Empress Xiaoshencheng

Empress Xiaoshencheng (1790 – 29 April 1833) was the first Empress Consort of the Daoguang Emperor of the Qing dynasty.

Life

Empress Xiaoshencheng was born in the Manchu Tunggiya clan, which was under the Bordered Yellow Banner.^[1] Her personal name is unknown. Her ancestor was Tong Tulai (佟圖賴; 1606–1658), the maternal grandfather of the Kangxi Emperor. Her father, Shuming'a (舒明阿), inherited the title of a third class cheng'en duke and was posthumously honoured as a first class duke.

Lady Tunggiya became a secondary consort of Mianning, the second son of the Jiaqing Emperor, in 1803. In 1808, following the death of Lady Niohuru, she was promoted to replace Lady Niohuru as Mianning's primary consort. She bore Mianning his first daughter in 1813 but their daughter died prematurely in 1819.

In 1820, the Jiaqing Emperor died and was succeeded by Mianning, who was enthroned as the Daoguang Emperor. A year later, the Daoguang Emperor granted Lady Tunggiya's brother, Yukuan (裕寬), the title of a first class cheng'en marquis. When the mourning period for the Jiaqing Emperor was over, the Daoguang Emperor officially instated Lady Tunggiya as his Empress in 1822. As Empress, Lady Tunggiya was placed in charge of the emperor's harem. She died in 1833 and was interred in the Muling Mausoleum at the Western Qing tombs.

Gallery

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  In daily dress

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  In daily dress

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  In ceremonial dress

See also

• Ranks of imperial consorts in China#Qing
• Royal and noble ranks of the Qing dynasty

Notes

References

• Wan, Yi; Shuqing, Wang; Yanzhen, Lu; Scott, Rosemary E. (1988). Daily Life in the Forbidden City: The Qing Dynasty, 1644-1912 (Illustrated ed.). Viking. ISBN 0670811645. 
• Wei, Betty Peh-T'i (2006). Ruan Yuan, 1764-1849: The Life and Work of a Major Scholar-Official in Nineteenth-Century China Before the Opium War. Hong Kong University Press. p. 272. ISBN 962-209-785-5. 
• Zhao, Erxun (1928). Draft History of Qing (Qing Shi Gao) (in Chinese).