After the Qing Dynasty entered the customs, the compilation of the "History of Ming" began during the Shunzhi period, and the compilation of the entire "History of Ming" lasted until 1739, which lasted for 94 years. In order to establish the legitimacy of the Qing Dynasty, although the "History of Ming" officially compiled by the Qing Dynasty did not deny the contribution of the Ming Dynasty in the general direction and major events, it smeared and belittled the Ming Dynasty in some details.
For example, in order to discredit Wan Guifei, the History of Ming once fabricated the statement that Wan Guifei attempted to kill the young Ming Xiaozong Zhu Youzhi, and the eunuch Zhang Min died in 1475 to protect Zhu Youzhi. However, according to other circumstantial sources, Zhang Min died in 1485, not in 1475. Zhang Min once explained that Emperor Xianzong had only one son, but in fact, Emperor Mingxianzong had more than 10 sons and 6 daughters. Wan Guifei's attempt to kill Zhu Youfan is a direct embodiment of the Qing Dynasty's false compilation of the History of the Ming Dynasty.
Above_ The History of Ming compiled by Zhang Tingyu
However, although the Qing Dynasty smeared and belittled the Ming Empire in some details, the Qing Dynasty's evaluation of some emperors of the Ming Empire was quite objective. For example, in the middle of the Ming Dynasty, emperor Ming Xianzong Zhu Jianshen, the Ming History evaluated Zhu Jianshen's merits as "renxuan's rule in Sifujian." ”
How to understand the phrase "the rule of Ren Xuan is in Si Fu See"? The second prosperous period in the history of the Ming Dynasty, after the Yongle Dynasty, the reign of Ren Xuanzhi, was revived in the ming dynasty. In other words, Emperor Mingxian single-handedly ended many of the maladministrations of his father, Ming Yingzong, and exerted great efforts to make the Ming Dynasty strong again. His exploits were highly praised by the Qing Dynasty.
So, where is the contribution of Ming Xianzong?
Zhu Jianshen (1447–1487), also known as Emperor Mingxianzong
A mess left by Emperor Ming Yingzong
When mingxianzong is mentioned, it is necessary to mention his father Ming Yingzong.
Emperor Mingying's Zhu Qizhen was a controversial emperor who, in the early days of his reign, relied on the help of the "Three Yangs" and Empress Zhang to barely maintain the fruits of Renxuan's rule. However, with the deaths of Sanyang and Empress Zhang and their departure from politics, Emperor Mingyingzong began to release himself and reuse the eunuch Wang Zhen to disrupt the government. With the support of Emperor Ming Yingzong, Wang Zhen covered the sky with one hand, and those who followed us died. In the end, Ming Yingzong's stupid Northern Expedition to Mongolia led to a disaster in the history of the Ming Dynasty that almost destroyed the country - the change of Tumu Fort.
Above_ The process of the transformation of the civil fort
After the change of Tumu Fort, Emperor Zhu Qiyu of the Ming Dynasty ascended the throne, and under the command of Yu Qian, he turned the tide and defended the capital. However, due to the fact that Zhu Qizhen was placed under house arrest for many years after returning to Beijing, he hated Yu Qian very much, and after the change of the door broke out and Zhu Qizhen regained the throne, Zhu Qizhen launched a political frenzied revenge: killing Yu Qian and other meritorious ministers to commemorate Wang Zhen, who had brought calamity to the country and the people. Although Emperor Ming had some repentance after the restoration, such as crushing the rebellion of Cao Jixiang and Shi Heng, he was more diligent in handling government affairs than in the orthodox years, and was good at listening to the advice of his ministers. But these corrections were only icing on the cake for the "great transgressions" committed by Ming Yingzong.
Zhu Qi's Tianshun period left his son Zhu Jianshen with a devastated Ming Dynasty:
Politically, Yu Qian, who tried to turn the tide and save the Ming Dynasty, was unjustly killed, reigned for 8 years, and the Jingtai Emperor, who made great contributions to the Ming Dynasty, was completely denied. Up and down the imperial court, black and white were reversed, and the Ming Empire seemed to be on the verge of subjugation. In the domestic situation, the problem of Jingxiang displaced people intensified, once threatening the rule of the Ming Dynasty. Militarily, the Mongols were increasingly threatening the northern frontier, with the possibility of invading Beijing at any time.
Zhu Qizhen (1427-1464), also known as Ming Yingzong
Zhu Jianshen's strength turned the tide
In 1464, Zhu Qizhen died, and the crown prince Zhu Mishen ascended the throne. The Manchu Dynasty's Wenwu set their eyes on the newly enthroned young emperor. And Zhu Jianshen did not disappoint the Manchu Dynasty Wenwu, and after he ascended the throne, he swept away the maladministration of the Ming Yingzong period and carried out a series of political work to rectify the chaos:
First of all, Zhu Jianshen conformed to the people's will and completely rehabilitated the case of modest injustice.
Zhu Jianshen issued an edict to Yu Qian's unjust case, saying: Qing is a handsome instrument, an economic talent, a dynasty in the past, and a labor achievement. When the country is in many difficulties, the security of the community is safe; only justice and self-sustaining are victimized by chancery. In the past emperor knew his wrongdoing, and the heart was really pitiful and loyal.
And "when the country is in many difficulties, the community is safe; only justice and self-sustaining are victims of chance." In the past emperor knew his wrongdoing, and the heart was really pitiful and loyal. This sentence has already given Yu Qian a high evaluation.
In addition to the rehabilitation of Yu Qian's unjust case, Zhu Jianshen also went deep into the jingtai emperor's political forbidden area. Although Emperor Jingtai once deposed Zhu Jianshen as crown prince, Zhu Jian was deeply aware of Emperor Jingtai's contribution to the Ming Dynasty, and after ascending the throne, he restored the title of Emperor Jingtai, gave emperor Jingtai the title, and rebuilt his mausoleum. Zhu Jianshen's political rectification won praise from all levels of the government and the public, and the political situation of the Ming Empire was on the right track under the personal leadership of Zhu Jianshen. In other words, the scattered hearts of the Ming Empire caused by the killing of Yu Qian during the Ming Yingzong period were re-condensed by Zhu Jianshen, who brought the Ming Empire back to life.
Above_ Yu Qian's side portrait
Secondly, Zhu Jianshen appointed a chancellor of Xianliang, and Li Xian was the first assistant to the cabinet in the later period of Emperor Ming Yingzong, with strong ability, and Zhu Jianshen continued to appoint. Peng Shi, Shang Ren and other ministers, Zhu Jianshen, all reused them.
In terms of the domestic situation, Zhu Jianshen appointed the chancellor Yuan Jie to appease the displaced people in the Xiangyang area of Jingzhou, set up Yunyang Prefecture to exercise effective rule over the local people, and initially solved the problem of the Displaced People in Jingxiang, which had plagued the Ming Empire for many years.
Militarily, Emperor Mingxian took active measures and launched an active attack on the Jurchens and Mongols.
After the great victory of Tumu fort, the Mongol border troubles in the north of the Ming Empire were never eradicated, and the Mongol army relied on the Hetao region to continuously attack Shaanxi and Shanxi, threatening the capital of the Ming Empire, Beijing, from the flank. In order to deal with the Mongol threat, Emperor Mingxianzong ordered Wang Yue to garrison the area around Hetao to resist the attack of the Mongol Tatar army.
Above_ Map of the Tatars of the Ming Dynasty
In 1473, tatar armies plundered the area around present-day Ningxia and northern Shaanxi. Wang Yue decided to lead 4,600 Ming troops from The Hong'er Mountain in Yulin to directly attack the Tatar army's old lair, The Red Salt Pond.
After fierce fighting, the Ming army beheaded more than 350 Tatar troops, captured a large number of camels, horses, cattle and sheep, and the Ming army also destroyed the tents and houses in the red salt pond, and finally withdrew. Although the victory of the Red Salt Pond was not achieved, it changed the passive defense situation of the Ming army against the Mongols after the tumu fort change, and the Ming army defended the tranquility of the border with practical actions.
In 1480, the Ming army, under the command of Wang Yue, achieved the great victory of Weining Haizi. In February of the lunar calendar in 1480, when the wind and snow were blowing, 21,000 Ming officers and soldiers went out of the northeast region of Datong, Shanxi, and beheaded more than 430 Tatar troops in the Yellow Flag Sea (then called Weining Haizi) in today's Ulanqab territory. More than 170 Tatar soldiers were captured alive. The Ming Empire's pessimism about the Mongol Tatars since the Tumu fort victory was swept away.
In addition to defeating the Mongols, Emperor Mingxianzong also allowed the Ming army to take the initiative to attack Jurchen. During the reign of Emperor Yingzong of the Ming Dynasty, due to the corrupt border defense in the northeast region, Jurchen took advantage of the chaos to harass the northeast region of the Ming Dynasty. In 1467, Emperor Mingxianzong ordered the Ming army to launch an active counterattack against the Jurchen Lair, known in history as the "Chenghua Plough court". Under the blow of 50,000 Ming troops, the Jurchen army was beheaded by more than 630 people and captured more than 240 people alive. The battle gave birth to the northeastern border of the Ming Dynasty for more than 100 years. The Jurchen leaders Li Manzhu and Dong Shan both died in the rebellion.
Above_ Jurchen
Economically, Ming Xianzong was diligent in his administration and loved the people. Wherever a disaster occurs, Ming Xianzong will let the household department take the initiative to provide disaster relief. After 23 years of his reign, he was exempted from the tax of tens of millions of stones by the common people. In addition to opening the official warehouse for disaster relief, Ming Xianzong also took out his own private "money" for disaster relief, which shows Ming Xianzong's love for the people.
After 23 years of hard work, the Ming Dynasty quickly emerged from the decline of the Yingzong period. Emperor Mingxianzong left his son Emperor Mingxiaozong a good situation in which the domestic situation was stable and the people's lives were comfortable, laying a solid foundation for the birth of "Hongzhi Zhongxing". It can be seen from the fact that Ming Xianzong personally eliminated many negative effects of Ming Yingzong's political and military aspects, and it can be seen that Ming Xianzong was the lord of Zhongxing in the middle of the Ming Empire, and he played an extremely important role in the Ming Dynasty from the "great chaos" in the late Yingzong period to the "Hongzhi Zhongxing" in the Ming Xiaozong period.
Author: Military Handsome Guy Correction/Editor: Lilith
Resources:
[1] Records of Emperor Mingxianzong, History of Ming
[2] The Great Biography of the Chenghua Emperor, Fang Zhiyuan, China Social Publishing House
[3] "War Code 23" "Raid on the Red Salt Pond"
The text was created by the History University Hall team, and the picture originated from the Internet and the copyright belongs to the original author