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The Emperor of China () was the title given to the rulers of China from the founding of the Qin Dynasty in 221 BC until the fall of the Qing Dynasty in 1912.
Origin of the title The pre-Qin monarchs were called Wang (王, roughly translated as King). In 221 BC, after the then King of Qin completed the conquest of the various kingdoms of the Warring States, he decided to adopt a new title to reflect his position as a ruler greater than the kings before him. He created the new title Huangdi or "Emperor", and styled himself Shi Huangdi, the First Emperor. Before this, the words Huang ("godking") and Di ("sage king") were used separately and never consecutively (See Three Huang and five Di). After the Han Dynasty, Huangdi began to be abbreviated to Huang or Di—the two words had lost their original pre-Qin meanings and simply meant emperor. Position and power Since the Qin Dynasty, the Emperor of China was formally styled the Son of Heaven (天子), and as the descendant and representative of Heaven on earth, he legally had absolute power over all matters, big or small, under Heaven. The emperor's words and directives were considered Sacred Edicts (聖旨). In theory, the emperor's orders were followed with immediate obedience. He was elevated above all commoners, nobility, and members of the imperial family. Addresses to the emperor were always to be formal and self-deprecatory, even by the closest of family members. In practice, however, the power of the emperor varied between different emperors and different Chinese dynasties. Many emperors ruled as absolute monarchs, maintaining a tight grip on the country. A prominent example is Qin Shi Huang, the First Emperor. Other emperors, however, had found the Empress Dowager, court officials, eunuchs, and nobility taking over actual power (e.g., Wanli Emperor of the Ming Dynasty or Guangxu Emperor of the Qing Dynasty). Heredity and succession The title of emperor was transmitted from father to son. By convention in most dynasties, the eldest son born to the Empress (嫡長子) succeeded the throne. In some cases when the empress did not bear any children, she adopted a son as her own (all children of the emperor were said to also be the children of the empress, regardless of birth mother). In some dynasties the succession of the empress's eldest son was disputed, and because many emperors had large numbers of progeny, often led to wars of succession between rival sons. In attempts to resolve disputes after death, the emperor often designated a Crown Prince (太子) in early times. Even such a clear designation, however, caused problems within the imperial family involving jealousy and distrust, whether it was the crown prince plotting against the emperor, or brothers plotting against each other, and did not actually ensure a peaceful succession. Some emperors, like the Kangxi Emperor, after abolishing the position of Crown Prince, placed the succession papers in a sealed box, only to be opened and announced after his death. Unlike the Emperor of Japan, Chinese political theory (see Mandate of Heaven) allowed for a change in dynasty, and an emperor could be replaced by a rebel leader. Prominent examples include the first Ming emperor Zhu Yuanzhang (Hongwu Era), and Hong Xiuquan, leader of the Taiping Rebellion, who ruled with the title Heavenly King. As the emperor usually had a large number of sons, it was generally not possible for a female to succeed to the throne. In the history of China there was only been one lawful reigning empress, Empress Wu of the Tang dynasty. Many females, however, had become de facto leaders, usually as the Empress Dowager. Prominent examples include the Empress Dowager Cixi, mother of the Tongzhi Emperor and adoptive mother of the Guangxu Emperor, who ruled China for 47 years (1861-1908), and the Empress Dowager Lü of the Han Dynasty. Styles, names and forms of address To see naming conventions in detail, please refer to Chinese sovereign As the emperor had, by law, a high position challenged by no one else, his subjects were to show the utmost respect in his presence, whether it included direct conversation or otherwise. In a conversation with the emperor, it was considered a crime to compare oneself to the emperor in any way. It was taboo to refer to the emperor by his given name, even if it came from his own mother, who instead was to use Huangdi (Emperor), or Er (simply "son"). The emperor was never to be addressed as you. The emperor referred to himself as Zhen (朕), the royal "We", in front of his subjects, a practice reserved solely for the emperor. Anyone who spoke to the emperor was to address him as Bixia (陛下), translated as "Your Imperial Majesty"; Huang Shang (皇上, lit. Emperor Above or Emperor Highness), Wan Sui (萬歲, lit. Ten thousand years, which was commonly used by his subjects at the beginning of each day), or Sheng Shang (聖上, lit. the Divine Above or the Holy Highness). Servants often addressed the emperor as Wan Sui Ye (萬歲爺, lit. Lord of Ten Thousand Years). Contrary to the Western convention of referring to a sovereign using a reign name (e.g., George V) or by a personal name (e.g., Queen Victoria), a governing emperor was to be referred to as simply Huangdi Bixia (皇帝陛下 lit. His Majesty the Emperor) or Dangjin Huangshang (當今皇上 lit. The Imperial Highness of the Present Time) when spoken about in the third person. He was usually styled His Imperial Majesty the Emperor of the Great X Dynasty, Son of Heaven, Lord of Ten Thousand Years. His styles varied considerably during the Yuan and Qing Dynasties. An emperor also ruled with a era name (年號). Up until the Ming Dynasty, the sovereign conventionally changed the era name on a semi-regular basis during his reign. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, emperors simply chose one era name for their entire reign, and people often referred to past emperors with that title. In earlier dynasties, the emperors were known with a temple name (廟號) given after their death. All emperors were also given a Posthumous name (謚號), which was sometimes combined with the temple name (e.g., Emperor Shengzuren 聖祖仁皇帝 for Kangxi) or Daxing Huangdi (大行皇帝) to refer to an emperor that had just died. The passing of an emperor was referred to as jiabeng (駕崩), literally "collapse". Family The imperial family was made up of the emperor as the head and the empress (皇后) as the primary consort and Mother of the Nation (國母). In addition, the emperor had a series of other consorts and concubines (妃嬪) divided in a system of ranks who made up the harem, of which the empress was the leader. Although the emperor had the highest status by law, by tradition and precedent the mother of the emperor, i.e., the Empress Dowager (皇太后), usually received the greatest respect in the palace and was the decision maker in most family affairs, and at times, especially when a young emperor was on the throne, became the de facto ruler. The emperor's children, the princes (王子) and princesses (公主), were often referred to by their order of birth, e.g., Eldest Prince, Third Princess, etc. The princes were often given titles of peerage once they reached adulthood. The emperor's brothers and uncles served in court by law, with the status of any other court official (臣子), and the emperor was always elevated above them despite any chronological or generational superiority. See also | ||||||||
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