Alcohol plays an important role in people's daily lives. It is not only a drink, but also an important item for many people's etiquette. In the court of the Qing Dynasty, the frequency of use of wine was very high, and the dosage was also very large, with strong court characteristics.
Composition of the sake used in the Qing Palace
In the Qing Palace, the composition of the wine did not change much before and after, but the emperor's preferences were quite different from the specific varieties.
Due to the lack of archives, the use of alcohol in the palace during the Shunzhi period is unknown. During the Kangxi Dynasty, an archive of the emperor's outings[1] showed that there were two main types of wine to be brought with him: yellow wine and milk wine. Among them, the wine and vinegar room is equipped with: "Six altars of Yuquan Yellow Wine, two altars of Huiquan Yellow Wine, and two altars of Papaya Wine, a total of 1,000 catties." Two large bottles of liquor sixty pounds. The dining room is equipped with "yogurt wine four baskets 250 pounds", "yogurt wine basket 70 pounds". In addition, each of the five brothers "has a basket of forty pounds of yogurt and wine". Since the year of the archive is unknown, it is not possible to determine where and the number of tours will be made, and the number of wine used each day can be determined. Of course, this is not the whole kind of wine used in the palace. The Kangxi Dynasty's "Great Qing Huidian" records: "Where large and small feasts are served with sweet wine, milk wine, shochu, and yellow wine, they are sent according to the communications from the Ministry of Etiquette. From this, it can be seen that the feast in the early Qing Dynasty was a mixture of various wines. The milk wine, shochu, and rice wine in this area are easier to understand, and the sweet wine is jiangmi wine.
During the Yongzheng period, there were many types of liquor used in the palace. In addition to shochu and rice wine used for feasts, there are also a variety of sake in the palace. In the third year of Yongzheng (1725 AD), the Yongzheng Emperor ordered the Yangxindian Office to make liquor plates, as many as 16 kinds, mainly "Songlin Urn Head Spring Wine, Songlin Urn Fragrant Wine, Songlin Taiping Spring Wine, Eight Immortals Taiping Spring Wine, Chen Pi Fu Wine, Orange Wine, Yanshou Wine, Eight Treasures Wine, Fu Wine, Jinsheng Dew Wine, Silver Wine, Papaya Wine, White Lychee Wine, Yuquan Wine, Huiquan Wine, And Clear BaiJiu". Judging from the name of the wine alone, Yuquan wine and Hui (Hui) spring wine were commonly used yellow wines in the palace during the Kangxi period; clear liquor should be different from the previous two kinds of wine, which should be shochu; orange wine, papaya wine, and white lychee wine should be fruit wine; Chen Pi Fu wine, longevity wine, and eight treasure wines should all belong to health care wines. In the Qing Dynasty, "anyone who brews flowers and fruits can be called 'dew'" [2], so Jinshenglu wine is also a health wine. In terms of production process, these wines are also shochu. As for the pine forest urn head spring wine, etc., it is not known.
Among these wines, health wine is worth noting. The Yongzheng Emperor was very interested in health wine. As early as the imperial period, that is, the turtle age set wine was prepared in the palace. After succeeding to the throne, it was not remembered for a long time. In June of the eighth year of Yongzheng (1730 AD), Yongzheng Fang recalled this wine again, that is, people in the palace and the Lama Temple to find out whether there was a turtle age collection medicine prescription or turtle age collection medicine. In the end, Yongzheng not only found three kinds of medicinal recipes, but also found the turtle age wine made in the Palace of Lama. Unfortunately, due to the age of production, only ten pounds are still drinkable. In this regard, the Yongzheng Emperor was very happy, and let the people properly collect these wines, and took a copy of the whole set of guys in the Lama Temple who had beaten the turtle age set and used it. Since then, the palace has made a large number of this wine. The Yongzheng Emperor not only drank it himself, but also often rewarded the princes and ministers.
During the Qianlong period, the use of wine in the palace tended to be stable. At the beginning of Qianlong's ascension to the throne, the wine used in the palace still followed the old system of the previous dynasty. By the middle of the Qianlong period, Yuquan wine had become the most commonly used wine in the palace, and frequently appeared in the emperor's imperial banquet, feast and other occasions. Not only that, the Qianlong Emperor also stipulated the number of wines to be used for feasts. The problem is that as early as the Kangxi period, Yuquan wine has appeared, and it has been used in the palace during the Yongzheng period, and whether the use of Yuquan wine in the Qianlong period is exactly the same as this remains to be further investigated. In addition, wine and dairy wine are still used when feasting on ethnic minorities such as Mongolia and Huibu.
The Qianlong Emperor also paid great attention to the production of drinking utensils, especially the jade he liked. As early as the eighth day of the first month of September in the third year of Qianlong (1738 AD), the eunuchs Mao Tuan, Hu Shijie, and Gao Yu sent instructions to the Qianlong Emperor to "present jade wine vessels" [3]. In view of the shortage of high-quality jade in the palace at that time, the Qianlong Emperor could not make it to the fullest. After Pingding returned to Xinjiang, the Qianlong Emperor began to make a large number of jade wine utensils. On November 11, the 53rd year of Qianlong (1788 AD), Lianghuai delivered 40 pieces of Yuqun meal bowls, 46 pieces of jade wine meal plates, and 10 pieces of jade wine cups at one time. [4] Not only that, but there are also liquor order tools in the palace for drinking. On the fourth day of the first month of December in the fourteenth year of Qianlong (1749 AD), the eunuch Hu Shijie handed over a rosewood box with a wine order, including "32 ivory dominoes, 2 wooden plates, 19 horses of various types, 8 ivory dice, and 12 ivory plates."
After Qianlong, the liquor used in the palace was still dominated by Yuquan wine. However, the various systems in the palace are centered on the emperor, and if necessary, the emperor will also adjust. The same is true of wine used in the palace. Emperors such as Jiaqing and Daoguang used a large amount of liquor without changing the center of Yuquan liquor, and the amount used each year was almost equal to that of Yuquan liquor. However, after Xianfeng, the amount of yuquan wine in the palace increased greatly. In the fourth year of Xianfeng (1854 AD), the amount of yuquan wine in the palace reached more than 2,300 catties. [5] During the Guangxu period, under the influence of Empress Dowager Cixi, the consumption of Yuquan wine reached a new peak. In the 10th year of Guangxu (1884 AD), the palace "supplied the emperor with 4 taels a day; Empress Dowager Cixi 1.25 catties; the remaining elder concubines in the inner court 3 taels each, in addition to empress dowager Cixi adding 1.25 catties".
The use of Sake
For ordinary people, wine can be used both to entertain guests and to entertain guests. For the court, it was more meaningful and more versatile. As for the Court of the Qing Dynasty, the status of Yuquan wine was very prominent. Before the twenty-fourth year of Qianlong (1759 AD), Yuquan wine was used to more than 10,000 catties per year, from 24 to 31 years (1766 AD), about 78,000 catties of Yuquan wine were used each year, and after the 32nd year of Qianlong, only more than 2,000 catties were used each year, and the 43rd year of Qianlong (1778 AD) was reduced to 7800 catties. The amount of Yuquan wine used is so large that it is inseparable from its wide range of uses.
First of all, the sacrifice is made in the temple. Fengxian Hall is the family temple of the Ming and Qing dynasties to worship ancestors, and was built in the early Ming Dynasty. The Qing Dynasty followed the Ming system and was rebuilt in the fourteenth year of the Reign of Qing Shun. According to the Qing system, when there is a synod, a festival of life, a New Year's Day and a national celebration, the great sacrifice is held in the front hall; after the christmas, the anniversary of the holy column, the Lantern Festival, the Qingming, the Middle Yuan, the frost fall, the year is removed, etc., the incense is performed in the apse; and all the emblems, canonizations, canonizations, royal feasts, cultivation, gurudwara, hunting, huiluan and various celebrations are only told in the apse. For each sacrifice, the amount of wine used is stipulated: "Gong Cha Feng Xian Dian enshrines sixteen gods, and every time he prays to the priest, birthday, and death anniversary, each of them offers three lords of Yuquan wine, a total of forty-eight lords." There are sixteen wine jars in the hall, each with a total of forty-five pounds of wine. [7] The Qianlong Emperor used too much wine for the sacrifice and ordered the Ministry of Internal Affairs to reduce it. The Ministry of the Interior made a comprehensive calculation, "The use of the nuclear is only one or two for each knight, and one pound of wine per cylinder, and it can be applied." Now that I have used too much Yuquan wine, I intend to subtract twenty-six kilograms at a time and approve nineteen kilograms." [7] Since then, it has been reduced successively. In the fifty-fourth year of Qianlong (1789), "there were twenty-six monthly synodic days in the Fengxian Temple, twenty-one birthdays and death anniversaries, one sacrifice for longevity, Qingming, and Xiannong altars, and one sacrifice for The Duanyang Festival, chongyang festival, frost fall, winter solstice, twilight, Lichun, Lantern Festival, Prayer Feast, Qiluan, and Huiluan Three times, a total of fourteen times, a total of sixty-one times a year." [8] Of these 61 times, a total of 26 times a year from October to February, due to the cool weather, the Yuquan wine used by Fengxiandian was returned, but it was still used everywhere and was not allowed to be sold; the remaining 35 times from March to September, because of the warm weather, the Yuquan wine used could be sold. Each time with Yuquan wine 10 pounds 10 two, shared Yuquan wine 371 pounds 14 two.
Second, religious offerings. The imperial family of the Qing Dynasty believed in Tibetan Buddhism and set up many Buddhist halls in the palace. Among these Buddhist sites, the Zhongzheng Hall and the Yinghua Hall are the most important. Among them, the Yinghua Hall is the place where the emperors and empresses of the Ming and Qing dynasties and the concubines and concubines worship the Buddha. The Zhongzheng Hall was the center of Tibetan Buddhist activities at the Qing court. On the 4th, 14th, 26th, 30th and 29th days of the first month of each month, the Yinghua Hall offers offerings 4 times a year, a total of 48 times a year, each time offering 7 bowls of wine, using 5 catties of wine, and sharing 240 catties of Yuquan wine. [9] In leap months, add four times. The Zhongzheng Hall offers about one or two pounds of Yuquan wine at a time, and about 12 or 3 pounds of Yuquan wine for one year. [9] In addition, the Lama Temple outside the Imperial Palace chanted the Sutra, and the Rehe Puning Temple Jumping Cloth Ta also offered Yuquan wine.
Although the emperor embraced Tibetan Buddhism, he did not reject Taoism. In the Imperial Garden of the Forbidden City, there is the Qin'an Hall, a Taoist activity place. Whenever there is an important religious event, Yuquan wine is offered here. According to the archives, the Royal Garden offers offerings 5 times a month, and all those who meet the Xin Dynasty are also offered as usual, and only 6 taels of Yuquan wine are used each time. [7] It should be noted that there are also City God Temples inside and outside the palace. The ones in the palace are called the Inner City God Temple, and the ones outside the palace are called the Yongyou Temple. Every year during the autumn festival and the Emperor's Longevity Festival, Yuquan wine is also offered in both places.
In the case of important festivals of some gods of folk belief, the palace should also offer wine. Every year on the ninth day of the first lunar month, the Jade Emperor God Christmas Day, December 25, the Jade Emperor God Descending Day, the Ministry of Internal Affairs will each offer 5 catties of Yuquan wine in the Great High Hall. Later, the palace cut down the amount of wine supplied, reducing 4 pounds and 8 pairs each time, and only using 8 pairs of wine, a total of 9 pounds. [9] In addition, the Lei Temple offers 8 taels of Yuquan wine; in the spring and autumn of the Wooden Temple, 8 taels of Yuquan wine are used each time, and 1 catty of Yuquan wine is shared. [8]
Again, feast. In the Qing Dynasty, there were many names for the Qing Palace feast. There are not only clan banquets that contact foreign clans, but also clan banquets that highlight the affection of the royal family, family banquets in the Qianqing Palace, wedding banquets for emperors and princes, and banquets for the thousands of people with great momentum, etc., and all have strict regulations. Due to the large number of participants, the amount of alcohol used was enormous. Therefore, the wine used for the feast accounted for the heaviest proportion in the palace.
Every year Chinese New Year's Eve, the Qing Emperor feasted on the outside of the Bohol Hall, setting up a total of 90 tables. Twenty-four years ago in Qianlong, 987 pounds of Yuquan wine were shared. Later, in the 24th and 32nd years of Qianlong, a total of 787 catties of wine were cut twice, and 200 catties of Yuquan wine were used every year. In the thirty-fifth year of Qianlong, the palace once again reduced the amount of wine used. The Ministry of the Interior stipulates that there is 1 table for gluttony, and half a catty of wine is used. Based on this calculation, 45 kilograms of yuquan wine are shared, which is 155 kilograms less than the original.
On the fifteenth day of the first month, the feast of the Zhengda Guangming Hall also set up 90 tables. In the early days of Qianlong, 740 catties of Yuquan wine were shared, and then a total of 640 catties were cut twice in 24 and 32 years, and 100 catties of Yuquan wine were still used. In the thirty-fifth year of Qianlong (1768 AD), the palace referred to the example of the Bohol Hall, "discretionary gluttony table with half a catty of wine, sharing forty-five catties of Yuquan wine, minus fifty-five catties." [9]
Since the Kangxi Dynasty, emperors such as Kangxi, Qianlong, and Jiaqing have almost every year gone to Rehe to escape the summer, receive ethnic minority princes, and hold major feasts. The standard of wine used for feasts is the same as in the palace. In the fifty-fourth year of Qianlong, there were 60 banquet tables in Rehe Wanshu Garden, each with 8 pairs of Yuquan wine and 30 pounds of Yuquan wine. [8]
Finally, the royal family used wine in a case-by-case manner. The emperor is the focus of this, which is mainly reflected in the inner dining room. In the early and middle period of Qianlong, the amount of wine used in the inner dining room was not fixed, but was used according to needs. Thirty-two years before Qianlong, the Tea Room and the Inner and Outer Dining Room used about 2,719 catties of Yuquan wine every year. [10] In the 32nd year of Qianlong, Fang clearly stipulated that the inner dining room should prepare 4 taels of Yuquan wine for meals every day, and 80 catties of Yuquan wine would be shared every year. By the thirty-fifth year of Qianlong, it was stipulated that 2 taels of wine were used every day, and more than 40 catties were shared a year. Of course, this is not the full amount of yuquan wine used in the dining room, and there are often added, with a total of about thirty or forty catties of yuquan wine added sporadically a year.
Before the empress dowager ascended the throne, she used wine second only to the emperor. In the early years of Qianlong, every year Chinese New Year's Eve, New Year's Day, the fourteenth day of the first month, and the fifteenth day of the first month, the queen dowager's banquet table was accompanied by two bottles of wine, and 30 pounds of Yuquan wine were used each time. Qianlong cut 20 catties in thirty-two years, and still used 10 catties of wine each time. [9] In the 35th year of Qianlong, the Ministry of Internal Affairs planned to reduce the reduction, but did not determine the final amount of the reduction.
In addition, on the birthday of the crown prince, the emperor will also reward the wine feast. Fifty-four years after Qianlong, this alone is the use of Yuquan wine 25 pounds and 10 taels.
Of course, these are the regulations of the Qianlong Dynasty Palace on Yuquan wine, but in addition to Yuquan wine, there are other liquors used in the palace, of which the most important one is liquor. Due to the lack of sufficient materials, it is not yet possible to determine the specific name of the wine.
After the reduction of Yuquan wine in the palace, milk wine was used the most in the Qing Dynasty court. Dairy wine is fermented and distilled from cow's milk or horse's milk, with a low alcohol content. The storage of Qinggong milk wine is very large. According to the archives, the GannaiKu, which belongs to the Imperial Tea Room, collects and stores 2,530 kilograms of milk wine. [11] Milk wine was often used for feasts in the Qing Palace. When the princess was married to receive the dowry, there were 30 banquets in the empress dowager's palace, a total of 20 bottles of milk wine and rice wine; 60 banquets were set up before the emperor, and a total of 70 bottles of milk wine and rice wine were set up. [12] There is also an imperial tomb offering, and milk wine is also required. Among them, the Emperor Gurudwara Shengjing Sanling offered 3 bottles of dairy wine; Tanglin provided 33 bottles; Xiling provided 21 bottles. Each bottle of these milk wines weighs 3 pounds, for a total of up to 171 pounds.
There is also a health wine that must be mentioned. As mentioned above, Yongzheng made turtle age wine, and there were many other health wines in Yongzheng's court. According to the customs in the palace, the Qianlong Emperor would also taste different wines during traditional festivals, such as Tusu wine during the Spring Festival, Xionghuang wine during the Dragon Boat Festival, Osmanthus wine during the Mid-Autumn Festival, and chrysanthemum wine during the Chongyang Festival. In addition, the Qianlong Emperor also drank some tonic medicinal liquors, such as "Guiling Wine, Taiping Spring Wine, Zhuangyuan Wine, etc., drinking only one small cup at a time" [13].
The supply of liquor in the Qing Palace
There are three main sources of liquor used in the Qing Palace: brewing in the inner house, tribute, and purchase. Uchiha brewing is the most important source of liquor used in the palace. The Yuquan liquor and milk liquor used in the Qing Palace mainly rely on self-brewing. Among them, Yuquan liquor is manufactured by the liquor and vinegar room, a subsidiary of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. The wine and vinegar room was established in the 10th year of Shunzhi (1653 AD), which was initially managed by two members of the internal management leader, and there were two chief eunuchs, and four eunuchs undertook to manufacture wine vinegar pickles and other matters. In the twenty-fourth year of Qianlong, because on the twenty-ninth day of the first month, when the mountains and rivers were high and the waters were feasting on Kazakhs and others, the wine provided by the place was cloudy and tasteless, and the Qianlong Emperor ordered the Ministry of Internal Affairs to investigate and deal with the relevant personnel. At this opportunity, the Ministry of the Interior believes that there are many drawbacks in its management, "among which there are special fees, that is, the use of wine and pounds in the tea room and other places, the number of different amounts, there is no certain rule, carefully check the accounts, the records are mostly oral transmission, the core is actually in the situation, but also more floating fees." [14] Therefore, the Ministry of the Interior asked to refer to the method of the official three warehouses of vegetable warehouses, and set up a wine and vinegar room to "set up two treasurers and four treasurers, and ordered the duty of the governor to undertake the work during the year". [14] There are 16 winemakers and sauce makers in the wine and vinegar room, and 8 vinegar smiths and 8 sulas, who are mainly responsible for brewing Yuquan liquor and liquor.
The brewing of dairy wine is the responsibility of another agency of the Ministry of the Interior. This institution is Keitoshi. Qingfeng Division was originally named Sanqi Cattle and Sheep Herding Office, which was in charge of cattle and sheep animal husbandry affairs. In the sixteenth year of the Kangxi Dynasty (1677 AD), it was merged into the Imperial Household Division, and in the twenty-third year it was established as the Qingfeng Division. The Ministry of the Interior assigns the Minister of Administration on a rotating basis every year. Qingfeng Division has cattle and sheep pens, herding factories, etc. in Nanyuan, Fengtai, Zhangjiakou and other places, all of which are responsible for special personnel. In the forty-first year of the Kangxi Dynasty (1702 AD), the Ministry of Internal Affairs stipulated that the cattle outside Zhangjiakou should pay "112,220 pounds of emulsion, 4,400 large milk cakes with 7 pounds and 82, Mongolian milk cakes 158 pounds and 22, and milk wine 4,927 pounds and 82, according to the general manager's letter to the dining room". However, in the Jiaqing Dynasty's "Great Qing Huidian", it was clearly stipulated: "Every year, the three flags of cattle outside Zhangjiakou pay 1,397 pounds of dairy oil, 619 pounds of milk cakes, and 2,530 pounds of milk wine." [11] It can be seen that the number of dairy wine in the Diplomatic Dining Room of Zhangjiakou during the Jiaqing period was reduced by nearly half. The question is, since the exact time of its reduction cannot be determined, it is not known when it began. More crucially, there is no record of how Keitoshi brewed dairy wine.
Of course, some other liquors will be brewed in the palace. As mentioned earlier, the Yongzheng Emperor made guiling wine. More well-known is the late Qing Dynasty Cixi brewing "lotus white". According to the record: "Yingtai planted lotus handles, green plates and green covers, and there is no end in sight." After filial piety, every time the small castration was picked, medicinal materials were added, and made into a good wine, named Lotus White. Note on porcelain, covered with yellow cloud satin, to reward the courtiers. Its taste is clear and mellow, jade liquid agar pulp, can not pass also. ”[2]
Purchasing is an important way to use wine in the palace. Among the many items needed in the Qing Palace, many of them were purchased from the people, especially after the middle of the Qianlong Period, with the high development of the economy, the commodities on the market became increasingly abundant, in this case, the Ministry of Internal Affairs did not have to manufacture all of them themselves, and could directly purchase them. As for shochu, there were many liquor stores in Jingzhong at that time, and there were mainly 3 kinds of liquor stores, one for the South Hotel, one for the Kyo Hotel, and one for the Medicine Hotel. [2] The Old Beijing Trivia Yun: "The liquor store outside the Chongwen Gate has always been twenty, all of which have received merchants, and all the wines from Jingdong and Xiyao are collected so... Its Shaoxing wine sellers are known as 'Jingzhuang', and there is no southern wine shop, not in the wine industry. ”[16]
As far as the current historical data is concerned, Qianlong and his former palace also purchased liquor, but the quantity was relatively small, mainly for the manufacture of various items. In May of the eleventh year of Yongzheng (1733 AD), the manufacturing office inlaid a pair of lotus vases as a supplement, "buy two Western Records, silver one dollar; dry shochu one pound, silver four points; red rouge one piece, silver one point"[17]. On April 15 of the first year of Qianlong, the inlay was used as a bouquet of ivory flowers, "buy gold leaf weighs three points, silver six points; double rouge, silver one point three cents; Xilu two two, silver seven minutes five cents; dry shochu one pound, silver four points" [18].
After Qianlong, the number of liquor purchased in the palace surged. According to the palace archives, in the seventh year of Jiaqing (1802 AD), the official Sancang purchased the items needed from the eighth year of Jiaqing (1803 AD) to the imperial dining room, including sesame seeds, suzi, mung beans, soybeans, green beans and other items, as well as 300,000 eggs and 1,000 catties of shochu. [19] By the time of the Daoguang Dynasty, the number of shochu purchased in the palace had grown. In the fifteenth year of Daoguang (1835 AD), Guan Sancang purchased the imperial dining room and other supplies, including 1,500 catties of shochu and 530,000 eggs. [20] The amount is almost commensurate with the amount of Yuquan wine. As a result, the purchase of alcohol in the palace occupies a heavier weight.
Tribute was an important addition to the wine used in the palace. In the Qing Dynasty, the tributes of local officials were mainly local native products. However, there was no fine wine among the tributes stipulated by the Qing government. This does not mean that there are no officials offering wine, but that there is no public offering. According to the archives, not only were officials contributing at that time, but the number of donations was also large. In October of the thirty-seventh year of the Kangxi Dynasty (1698 AD), Li Xujin, a weaver in Suzhou, offered items. Among them: "Bergamot counts two barrels, xiangyuan counts two barrels, lychee counts two barrels, guiyuan counts two barrels, hundred totals two barrels, green fruit counts two barrels, papaya counts two barrels, osmanthus dew counts one barrel, rose dew counts one bucket, rose dew counts one bucket, narcissus counts four barrels, and spring wine counts one hundred altars." [21] Although the weight of the spring wine entered is not indicated in the entry list, as many as 100 altars, estimated at a minimum of 1 catty per altar and a maximum of 10 catties, are also around 100 to 1 000 catties. During the Yongzheng period, Jiangning weaving Cao Fu also offered Jiangnan goods to the emperor, "four boxes of Ning duck, ten bottles of chicken mushrooms, two boxes of winter shoots, two baskets of celery, four boxes of chestnuts, four boxes of wind ling, two boxes of hazelnut chestnuts, two boxes of water chestnuts, eight boxes of cha cakes, eight bottles of cha cakes, six altars of curd milk, and forty altars of spring wine." [22] The spring wine here should be Huiquan wine from the Kangxi and Yongzheng periods of the former Wen Dynasty. In addition, the Yongzheng Emperor also issued a secret order nian tang yao: "In Ningxia Lingzhou out of a lamb wine, someone entered in the past, now there are twenty years to stop it, Shuo loves to drink him, find some, do not have to enter more, not enough to send a will, do not pass a hundred bottles, special secret instructions." ”[23]
As a devotee, whether it is Li Xu or Nian Qianyao, their identities are relatively special, and they are all people in the flag. Li Xu was a close confidant of Kangxi and served as a weaver in Suzhou for 30 years from the 32nd year of Kangxi (1693 AD). During this period, he not only weaved satin for the imperial family, but also constantly presented secret folds to Kangxi and reported the situation in Jiangnan, which won the trust of the Kangxi Emperor. Cao Fu (曹頫) was an imperial vassal and a stepson of Cao Yin, kangxi's favorite. As for Nian Qianyao, he was Yin Chan's family slave, a heavy courtier in the early years of Yongzheng, and more trusted by the Yongzheng Emperor. Because of this, their offerings are extremely private. This was because winemaking required the use of a large amount of grain, which was considered a great waste of grain by the rulers, and in addition, the emperor's preference for drinking also undermined his positive political image.
Of course, there are exceptions. This is the Kangxi Emperor who made wine offerings. In the late Kangxi Dynasty, Xuan Ye developed a strong interest in wine, believing that wine was quite beneficial to the body. To this end, the Kangxi Emperor sent a message to the Southern Governor: "In the future, all the westerners in this place will use the objects for the emperor and start playing the words, that is, to quickly prepare the family, hire a package mule, and send it in the starry night, and do not miss the moment." [24] From this, we can see the Kangxi Emperor's eagerness to drink wine. At that time, the governor of Guangdong, the governor of Jiangnan, the governor of Jiangxi and others all actively searched for it and entered the palace. However, it was limited to Kangxi, and no such things happened since then.
There is also a more special case. According to the custom, when the emperor is married, the prince and his ministers are to offer fine wine. After the Dowry Ceremony of the Guangxu Empress, the palace gave a banquet to the queen mother and her relatives in the Cining Palace, and the required tables, sheep, and wine were paid in by the relatives and the king of the county, and a total of 30 tables, 30 sheep, and 30 bottles of wine were fed. Empress Dowager Cixi ordered the Ministry of Internal Affairs to present 10 of them, 10 sheep, and 10 bottles of wine to the Guangxu Emperor, and the rest to the empress's parents. [25]
In summary, among the three ways, the inner house brewing is the most important source of court wine, but the purchase and tribute are an important supplement to the court wine, which can meet the taste needs of the royal family. From the perspective of court life, the brewing of the inner house was more to meet the needs of the ceremonial system, while the tribute and purchase were to satisfy the appetite, making the wine used in the palace more diversified.
bibliography:
The First Historical Archive of China. Kangxi Dynasty Manchu Zhu Piquan Folding Full Translation[Z].Beijing:China Social Sciences Press,1996:1703-1704.]
Xu Ke. Qing Barnyard Copy (Vol. 13)[M].Beijing: Zhonghua Bookstore, 1986:6321.
[3] Li Guorong, et al. The Complete Collection of Qing Palace Porcelain Archives (Volume 1)[M].Beijing: China Pictorial Publishing House, 2008:334.
[4] China's First Historical Archive, et al. Archives of the Qing Palace Internal Affairs Office (vol. 50)[A].Beijing: People's Publishing House, 2007:676.
The First Historical Archive of China. On December 25, 2004, the General Administration of internal affairs (in charge of the ceremony) presented a list of the number of items such as pickles and melons for the three-year sacrifice of Xianfeng[A].Song Case 05-0780-042.
Zhang Pingzhen. The Rise and Fall of Jingshi NeiJiu[J].China Brewing, 2010(9):185.
The First Historical Archive of China. On the third day of the first month of June in the 32nd year of Qianlong, the General Administration of Internal Affairs (In charge of the Ceremony Division) played the role of reducing the quota of Yuquan wine in various places at its discretion[A].Song Case 05-0244-014.
The First Historical Archive of China. On the eighth day of September in the 55th year of Qianlong, the General Administration of Internal Affairs (In charge of ceremonies) submitted a list of the number of yuquan wine used for feasts at the Fengxian Hall, yinghua hall, Buddha hall and other places[A].Song Case 05-0430-008.
The First Historical Archive of China. On May 18, 1935, the General Administration of internal affairs (in charge of the Ceremony Division) cut down the list of liquor used in various places[A].Song Case 05-0277-030.
The First Historical Archive of China. On the third day of June in the 3nd month of Qianlong 32, the General Administration of Internal Affairs (In charge of the Ceremony Division) submitted a list of the number of Yuquan liquor needed for the year before and after the reduction of the Qing Tea House and the Ministry of Internal Affairs[A].Song Case 05-0244-017.
[11] Tozin, et al. Taipei: Wenhai Publishing House, 1992:3415.
[12] Tozin, et al. Taipei: Wenhai Publishing House, 1992:8285-8286.
Li Guorong. Qianlong Menu: The Dining Secrets of the Changshou Emperor[C]∥ Qing Dynasty Archives and Qing Palace Culture: Proceedings of the Ninth Qing Palace History Seminar. Beijing:Archives Press,2010:165.]
The First Historical Archive of China. On February 13, 2004, the General Administration of Internal Affairs of Qianlong sent the chief Chen Jinzhong and other responsible departments for the application of wine and vinegar rooms[A].Song Case 05-0170-036.
The Palace Museum. The two current regulations of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the King's Government (Volume 2)[Z].Haikou: Hainan Publishing House, 2000:5.
Xia Renhu. Beijing: Beijing Ancient Books Publishing House, 1986:101.
[17] China's First Historical Archive, et al. Archives of the Qing Palace Internal Affairs Office (Volume 6)[A].Beijing: People's Publishing House, 2007:82.
[18] China's First Historical Archive, et al. Archives of the Qing Palace Internal Affairs Office (Vol. 7)[A].Beijing:People's Publishing House,2007:351.
The First Historical Archive of China. Jiaqing 7th Year of December First Ten Accounting Department for the official Three Warehouses to buy Jiaqing 8th year of the first to October application of miscellaneous grains and other items need silver [A].Internal Affairs Hall Submission 05-08-005-000029-0032.
The First Historical Archive of China. On the 19th day of the first month of the fifteenth year of Daoguang, the Accounting Department purchased the silver needed for the spare grain of the 15th year of Daoguang to October for the official Sancang [A].The Submission of the Ministry of Internal Affairs 05-08-005-000163-0004.
[21] Ming and Qing Archives Department, Palace Museum. Beijing: Zhonghua Bookstore, 1976:10-11.
[22] Ming and Qing Archives Department, Palace Museum. Historical Materials on the Archives of the Cao Family in Jiangning Weaving[M].Beijing: Zhonghua Bookstore, 1975:183.
The First Historical Archive of China. Yongzheng Dynasty Han Wen Zhu Batch Folding Compilation (Volume 1)[Z].Nanjing: Jiangsu Ancient Books Publishing House, 1989:832.
The First Historical Archive of China. Compilation of The Kangxi Dynasty Han Dynasty Zhu Pi Zhu Zhu Folding (Volume 2)[Z].Beijing: Archives Publishing House, 1985:365.
The First Historical Archive of China. On the tenth day of the first month of August in the fourteenth year of Guangxu, the General Administration of Internal Affairs played the feast of the Cining Palace to give the stepmother and her relatives a banquet table of sheep wine, whether it can still make the prince of the county present the matter[A].The song case 05-0962-033.
About author: Teng Deyong, male, Ph.D., research librarian of the Palace Museum's Palace Department, research direction: court history and cultural relics. Original publication of the article: Journal of Sichuan Tourism University, No. 5, 2020.