Oboi
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Oboi | |
---|---|
Regent of the Qing dynasty | |
In office 1661–1669 | |
Monarch | Kangxi Emperor |
Personal details | |
Born | c. 1610 |
Died | 1669 |
Parent | Guwalgiya Uici (father) |
Cabinet | Four Regents of the Kangxi Emperor |
Posthumous name | Chaowu (超武) |
Military service | |
Years of service | 1637-1646 |
Battles/wars | Defeated Zhang Xianzhong |
Oboi (
Early life and military career
Oboi was born to the Manchu Gūwalgiya clan, which had been distinguishing itself militarily since Oboi's grandfather Solgo submitted to Nurhaci (1559–1626) in 1588.[2][3] Under the Manchu Banner organization created by Nurhaci, Oboi's branch of the family was registered under the Bordered Yellow Banner which came under the command of Nurhaci's son Hong Taiji (1592–1643). Oboi's father Uici (衛齊) (d. 1634) was a senior military officer who was once garrison commander of the Manchu capital city Mukden while his paternal uncle Fiongdon (費英東) was one of Nurhaci's most trusted generals.[2]
Oboi's childhood and early years are relatively obscure. Being his father's third son, he was not destined to inherit the family's hereditary position in the Banner hierarchy. Oboi was first mentioned in official Qing history in the Veritable Records of Qing Taizong [Hong Taiji] (清太宗實錄) in 1632, documenting his triumphant return from a minor raid into Ming territories in which he was allowed to keep his spoils as reward.
Oboi officially started his military career in 1634 during the reign of Hong Taiji as a junior officer in the Banner's cavalry guard unit[4] in which capacity he distinguished himself many times in battle against Ming forces and was renowned for his personal bravery. For this, he was granted a hereditary commission as captain of a company (niru i janggin).[5] In 1633 and 1634 he took part in campaigns against the Chahar Mongols, whose leader Ligdan Khan submitted to the Manchus in 1635.[6]
In 1637 during the Manchu's
After the death of Hong Taiji in 1643, Oboi supported the late ruler's eldest son Hooge over Dorgon during the ensuing succession crisis. Despite Hooge's faction losing out to Dorgon's proposed compromised candidate, Hong Taiji's youngest son
In 1648, when
Persecution and rehabilitation
As a member of the Bordered Yellow Banner, Oboi's loyalty to his Banner master was crucial to his rapid advancement during the years when
The extent of the Shunzhi Emperor's trust in Oboi's loyalty can be gauged by the honours the emperor showered on him. In 1652 after Shunzhi successfully purged the court of the more powerful elements in Dorgon's faction, Oboi was elevated to a hereditary Duke of the Second Rank and more importantly appointed the commander of the imperial bodyguard (領侍衛內大臣), a job which doubled as the de facto police chief in the capital. In this capacity Oboi acted as Shunzhi's much feared enforcer against Dorgon's old cohorts and helped to consolidate power to the throne and the Emperor's own "Upper Three Banners". During the period of Shunzhi's personal rule, Oboi was responsible for the arrest and execution of a number of noblemen found guilty of one crime or another. Although there is no doubt that these executions were carried out with the approval of Shunzhi, it is not surprising that after the emperor's death, Oboi, given his ruthless character and position in court, when left uncontrolled by a higher authority would eventually come to dominate court politics creating a deep state centered on himself.
Regency
The
Three of the four ministers, Sonin,
In the first years of the regency, the tension between the Yellow Banners faction and Suksaha was kept in check by the even handed Sonin and thus the four ministers maintained a relatively peaceful and efficient working relationship. But the dynamics of the regency began to change as Sonin's health deteriorated due to old age. As Sonin gradually took more time off, Oboi monopolized decision making by dominating the indecisive Ebilun and worked to sideline Suksaha during policy discussions especially on issues concerning welfare of the Manchu Eight Banners. By 1667 when Sonin realized he did not have long to live, he tried a last-ditch effort to restore balance to the regency and neutralize Oboi's rapidly expanding power clique by petitioning the then 14-year-old Kangxi Emperor to assume personal rule ahead of schedule. Thus Kangxi formerly took over the reins of power in an ascension ceremony on August 25, 1667, a month after Sonin's death. This was followed by an official decree technically downgrading the three remaining ministers to the status of "advisers" (佐政大臣) while still remaining at their posts. However even with the formal authority of office, the young Kangxi Emperor found it difficult to curb the growing power of Oboi.
Conflict with the Kangxi Emperor
Oboi forced the young Kangxi Emperor to execute Suksaha and his family. He controlled Ebilun completely and then finally established a system of near absolute rule under himself.
The Kangxi Emperor took power earlier than expected at the age of 15 in 1669. The emperor suddenly had Oboi arrested on 30 charges. Oboi was sentenced to death but it was reduced to imprisonment in consideration of his achievements. Some sources say that he displayed the many wounds on his body that had been received in the defense of Kangxi's great-grandfather Nurhaci, this act had apparently moved the Kangxi Emperor to pardon Oboi.
Oboi was posthumously rehabilitated. The Kangxi Emperor issued a pardon in 1713, while his successor, the
In popular culture
Oboi appears as an antagonist in the early part of the wuxia novel The Deer and the Cauldron by Jin Yong. In the novel, he is depicted as a cruel, power-hungry regent plotting to usurp the throne from the Kangxi Emperor. With help from the protagonist Wei Xiaobao, the emperor manages to remove Oboi from power and imprison him. Oboi is eventually killed in prison by Wei Xiaobao.[16]
In Legend of Dragon Pearl Oboi is portrayed by Xiao Rong Sheng. Oboi is shown to be an oppressive roadblock for the Kangxi Emperor in his mission regain his full political power and reaffirm his sovereignty.
References
Notes
- ^ Oboi's birthday is historically undocumented, but based on circumstantial evidence historians generally estimate his birth year to be within a few years after 1610.
- ^ a b Oxnam 1975, p. 17.
- ^ Kennedy 1943, p. 599.
- Draft Qing History, Biographies, Volume 36, "Biography of Oboi" (清史稿·列傳三十六·鰲拜列傳). Oboi's initial post was a lieutenant (Manchu: juwan-i da; Chinese: 壯達) in the Banner guard unit (Manchu: Bayarai; Chinese: 巴牙喇). The Bayarais were hand-picked elite cavalry units within a Manchu Banner army that served both as camp guard and tactical reserve. In battle they were usually tasked with difficult missions independent of the main battle formation.
- ^ Kennedy 1943, p. 599.
- ^ a b Oxnam 1975, p. 27.
- ^ The Manchu term "Baturu" was derived from the Mongol term "Bahadur" which translates to mean a warrior, knight or a great hero.
- ^ Oxnam 1975, pp. 27–28.
- ^ a b Oxnam 1975, p. 46.
- Hooge's army reached the southern regions [of China]. At that time, Zhang Xianzhong [held] a line of fortifications in Xichong. Oboi and others advanced together to attack and they routed [the rebels], beheading [Zhang] Xianzhong on the battlefield. They then divided their forces to attack the remaining bandits, overrunning more than 130 [enemy] camps/battalions. Sichuan was thus pacified." (清史稿·本紀四·世祖本紀一) "順治三年十一月己巳,豪格師至南部,時張獻忠列寨西充,鰲拜等兼程進擊,大破之,斬獻忠於陣,復分兵擊餘賊,破一百三十餘營,四川平。
- ISBN 978-0803249950.
- ^ Oxnam 1975, p. 45.
- ^ The English term "regent" translates to the Chinese "shezheng" (攝政) as in the case of Dorgon whereas the four ministers' brief as stated in "Qing Court history, the Chronicles of the Shunzhi Emperor" (清太祖實錄) was merely to "assist (the Emperor) in governance" i.e. "fuzheng" (輔政).
- ^ According to the order listed in the Shunzhi Emperor's edict.
- ^ The Xianfeng Emperor tried the same system again nominating eight ministers to oversee the regency of his son, the Tongzhi Emperor, but they were outmaneuvered by Empress Dowager Cixi, who took control through a palace coup.
- ISBN 0190836059.
Works cited
- Kennedy, George A. (1943). Hummel, Arthur W. Sr. (ed.). Eminent Chinese of the Ch'ing Period. United States Government Printing Office. pp. 599–600.
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. In - Oxnam, Robert B. (1975), Ruling from Horseback: Manchu Politics in the Oboi Regency, 1661–1669, Chicago and London: University of Chicago Press