The longest-reigning emperor in Chinese history
Overview
Chinese Name: 爱新觉罗·玄烨
English Name: Aisingioro Xuanye
Other Names: Kangxi Emperor康熙帝, Emperor Shengzu of Qing Dynasty清圣祖
Born: May 4, 1654
Died: December 20, 1722
Achievements:
Create the prosperous age of Kangxi and Qianlong开创康乾盛世
Recover Taiwan收复台湾
Brief Biography of Aisingioro Xuanye
Aisingioro Xuanye (May 4, 1654-December 20, 1722), the Emperor Taizu of Qing Dynasty, was the fourth emperor of the Qing Dynasty (reigned from 1661 to 1722), with the year name “Kangxi康熙”. The third son of emperor Shunzhi
and his biological mother is Tong Jia, empress Xiaokang Zhang.
Emperor Kangxi ascended the throne at the age of 8 and was in power at the age of 14. He reigned for 61 years. He is the longest-reigning emperor in Chinese history.
At the beginning of the reign, the domestic and international situation was very severe. In the face of the grim situation, he insisted on large-scale use of troops to achieve territorial integrity and reunification.
When Emperor Kangxi was a teenager, he defeated aobai, a powerful minister, and began to be really in power. In the past nine years, we sorted out the outline of the court and restored the cabinet system.
When he was an adult, he calmed down the rebellion of San Francisco in the 20th year of Kangxi (1681); Penghu naval battle to unify Taiwan; Thwart the Tsarist Russian invading army and ensure China’s sovereignty over the Heilongjiang Basin; Three expeditions of kardan and victory; The “Duolun League” was established to replace the war and contact Mongolian ministries.
Strengthening centralization of power politically; Flaunt benevolent government, win over Han people, pay attention to recuperation and develop economy at the same time.
However, Emperor Kangxi was tired and diligent in his later years, resulting in the corruption of official governance. In addition, many princes competed for the throne because of the abolition of the crown prince, which had a negative impact on the politics of Emperor Kangxi in his later years.
Emperor Kangxi was the defender of a unified multi-ethnic country, laid the foundation for the prosperity of the Qing Dynasty and created the overall situation of the prosperous era of Kangxi and Qianlong. He died in changchunyuan in 1722 at the age of 69 and was buried in Jingling景陵.
Evaluation to Aisingioro Xuanye
Emperor Kangxi’s first great contribution was to lay down the territory owned by our country today. Emperor Kangxi’s second great contribution was his united front policy, which united the people of all ethnic groups.
—–Mao Zedong毛泽东
① Kangxi has reason to be so confident. The Qing empire he ruled was the most powerful and wealthy country in the world, which even those pretentious European visitors had to admit.
—-Leften Stavros Stavrianos“A Global History：From Prehistory to the 21st Century”
② Under the title of “Kangxi”, he ruled China for more than 60 years and became a great figure in the 17th century. At the same time, Kangxi was an outstanding militarist, a fine manager and a profound scholar.
Xuanye is one of the greatest rulers in the history of the Chinese Empire. His ruling time is not only the longest, but also the most dynamic. It is the most complex in the history of the Chinese Empire.
—-Denis Twitchett “The Cambridge History of China”
Perhaps at the same time, he is cold and careless, and will make mistakes in judgment, but he has a keen ability of self-analysis and a sense of mission to the Empire, which indicates that he is a rare person who can change the process of human history at will!
Moreover, it has been noticed by many historians (including Chinese, Japanese and Western historians) that Kangxi’s rule is comparable to Peter the great of Russia and Louis XIV of France, and their common characteristics mark the highest stage of traditional monarchy in the pre industrial era.