Emperor of China

Throughout Chinese history, the title "Emperor" (Chinese: 皇帝; pinyin: Huángdì) was the highest honor given to the rulers of imperial China during its many dynasties. The emperor was known as the "Son of Heaven", believed to have a special right to govern all under Heaven because of a divine mandate. After an emperor passed away, people often honored them in a special way through what was called an imperial cult.

The emperor's power came with important duties. During the Han dynasty, Confucianism became the main way of thinking about government. This meant the emperor had to follow certain rules and moral guidelines. If an emperor failed to do this, it was believed that the dynasty could lose its right to rule, and people could overthrow it. However, emperors did not always follow the normal rules for choosing who would be next in line, and history books sometimes explained why a dynasty ended.

Even though emperors had a lot of power, they were also limited by others. The imperial bureaucracy, made up of educated scholar-officials, helped control the government. In some times, special men called eunuchs also had influence. Emperors also had to respect the policies and traditions of their ancestors, following rules set down in documents like the Ming-era Huang-Ming Zuxun (Ancestral Instructions).

History

See also: Chinese sovereign

During the Western Zhou dynasty, powerful local rulers served under a central king. Later, during the Eastern Zhou period, regional lords became more powerful and sometimes called themselves kings. In 221 BC, after uniting many kingdoms, the King of Qin took a new title, calling himself "Shi Huangdi", meaning "First Emperor". Before this, the words in his new title were used for honored ancestors, not living rulers. He was also known as the "Son of Heaven", believed to be chosen by the heavens to rule.

In the early 1900s, China began changing its government. In 1911, the last emperor, Puyi, stepped down, ending over 2100 years of emperors. Later attempts to bring back the emperor did not last.

Enumeration

In ancient China, there was always just one true ruler, called the "Son of Heaven." But sometimes, it was hard to know who the real ruler was, especially during times when the country was split. For example, people argued about who was the real ruler during a time called the Three Kingdoms, or when a new dynasty began during the Song and Yuan periods.

Some people claimed to be the true emperor even when there was already a ruler. Famous emperors included Qin Shi Huang of the Qin dynasty, and leaders like Gaozu, Han Wudi, and Guangwu of the Han dynasty, as well as others from the Tang, Ming, and Qing dynasties.

Power

The emperor’s words were like sacred commands, and his written orders had to be followed right away. He was above everyone else, including nobles and family members. Even close family had to speak to him in a very formal and humble way.

But the real power of the emperor changed over time and between different ruling families. New emperors often took strong control to hold the country together. Sometimes, the emperor shared power with government workers, soldiers, or special watchers. In some cases, important officials had more power than the emperor. The emperor’s position was usually passed down to his oldest son, but sometimes a mother or other family members helped guide the rule, especially when the emperor was very young.

Heredity and succession

The title of emperor was usually passed from father to son in each dynasty. The eldest son born to the main empress would often become the next emperor. Sometimes, if the empress did not have children, the emperor might have a child with another wife, and that child could become the next ruler. Because emperors often had many children, there were sometimes fights among sons over who would become the next emperor.

In some cases, emperors tried to make things clearer by choosing a crown prince while they were still alive. But even this did not always stop arguments or fights about who should rule next. One emperor even hid the choice in a sealed box to be opened after his death. The idea of the "Mandate of Heaven" allowed for new families to take power if the old rulers were not doing a good job, which is why new dynasties could start from different groups of people. The only woman to officially become emperor was Wu Zetian, who started her own dynasty for a short time.

Styles, names and forms of address

Further information: Chinese sovereign

The emperor of China held a very special and powerful position. Everyone had to show great respect to the emperor. When meeting the emperor, people would bow very low as a sign of respect. It was also not allowed to use the emperor's own name, even by his own family members. Instead, people used special titles like Huangdi or simply Er to show respect.

The emperor was never called "you." Instead, people used titles such as Bixia, meaning "Your Imperial Majesty," or Huangshang, meaning "imperial highness." The emperor would refer to himself using special words like zhen, which means "I" in a royal way. People also used era names to refer to the time when a specific emperor ruled. After an emperor passed away, they were given special temple names and posthumous names to remember them by.

Consorts and children

In Imperial China, it was common for children to marry early. The imperial family included the emperor and the empress, who was known as the Mother of the Nation. The emperor also had many other consorts and concubines, arranged in a special group called a harem, with the empress being the most important. However, not all emperors had concubines; for example, both the Emperor Fei of Western Wei and the Hongzhi Emperor were known to have only one wife.

Each dynasty had its own rules about how many consorts and concubines an emperor could have. During the Qing dynasty, there were specific roles such as one Empress, one Imperial Noble Consort, two Noble Consorts, four Consorts, and six Concubines, along with many other attendants. Even though the emperor held the highest position by law, the empress dowager—or sometimes the grand empress dowager—often had the most respect and made many important family decisions. At times, when the emperor was very young, the Grand Empress Dowager or Empress Dowager would actually govern the country. The emperor’s children, called princes and princesses, were known by their birth order, such as the Eldest Prince or the Third Princess. Once they grew up, princes often received special titles. The emperor’s brothers and uncles also served in the court and had the same status as other officials.

Ethnicity

See also: Conquest dynasty and Ethnic groups in Chinese history

Most emperors of China were from the Han ethnic group. However, many emperors came from different backgrounds. Some of these included the Khitans of the Liao dynasty, the Jurchens of the Jin dynasty (1115–1234), who later ruled the Qing dynasty as the Manchus, and the Mongols of the Yuan dynasty. These groups adopted many Han customs, believed they had the right to rule, and performed important traditions like offering sacrifices for good weather and success. Some historians think these groups changed Chinese traditions in interesting ways.