Wei Zhongxian (魏忠賢) (1568-October 19, 1627) is considered by most historians as the most powerful and notorious eunuch in Chinese history. He was a hoodlum and gambler, who made himself a eunuch and changed his name to Li Chin-chung in order to escape from his debtors. Entering the palace, he managed to get into the service of the wet-nurse Madam Ke of the future Ming emperor. The couple began manipulating the Tianqi Emperor, and the emperor later made Wei the Grand Secretary of the State, which gave Wei absolute power over the court. Wei persecuted anyone who opposed his decisions, resulting in the death and imprisonment of many loyal officials. He later proclaimed himself to be Nine-Thousand Years which meant that he was the second most important person in the country, just after the emperor, who is called the Ten-Thousand Years. Wei also build many shrines and erected god-like statues of himself in them. In 1627, his control of the court ended with the death of the Tianqi Emperor, whose successor promptly dismissed him. He hanged himself to escape trial, and his corpse was disembowelled. Events March 23 - Peace of Longjumeau ends the Second War of Religion in France. ... October 19 is the 291st day of the year (292nd in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ... Events A Dutch ship makes the first recorded sighting of the coast of South Australia. ... A eunuch is a human male whose testicles have either been removed or are non-functional. ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... The Tianqi Emperor (1605-1627) was Emperor of China (Ming dynasty) from 1620 to 1627. ... Disembowelment is evisceration, or the removing of vital organs, usually from the abdomen. ...