Zhu Quan (; 1378–1448https://web.archive.org/web/20161006082912/http://www.history.ubc.ca/sites/default/files/documents/readings/robinson_culture_courtiers_ch.8.pdf p. 398), the Prince of Ning (), was a Chinese historian, military commander, musician, and playwright. He was the 17th son of the

Hongwu Emperor The Hongwu Emperor (21 October 1328– 24 June 1398), also known by his temple name as the Emperor Taizu of Ming, personal name Zhu Yuanzhang, courtesy name Guorui, was the List of emperors of the Ming dynasty, founding emperor of the Ming dyna ...

of the

Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty, officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming was the last imperial dynasty of ...

. During his life, he served as a military commander, feudal lord,

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human species; as well as the ...

, and

playwright A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes play (theatre), plays, which are a form of drama that primarily consists of dialogue between Character (arts), characters and is intended for Theatre, theatrical performance rather than just Readin ...

. He is also remembered as a great tea connoisseur, a zither player, and

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and def ...

Other names

In addition to Prince of Ning, Zhu Quan was also known as the Strange Scholar of the Great Ming (, ''Da Ming Qi Shi''). As part of his Taoist attempts to avoid death, he adopted the aliases the Emaciated Immortal (, ''Qúxiān''), the "Master who Encompasses Emptiness" (, ''Hánxūzi''), "Taoist of the Mysterious Continent" or "Taoist of the Mysterious Island" (, ''Xuánzhōu Dàoren''), and "Perfected Gentleman of the Marvelous Way of the Unfathomable Emptiness of the Southern Pole" (, ''Nánjí Chōngxū Miàodào Zhēnjūn'').

Biography

Zhu Quan was initially a military commander in service to his father, the

who founded the

. He was granted the frontier fief of Ning with his capital at Daning in present-day Chifeng,

Inner Mongolia Inner Mongolia, officially the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, is an Autonomous regions of China, autonomous region of China. Its border includes two-thirds of the length of China's China–Mongolia border, border with the country of Mongolia. ...

in 1391. He was famous for his mastery of art and war and played an important role during the unrest surrounding the ascension of his teenage nephew, Jianwen Emperor, in 1399. Under the advice of his Confucian advisors, the Jianwen Emperor summoned his uncle to an audience in the imperial capital

Nanjing Nanjing or Nanking is the capital of Jiangsu, a province in East China. The city, which is located in the southwestern corner of the province, has 11 districts, an administrative area of , and a population of 9,423,400. Situated in the Yang ...

. Wary of the emperor's intentions, as other uncles were demoted or executed the same year, Zhu Quan refused and lost three of his divisions for insubordination. Zhu Di, the Prince of Yan, was preparing for his own uprising against the emperor and considered it a major point to neutralize Zhu Quan, a talented leader of well-trained troops located behind his lines. Taking advantage of Wu Gao's attack on Yongping near modern Shanhaiguan, the Prince of Yan after crushing Wu Gao's force rode hastily to Daning and feigned defeat and distress. After several days, his forces were in position and successfully captured Zhu Quan as he was seeing his brother off. The official history of the Ming records Daning's evacuation, with Zhu Quan's harem and courtiers removed to Songtingguan and the prince himself kept in the Yan capital at Beiping, but passes over Zhu Di's setting of the entire city to the torch and the destruction of Zhu Quan's extensive library.Wang, Richard G.
The Ming Prince and Daoism: Institutional Patronage of an Elite
'. Oxford Univ. Press, 2012. . Accessed 14 Oct 2012. From that point, Zhu Quan assisted his brother in his uprising, with the '' History of Ming'' recording that the Prince of Yan offered to split the entire empire between them. After his elevation as the Yongle Emperor in 1402, however, he swiftly reneged and refused to appoint his brother to lordship over

Suzhou Suzhou is a major prefecture-level city in southern Jiangsu province, China. As part of the Yangtze Delta megalopolis, it is a major economic center and focal point of trade and commerce. Founded in 514 BC, Suzhou rapidly grew in size by the ...

or Qiantang, instead giving him a choice only of backwater appointments. He settled upon Nanchang, the capital of

Jiangxi ; Gan: ) , translit_lang1_type2 = , translit_lang1_info2 = , translit_lang1_type3 = , translit_lang1_info3 = , image_map = Jiangxi in China (+all claims hatched).svg , mapsize = 275px , map_caption = Location ...

. After a scare where he was accused of practicing ''wugu'' sorcery, Zhu Quan essentially retired from any interference with the realm, devoting his time instead to cultural pursuits.Zhu Quan
. '' History of Ming'', Folio 117, p.14a. Taiwan ed, p. 3591. Accessed 14 Oct 2012. Meeting daily with local or visiting scholars and Taoists, he pursued immortality. He treasured and revised his ''Secret Book of Origins'' (, ''Yuánshǐ Mìshū''), a text which survived the fire of Daning and sharply attacked

Buddhism Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

as a foreign "mourning cult" at odds with Chinese culture and proper governance. His encyclopedia of

Taoism Taoism or Daoism (, ) is a diverse philosophical and religious tradition indigenous to China, emphasizing harmony with the Tao ( zh, p=dào, w=tao4). With a range of meaning in Chinese philosophy, translations of Tao include 'way', 'road', ' ...

, the ''Most Pure and Precious Books on the Way of August Heaven'' (, ''Tiānhuáng Zhìdào Tàiqīngyù Cè''), was so esteemed it joined the Taoist canon. His brother ordered him to complete the ''Comprehensive Mirror of Extensive Essays'' (''Tongjian Bolun'') and was also credited with writing ''Family Advice'' (''Jia Xun''), ''Ceremonial Customs of the Country of Ning'' (''Ningguo Yifan''), ''The Secret History of the Han and Tang'' (, ''Hàn-Táng Mìshǐ''), ''History Breaks Off'' (''Shi Duan''), a ''Book of Essays'' (, ''Wén Pǔ''), a ''Book of Poetry'' (, ''Shī Pǔ''), and several other annotated anthologies. His most successful was his '' Tea Manual'' (, ''Chá Pǔ''). In addition, he personally funded the publication of many rare books and composed several operas. Zhu Quan is an important figure in the history of the Chinese zither, or '' guqin'', for his compilation of the important ''Manual of the Mysterious and Marvellous'' (, ''Shénqí Mì Pǔ'') in 1425. This is the earliest known large scale collection of qin scores to have survived to the present day.

Family

Consort: *Lady Zhang (), Commander of the Wardens Zhang Tai's () daughter, died before his own death. Sons: * Zhu Panshi (; 16 October 1395 – 23 February 1437), Hereditary Prince of Ning (), first son ** Married Commander of the East City Wardens Yu Sheng's () daughter as Hereditary Princess of Ning () in March 1417 * ''Second son'', died young * Zhu Panye (), third son ** Married Deputy Commander of the North City Wardens Huang Fu's () daughter (d. January 1440) in August 1426, later married Company Commander Wang Xing's () daughter in May 1455. * Zhu Panyao (; October 1414 – July 1492), Prince Anjian of Yichun (), fourth son ** Married Jinwu Rear Guard Commander Liu Xun's () daughter in October 1430 * Zhu Panzhu (; October 1419 – 1459), Prince Anxi of Xinchang (), fifth son ** Married Xiaoling Guard Commander Ge Tan's () daughter in March 1437 * Zhu Panmou (; 1420 – January 1439), Prince Daohui of Xinfeng (), sixth son Daughters: * Princess Yongxin (), first daughter ** Married Jinxiang Guard Drafter Gao Heling () * Princess Yushan (), second daughter ** Married Chief Commissioner Drafter Fang Jingxiang () * Princess Qingjiang (), third daughter ** Married Xi'ning Guard Commander Chen Tong's () younger brother Chen Yi () * Princess Fengxin (), fourth daughter ** Married Wang Shuang () * Princess Jinxi (; d. August 1449), fifth daughter ** Married the Right Army Commissioner Han Guan's () younger brother Han Fu () * Princess Taihe (), sixth daughter ** Married Wang Yencheng of Poyang County's () son Wang Zhanran () * Princess Pengze (), seventh daughter ** Married Longxiang Guard Commander Wang Gang's () nephew Wang Zhi () * Princess Luling (), eighth daughter ** Married Qizhou Guard Commander Tian Sheng's () younger brother Tian Yu () * Princess Xinyu (), ninth daughter ** Married Ganzhou Prefecture Record Keeper Hu Yu's () son Hu Guangji () * Princess Xincheng (), tenth daughter ** Married Regent (Liushou) Central Guard Commander Li Jun's () son Li Huan () * Princess Fuliang (), 11th daughter * ''Twelfth daughter'', died young, no title * Princess Nanfeng (), 13th daughter ** Married Jiangxi Military Commissioner Zhang Xiang's () son Zhang Wen () * Princess Yongfeng (), 14th daughter

Descendants

Zhu Quan's descendant, Zhu Chenhao, the Prince of Ning, rebelled against the Zhengde Emperor in what is known as the Chenhao rebellion. It was only forty-three days before it was put down by Wang Yangming, the Governor of Nan'gan, resulting in the abolition of the Prince of Ning's fiefdom. The famous painter Bada Shanren was his seventh-generation grandson, and Lin Shiyi (林時益), one of Yitang Jiuzi (易堂九子), was his eighth-generation grandson.

Notes

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