Eunuch and Emperor in the Great Age of Qing Rule offers a new interpretation of eunuchs and their connection to imperial rule in the first century and a half of the Qing dynasty (1644–1800). This period encompassed the reigns of three of China’s most important emperors, men who were deeply affected by the great eunuch corruption of the fallen Ming dynasty. In this groundbreaking and deeply researched book, the author explores how Qing emperors sought to prevent a return of the harmful excesses of eunuchs and how eunuchs flourished in the face of the restrictions imposed upon them. We meet powerful eunuchs who faithfully served, and in some cases ultimately betrayed, their emperors. We also meet ordinary eunuchs whose lives, punctuated by dramas large and small, provide a fascinating perspective on the Qing palace world.
Table des matières
List of Illustrations
Acknowledgments
Preface
Conventions
Conversions
Qing Reigns
Introduction
1. “A Time of Pure Yin”: Forging the Seventeenth–Century Consensus on the Nature of Ming Eunuch Power
2. The Shunzhi Emperor and His Eunuchs: Echoes of the Ming
3. “To Guard against Their Subtle Encroachments”: The Kangxi Emperor’s Regulation of Rank–and–File Eunuchs
4. The Influence of Eunuchs in Kangxi’s Inner Circle
5. Eunuch Loyalties in the Yongzheng Emperor’s Troubled Succession
6. Yongzheng’s Innovative Rules for Regulating Eunuchs
7. The Qianlong Emperor: Shifting the Arc of History
8. Qianlong’s Flawed System of Oversight
9. The World Created by Qianlong and His Eunuchs
Conclusion
Notes
Selected Bibliography
Glossary-Index
A propos de l’auteur
Norman A. Kutcher is Professor of History and Laura J. and L. Douglas Meredith Professor for Teaching Excellence in the Maxwell School of Syracuse University. He is the author of Mourning in Late Imperial China: Filial Piety and the State.
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