaozong of Tang comparable to that of his brothers Li Tai, Li Ke and others?
Under the system of the feudal dynasty, the binding force of the system itself and the emperor's arbitrary decision-making power are the points that the princes need to pay attention to, and many times, the emperor's decision-making will exceed the constraints of the system, which is why many ministers like to "speculate on the holy will" in order to "simplify in the imperial heart". King Gong only knew "Yang Chang" and did not explore the mind of the Daoguang Emperor, and the Xianfeng Emperor was able to "avoid the short" and follow the daoguang Emperor's thoughts. In the end, the Xianfeng Emperor was able to win, that is, it was a matter of course.
bibliography:
Draft History of the Qing Dynasty
"Detailed Discussion of the Qing Dynasty"
The Complete History of the Qing Dynasty