Perpetual Happiness: The Ming Emperor YongleThe reign of Emperor Yongle, or "Perpetual Happiness," was one of the most dramatic and significant in Chinese history. It began with civil war and a bloody coup, saw the construction of the Forbidden City, the completion of the Grand Canal, consolidation of the imperial bureaucracy, and expansion of China's territory into Mongolia, Manchuria, and Vietnam. Beginning with an hour-by-hour account of one day in Yongle's court, Shih-shan Henry Tsai presents the multiple dimensions of the life of Yongle (Zhu Di, 1360-1424) in fascinating detail. Tsai examines the role of birth, education, and tradition in molding the emperor's personality and values, and paints a rich portrait of a man characterized by stark contrasts. Synthesizing primary and secondary source materials, he has crafted a colorful biography of the most renowned of the Ming emperors. The open access publication of this book was made possible by a grant from the James P. Geiss and Margaret Y. Hsu Foundation. |
Contents
February 23 1423 | 3 |
2 The Formative Years 13601382 | 20 |
3 The Years of Waiting 13821398 | 37 |
4 The Years of Successional Struggle 13981402 | 57 |
Government and Politics 14021420 | 77 |
Society and Economy 14021421 | 104 |
7 The Emperor of Culture | 129 |
8 Yongle and the Mongols | 148 |
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Common terms and phrases
Annam Annamese appointed army Aruytai Beijing Beiping Biography Buddhist campaign capital Chen Chinese civil commander Confucian Early Ming Emperor Hongwu Emperor Jianwen Emperor Yongle empire Empress Empress Ma envoys eunuch Fang father Gaoxu Gate grain Grand Canal grand secretaries guard units Hanlin heaven heir apparent History Hongwu reign horses Hu Guang Huang Fu Huang Zicheng Ibid imperial Jian Jiangxi juan Korean Lan Yu later Liaodong military Ming China Ming court Ming Dynasty Ming government Ming period Ming Taizong shilu Mingdai minister Ministry Mongol moon Nanjing northern officials Oirat palace piculs political Prince of Jin prince's princedom Qing region River Rong ruler scholars sent Shaanxi Shandong Sheng silk Song Taipei Taizong Tartars Temur thousand throne trade Tran tribute missions troops Uriyangqad Veritable Record Wang Xie Jin Yangzi Yongle reign Yongle's Yuan Zheng Zhong Zhongguo Zhou Zhu Di Zhu Yuanzhang