Zhenjin ( , ; 1240 – 1285 or January 5, 1286), also rendered as Jingim, Chinkim, or Chingkim, was a

crown prince A crown prince or hereditary prince is the heir apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The female form of the title is crown princess, which may refer either to an heiress apparent or, especially in earlier times, to the w ...

of the

Yuan dynasty The Yuan dynasty (), officially the Great Yuan (; xng, , , literally "Great Yuan State"), was a Mongol-led imperial dynasty of China and a successor state to the Mongol Empire after its division. It was established by Kublai, the fif ...

of China. He was the son of

Kublai Khan Kublai ; Mongolian script: ; (23 September 1215 – 18 February 1294), also known by his temple name as the Emperor Shizu of Yuan and his regnal name Setsen Khan, was the founder of the Yuan dynasty of China and the fifth khagan-emperor of ...

and grandson of Tolui.

Life

He was born as second son to

and first to Chabi Khatun. The Chinese

Zen Zen ( zh, t=禪, p=Chán; ja, text= 禅, translit=zen; ko, text=선, translit=Seon; vi, text=Thiền) is a school of Mahayana Buddhism that originated in China during the Tang dynasty, known as the Chan School (''Chánzong'' 禪宗), and ...

Buddhist monk Haiyun gave him the name Zhenjin ("True Gold") when he was born in 1240. He was created Prince of Yan (燕王), became the head of the Central Secretariat (''Zhongshu Sheng'') by his father in 1262, and was designated as the

Crown Prince A crown prince or hereditary prince is the heir apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The female form of the title is crown princess, which may refer either to an heiress apparent or, especially in earlier times, to the w ...

(皇太子) of the

by Kublai Khan in 1273. He was known as a strong supporter of

Confucianism Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China. Variously described as tradition, a philosophy, a Religious Confucianism, religion, a humanistic or rationalistic religion, ...

, having been tutored by Chinese scholars as

Yao Shu Yao Shu (姚璹) (632–705), courtesy name Lingzhang (令璋), formally Count Cheng of Wuxing (吳興成伯), was a Chinese politician of the Tang and Wu Zetian's Zhou Dynasty, serving twice as chancellor during Wu Zetian's reign. He is not to be ...

(1203–1280), Dou Mo (1196–1280),

Liu Bingzhong Liu Bingzhong (; 1216–1274), or Liu Kan () was a Yuan dynasty court adviser and architect. He was born in Ruizhou (Rui prefecture), during the Jin dynasty. In 1233, he entered the Jin's bureaucracy. He still was an officer after the Mongol Em ...

(1216–1274) and Wang Xun. Among others, he was noted to have studied ''

Classic of Poetry The ''Classic of Poetry'', also ''Shijing'' or ''Shih-ching'', translated variously as the ''Book of Songs'', ''Book of Odes'', or simply known as the ''Odes'' or ''Poetry'' (; ''Shī''), is the oldest existing collection of Chinese poetry, c ...

'' and ''

Classic of Filial Piety The ''Classic of Filial Piety'', also known by its Chinese name as the ''Xiaojing'', is a Confucian classic treatise giving advice on filial piety: that is, how to behave towards a senior such as a father, an elder brother, or a ruler. The t ...

''. After death of Zhenjin's rival Ahmad Fanakati (according to Rashidaddin, as a result of plot by Zhenjin), a Confucian-trained official in the South even proposed Kublai to abdicate in favor of Zhenjin in 1285, as a result Kublai was furious. He was also known to be a friend of

Drogön Chögyal Phagpa Drogön Chogyal Phagpa (; ; 1235 – 15 December 1280), was the fifth leader of the Sakya school of Tibetan Buddhism. He was also the first Imperial Preceptor of the Yuan dynasty, and was concurrently named the director of the Bureau of Buddhi ...

, who wrote the famous treatise "Explanation of the knowable" for Zhenjin. According to the ''

History of Yuan The ''History of Yuan'' (''Yuán Shǐ''), also known as the ''Yuanshi'', is one of the official Chinese historical works known as the ''Twenty-Four Histories'' of China. Commissioned by the court of the Ming dynasty, in accordance to political ...

'', he died of

alcoholism Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol that results in significant mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognized diagnostic entity. Predomi ...

on 5 January 1286, eight years before his father Kublai Khan. However, it may not have been as simple as merely drinking too much. It also stated that shortly before his death, some ministers of the court wanted to propose that Kublai Khan abdicate his throne to Prince Zhenjin on account of old age and because Zhenjin was highly respected throughout the empire. However, Zhenjin tried to prevent this from happening. Unfortunately, Kublai Khan found out anyway and was furious, which terrified Zhenjin and may have led him to overdrink. Distressed by his death, Kublai Khan made Zhenjin's son Temür the new Crown Prince. He was posthumously renamed as

Taizi Taizi () was the title of the crown prince of imperial China. Succession Traditional Confucian political theory favored strict agnatic primogeniture, with younger sons displaying filial obedience to the eldest upon the passing of the father. Th ...

Mingxiao by Kublai on 25 February 1293. Temür gave him

posthumous name A posthumous name is an honorary name given mostly to the notable dead in East Asian culture. It is predominantly practiced in East Asian countries such as China, Korea, Vietnam, Japan, and Thailand. Reflecting on the person's accomplishm ...

Emperor Wenhui Mingxiao (文惠明孝皇帝) and

temple name Temple names are posthumous titles accorded to monarchs of the Sinosphere for the purpose of ancestor worship. The practice of honoring monarchs with temple names began during the Shang dynasty in China and had since been adopted by other dyna ...

Yuzong () on 3 June 1294.

Family

He had a senior wife and a concubine: # Kökejin — from

Khongirad The Khongirad ( Mongolian: ᠬᠣᠩᠭᠢᠷᠠᠳ; Хонгирад; Khonghirad; ), also known as Qongirat (Qoŋğırat/Қоңғырат), was one of the major divisions of the Mongol tribes. Variations on the name include Onggirat, Ongirat, Q ...

tribe #* Gammala (1263–1302) #*

Darmabala Darmabala (also known as Dharmapala - , , , ) — was a Mongol prince, grandson of Kublai Khan, son of his Crown Prince Zhenjin. He was an ancestor of subsequent Yuan monarchs who came after Temür Khan and the Goryeo kings after Gongmin. Biogr ...

(1264–1292) #*

Temür Khan Öljeytü Khan ( Mongolian: Өлзийт; Mongolian script: '; ), born Temür ( mn, Төмөр ; ; October 15, 1265 – February 10, 1307), also known as Emperor Chengzong of Yuan () by his temple name ''Chengzong'', was the second emperor of the ...

(1265–1307) # Concubine Anchinmishi # Unknown concubine #* Senior Princess of Qi, Qutadmish — married to Körgüz from Öngüds, son of Ay Buqa, Prince of Zhao (趙王) and Yuelie ( older sister of Zhenjin) #* Grand Princess of Lu, Nangabula — married to Manzitai from

clan, Prince of Lu #* Princess Budagan — married to

Zangpo Pal Zangpo Pal (1261 - 1323), in full Danyi Chenpo Zangpo Pal (; ), was the ruler of Sakya, which held a precedence position in Tibet under the Yuan dynasty. He ruled nominally from 1298, in reality from 1306 to his death in 1323. Family and upbringin ...

Ancestry

In popular culture

* "Prince Chinkin" is a central character in the 1982 American-Italian

miniseries A miniseries or mini-series is a television series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. "Limited series" is another more recent US term which is sometimes used interchangeably. , the popularity of miniseries format ...

Marco Polo Marco Polo (, , ; 8 January 1324) was a Venetian merchant, explorer and writer who travelled through Asia along the Silk Road between 1271 and 1295. His travels are recorded in '' The Travels of Marco Polo'' (also known as ''Book of the Marv ...

'', where he was portrayed by actor

Junichi Ishida is a Japanese actor and television personality from Tokyo. He is married to professional golfer Riko Higashio. Biography Junichi Ishida was born in Tokyo. His father was a foreign correspondent for NHK, and he lived in the U.S. from the ages of ...

. In this film, he is depicted as suffering from

epilepsy Epilepsy is a group of non-communicable neurological disorders characterized by recurrent epileptic seizures. Epileptic seizures can vary from brief and nearly undetectable periods to long periods of vigorous shaking due to abnormal electrica ...

. * "Prince Jingim" is also a main character of the 2014

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a ...

original series ''Marco Polo'', where he is portrayed by

Remy Hii Remy Hii (born 24 July 1986) is a Malaysian-Australian actor. Hii attended the National Institute of Dramatic Art for three years, and appeared in various theatre productions, before being cast in his first television role. Hii starred as Van T ...

References

Citations

Sources

; Works cited * {{refend 1243 births 1286 deaths Yuan dynasty people Sons of Kublai Khan Borjigin 13th-century Mongolian people Heirs apparent who never acceded