The

Taiping Heavenly Kingdom The Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, or the Heavenly Kingdom of Great Peace (1851–1864), was a theocratic monarchy which sought to overthrow the Qing dynasty. The Heavenly Kingdom, or Heavenly Dynasty, was led by Hong Xiuquan, a Hakka man from Guan ...

developed a complicated

peerage A peerage is a legal system historically comprising various hereditary titles (and sometimes Life peer, non-hereditary titles) in a number of countries, and composed of assorted Imperial, royal and noble ranks, noble ranks. Peerages include: A ...

system for

noble ranks Traditional rank amongst European imperiality, royalty, peers, and nobility is rooted in Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages. Although they vary over time and among geographic regions (for example, one region's prince might be equal to anothe ...

King/Prince

''Wang'' (王, lit. "king" or "prince") was the highest title of nobility, often hereditary, ranked just below the

Heavenly King Heavenly King or Tian Wang (), also translated as Heavenly Prince, is a Chinese language, Chinese title for various religious deities and divine leaders throughout history, as well as an alternate form of the term ''Son of Heaven'', referring to ...

. There were five ranks of ''wang'':

Non-hereditary nobility ranks

Below the king or prince, there were six ranks of nobility () in Taiping Heavenly Kingdom: ''E'' (義 ''Yì''), ''An'' (安 ''Ān''), ''Fu'' (福 ''Fú''), ''Yen'' (燕 ''Yān''), ''Yü'' (豫 ''Yù'') and ''Hou'' (侯 ''Hóu''). The nobility titles were not hereditary. ''E'' and ''An'' were most highest ranks of the nobility, once they were very noble titles of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. If the

wanted to promote someone, he gave the person either ''E'' or ''An''. However, this rule was challenged after 1860 because the nobility titles had been given too freely.

Notable people

Chen Yucheng Chen Yucheng (), born Chen Picheng (; 1837May 1862), was a Chinese general during the Taiping Rebellion and later served as the Heroic (Ying) Prince (or Brave King) of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom in the later stages of the rebellion, nicknamed ...

was titled Cheng Tian Yi (成天義) in 1857 *

Liang Chengfu Liang Chengfu (; died 26 June 1865) was an eminent military leader of the Taiping Rebellion, and known during his military tenure as the King of Qi (啟王). He led Taiping forces to many military victories especially at Hubei and Shaanxi in centra ...

was titled Zeng Tian Yi (則天義) in 1860 *

Tan Shaoguang Tan Shaoguang () (1835 – December 1, 1863) was a military leader of the Taiping Rebellion. During his military tenure he was known as the King of Mu (慕王) ("Seeker Prince"). As a young soldier he joined the Jintian Uprising. After several y ...

was titled Jian Tian Yi (建天義) in 1861 *

Ye Yenlai Ye Yunlai (, died 1861) was a military leader of the Taiping Rebellion. He began his military career in the Jintian Uprising, later becoming a general, leading Taiping forces to many military victories. He was the chief commander defending Anqing ...

was titled Sho Tian An (受天安) in 1857 *

Hong Rengan Hong Rengan (; 20 February 1822 – 23 November 1864) was an important leader of the Taiping Rebellion. He was a distant cousin of the movement's founder and spiritual leader Hong Xiuquan. His position as the Gan Wang (干王, lit. "the Shield K ...

was titled Gan Tian Fu (干天福) in 1859 *

Qin Rigang Qin Rigang (秦日綱, 1821 – 1856), né Qin Richang (秦日昌), was a Hakka military leader of the Taiping Rebellion, known during his military tenure as the King of Yen (燕王). He served under Hong Xiuquan's Taiping Administration and led ...

was titled Ding Tian Yan (頂天燕) in 1856 * was titled Hu Tian Yu (護天豫) in 1854

Notes

References

* Chinese nobility Taiping Rebellion {{China-royal-stub

King/Prince

Non-hereditary nobility ranks

Notable people

See also

Notes

References