Zhengde Emperor
Birth and death:	Oct. 26, 1491–Apr. 20, 1521
Family name:	Zhu (朱)
Given name:	Houzhao (厚照)
Dates of reign:	Jun. 19, 1505–Apr. 20, 1521
Era name:	Zhengde (正德)
Era dates:	Jan. 24, 1506–Jan. 27, 1522
Temple name:	Wuzong (武宗)
Posthumous name: (short)	Emperor Yi (毅皇帝)
Posthumous name: (full)	Emperor Chengtian Dadao Yingsu Ruizhe Zhaode Xiangong Hongwen Sixiao Yi 承天達道英肅睿哲昭德顯功弘文 思孝毅皇帝
General note: Dates given here are in the Julian calendar. They are not in the proleptic Gregorian calendar.

The Zhengde Emperor (October 26, 1491–April 20, 1521) was emperor of China (Ming dynasty) between 1505-1521. Born Zhu Houzhao, he was the Hongzhi Emperor's eldest son. Court portrait. ... // Events December 6 - King Charles VIII marries Anne de Bretagne, thus incorporating Brittany into the kingdom of France. ... Events January 3 - Pope Leo X excommunicates Martin Luther. ... A Chinese surname, also called a clan name or family name (姓, pinyin: x ng; or 氏, shi), is one of the over seven hundred family names used by Han Chinese and Sinicized Chinese ethnic groups. ... Chinese given names (Chinese: 名字; pinyin: míngzì) are made up of one or two characters. ... Events March 5 - Papal dispensation issued for the marriage of Henry VIII of England and Catherine of Aragon June 27 - Henry VIII of England repudiates his engagement to Catherine of Aragon, at his fathers command King Alexander_of_Poland signed Nihil_novi act - Poland became Nobles Democracy Poland prohibits peasants from leaving... Events January 3 - Pope Leo X excommunicates Martin Luther. ... A Chinese era name (traditional Chinese: 年號, simplified Chinese: 年号, pinyin nían hào) is the era name, reign period, or regnal title used when traditionally numbering years in an emperors reign and naming certain Chinese rulers (see the conventions). ... // Events January 21 - Pope Julius II founds the Swiss Guard Second outbreak of the sweating sickness in England Leonardo da Vinci completes the Mona Lisa. ... Events January 9 - Adrian Dedens becomes Pope Adrian VI. February 26 - Execution by hanging of Cuauhtémoc, Aztec ruler of Tenochtitlan under orders of conquistador Hernán Cortés. ... Temple names (Traditional Chinese: 廟號 Simplified Chinese: 庙号 Pinyin: miào hào;), are commonly used when naming most Chinese, Vietnamese (such dynasties as Tran,Anterior Lê and Nguyen Dynasty) and most Korean rulers of the Goryeo and Joseon Dynasties. ... A posthumous name (Traditional Chinese: 諡號/謚號 Simplified Chinese: 谥号; Pinyin: shì hào; Romaji: shigō/tsuigō; Revised Romanization of Korean: siho) is a honorary name given to royalty in some cultures posthumously, that is, after the persons death. ... The Julian calendar was introduced by Julius Caesar in 46 BC, taking force in 45 BC or 709 ab urbe condita. ... The proleptic Gregorian calendar is produced by extending the Gregorian Calendar to dates preceding its official introduction in 1582. ... October 26 is the 299th day of the year (300th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 66 days remaining. ... // Events December 6 - King Charles VIII marries Anne de Bretagne, thus incorporating Brittany into the kingdom of France. ... April 20 is the 110th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (111th in leap years). ... Events January 3 - Pope Leo X excommunicates Martin Luther. ... The emperor or huangdi (皇帝 in pinyin: huang2 di4) of China was the head of government and head of state of China from the Qin dynasty in 221 B.C. until the fall of the Qing dynasty in 1911. ... The Ming Dynasty was the ruling dynasty of China from 1368 to 1644. ... Events March 5 - Papal dispensation issued for the marriage of Henry VIII of England and Catherine of Aragon June 27 - Henry VIII of England repudiates his engagement to Catherine of Aragon, at his fathers command King Alexander_of_Poland signed Nihil_novi act - Poland became Nobles Democracy Poland prohibits peasants from leaving... Events January 3 - Pope Leo X excommunicates Martin Luther. ... The Hongzhi Emperor (July 30, 1470–June 8, 1505) was emperor of the Ming dynasty in China between 1487 and 1505. ...

Early Years

Zhengde was created crown prince at a very early age and because his father did not take up any other concubines, Zhengde did not have to contend with other princes for the throne. (His younger brother died in infancy.) Zhengde was thoroughly educated in Confucian studies like his father was and he excelled in his studies. Many of Emperor Hongzhi's minister surmised that Zhengde would yet turned out to be a benevolent and brilliant emperor. Confucianism (儒家 Pinyin: rújiā The School of the Scholars), sometimes translated as the School of Literati, is an East Asian ethical, religious and philosophical system originally developed from the teachings of Confucius. ...

Reign as Emperor

Zhengde ascended the throne at the age of 14. Unlike his father, Zhengde was not interested in ruling and disregarded all state affairs. He took up a luxurious and prodigal lifestyle and also indulged himself in women. It was said that he liked to frequent brothels and even created palaces outside the Forbidden City in Beijing just to house beautiful women for his personal enjoyment. While being urged to return to the palace and attend to governmental matters, Zhengde would refused to receive all his ministers and ignored all their petitions. Zhengde also sanctioned the rise of eunuchs around him. One particular Liu Jin (劉瑾) was notorious for taking advantage of the young emperor and squandered immense amount of silver and valuables. There was even rumor of a plot that Liu Jin had intended to murder the emperor and place his own grandnephew on the throne. Liu Jin's plot was ultimately discovered, and he was executed in 1510. Prostitution is the sale of sexual services (typically manual stimulation, oral sex, sexual intercourse, or anal sex) for cash or other kind of return, generally indiscriminately with many persons. ... Forbidden City Courtyard The Forbidden City or Forbidden Palace (Chinese: 紫禁城; pinyin: ; literally Purple Forbidden City), located at the exact center of the ancient City of Beijing, was the imperial palace during the mid-Ming and the Qing dynasties. ... Events Conquest of Pskov by Grand Prince Vasili III of Muscovy. ...

Emperor Zhengde died in 1521 at the age of only 30. One day in the fall of 1520 it was said that Zhengde was drunk while boating on a lake. He fell off his boat and almost drowned himself ¹. After that he became ill and died the following year. He had no heir and was succeeded by his cousin. Events January 3 - Pope Leo X excommunicates Martin Luther. ... Events January 18 - King Christian II of Denmark and Norway defeats the Swedes at Lake Asunde. ...

Legacy

While brewed to be a successful ruler, Zhengde thorougly neglected his duties and this would be the beginning of a dangerous trend that would plagued future Ming emperors. Abandoning official duties to pursue personal gratifications would slowly be taken for granted and in turn would lead to the rise of powerful eunuchs that would dominate and eventually ruin the Ming dynasty.

Source

¹ Source: Imperial China - 900-1800, F.W. Mote, Pages 658, First Harvard University Press, 2003.

The Hongzhi Emperor (July 30, 1470–June 8, 1505) was emperor of the Ming dynasty in China between 1487 and 1505. ... The emperor or huangdi (皇帝 in pinyin: huang2 di4) of China was the head of government and head of state of China from the Qin dynasty in 221 B.C. until the fall of the Qing dynasty in 1911. ... The Ming Dynasty was the ruling dynasty of China from 1368 to 1644. ... The Jiajing Emperor (September 16, 1507–January 23, 1567) was emperor of China (Ming dynasty) between 1521-1567. ...