Princess Hexiao of the First Rank (2 February 1775 – 13 October 1823), personal name unknown,Gurun Princess Hexiao's personal name is unknown. The "Hexiao" is part of her title. The "Gurun", also part of her title, indicates that she is a princess born to the empress. (See Royal and noble ranks of the Qing dynasty#Female members for details on titles). was a Manchu princess of the

Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-spea ...

. She was the tenth and youngest daughter of the Qianlong Emperor. Her mother was

Consort Dun Consort Dun (27 March 1746 – 6 March 1806), of the Manchu Plain White Banner Wang clan, was a consort of the Qianlong Emperor. She was 35 years his junior. Life Family background Consort Dun's personal name was not recorded in history. She ...

Birth and childhood

Gurun Princess Hexiao was born in 1775 when the Qianlong Emperor was already 63 years old. At the time of her birth, nearly all of the Qianlong Emperor's other daughters, including Gurun Princess Hejing (固倫和敬公主) and Heshuo Princess Heke (和碩和恪公主), had either died or married and left the palace. The Qianlong Emperor was thus overjoyed when he heard news of the birth of another daughter. Gurun Princess Hexiao was deeply favoured by her father from birth. Throughout her childhood, ministers and courtiers remarked that the Tenth Princess – as she was commonly referred to – resembled her father in appearance. She was said to be resolute in character, and frequently accompanied the Qianlong Emperor on hunting excursions. Going against tradition, the Qianlong Emperor elevated his tenth daughter from the status of a "Heshuo Princess" (the rank usually accorded to a princess born to a consort below the rank of Empress) to a "Gurun Princess" (the rank of a princess born to the Empress). Therefore, the Tenth Princess became known by her title "Gurun Princess Hexiao".

Marriage

On 12 January 1790, she married Fengšeninde (豐紳殷德; 1775–1810) of the

Niohuru clan The Niohuru ( Manchu: ; in Manchu) were a prominent Manchu clan during the Qing dynasty. The clan had inhabited the Changbai Mountains since as early as the Liao dynasty. The clan was well known during the Qing dynasty for producing a variety ...

, a prominent Manchu clan. Fengšeninde was the eldest son of

Heshen Heshen (; ; 1 July 1750 – 22 February 1799) of the Manchu Niohuru clan, was an official of the Qing dynasty favored by the Qianlong Emperor and called the most corrupt official in Chinese history. After the death of Qianlong, the Jiaqing ...

, an official highly favoured by the Qianlong Emperor. Gurun Princess Hexiao's dowry of 300,000 silver

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s far exceeded that of any other of the Qianlong Emperor's daughters. Gurun Princess Hexiao and Fengšeninde had a son, who was born sometime between 1794 and 1796, but died young in 1798.

Heshen's fall from power

In 1799, shortly after the Qianlong Emperor's death, Gurun Princess Hexiao's father-in-law,

, was arrested on charges of corruption and political incompetence. Found guilty, Heshen was initially sentenced to death by

slow slicing ''Lingchi'' (; ), translated variously as the slow process, the lingering death, or slow slicing, and also known as death by a thousand cuts, was a form of torture and execution used in China from roughly 900 CE up until the practice ended aro ...

. However, the

Jiaqing Emperor The Jiaqing Emperor (13 November 1760 – 2 September 1820), also known by his temple name Emperor Renzong of Qing, born Yongyan, was the sixth emperor of the Manchu-led Qing dynasty, and the fifth Qing emperor to rule over China proper, from ...

, who succeeded the Qianlong Emperor, permitted Heshen to commit suicide in his own residence out of respect for his tenth sister. Heshen's immense wealth, amassed over a long career of corrupt activities, were confiscated. The Jiaqing Emperor granted amnesty to Gurun Princess Hexiao and even granted her part of Heshen's confiscated property. Fengšeninde, on the other hand, was stripped of his privileges and titles but remained similarly unharmed.

Later life

In 1806, the Jiaqing Emperor sent Fengšeninde to

Uliastai Uliastai ( mn, Улиастай; ), also spelled Uliyasutai or Oulia-Sontai, and sometimes known as Javkhlant, is a city in Mongolia located in the western part of the country and from the capital Ulaanbaatar. Uliastai is the capital of Zavkhan P ...

to serve as a military official. Fengšeninde fell ill after serving there for some time. Gurun Princess Hexiao begged the Jiaqing Emperor to allow them to return to

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

. The Emperor agreed. Fengšeninde returned to Beijing in February 1810 and was enfeoffed as the "Duke of Jin" (晋公). He died three months later in May, leaving Gurun Princess Hexiao widowed. After Fengšeninde's death, Gurun Princess Hexiao raised his two daughters (both born to his concubine), who were 11 and five years old respectively when their father died. She was financially stable; the Jiaqing Emperor made the

Imperial Household Department The Imperial Household Department (; mnc, , v=dorgi baita be uheri kadalara yamun) was an institution of the Qing dynasty of China. Its primary purpose was to manage the internal affairs of the Qing imperial family and the activities of the inn ...

ensure that she was well taken care of. Gurun Princess Hexiao died on 13 October 1823 during the reign of the Jiaqing Emperor's successor, the

Daoguang Emperor The Daoguang Emperor (; 16 September 1782 – 26 February 1850), also known by his temple name Emperor Xuanxong of Qing, born Mianning, was the seventh Emperor of the Qing dynasty, and the sixth Qing emperor to rule over China proper, reigning ...

. The cost of her funeral, paid for by the Imperial Household Department, amounted to about 5,000 silver

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Ancestry

In fiction and popular culture

* Portrayed by Ng Tsi-yin in ''

The Rise and Fall of Qing Dynasty ''The Rise and Fall of Qing Dynasty'' is a long-running four part television series about the history of the Qing dynasty. The series was produced by Hong Kong's ATV and was aired on ATV Home from September 1987 to May 1992.Yesasia.com.Yesasia.co ...

'' (1988) * Portrayed by

Stephanie Ho Stephanie Ho ( Chinese; 何雁詩, born 2 November 1992) is a Hong Kong singer, actress and golfer. Early life Stephanie Ho was born in San Jose, California, but she grew up in Hong Kong with her parents. Her father is a businessman. Since a ...

in '' Succession War'' (2018)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hexiao, Gurun Princess 1775 births 1823 deaths Qing dynasty princesses People from Beijing Qianlong Emperor 18th-century Chinese women 18th-century Chinese people 19th-century Chinese women 19th-century Chinese people Daughters of emperors