14 Facts About Hongshi

Hongshi died in disgrace in 1727 but was later posthumously restored to the imperial clan by his younger brother, the Qianlong Emperor.

Hongshi was born to the Aisin Gioro clan as the third son of Yinzhen, who was the fourth son of the Kangxi Emperor.

Hongshi's mother, a Han Chinese woman with the family name "Li", was a secondary consort of Yinzhen.

Unlike his fourth brother Hongli, who was awarded the title of a qinwang, Hongshi never received a noble rank.

Between 1722 and 1726, Hongshi became associated with his uncle Yunsi, who was a political rival of his father.

In 1725, the Yongzheng Emperor stripped Yunsi of his princely title and banished him from the Aisin Gioro clan on trumped-up charges; by extension, the emperor decreed that Hongshi would be expelled from the Forbidden City.

Hongshi was barred from entering the Forbidden City, but unlike Yunsi, he was not imprisoned.

Hongshi was instead placed under the custodianship of his uncle, the imperial prince Yuntao, 12th son of the Kangxi Emperor.

Some historians believe that the Yongzheng Emperor ordered Hongshi to commit suicide in order to eliminate him as a rival to his more favored brother, Hongli.

Qing dynasty researcher Tang Bangzhi, in his 1923 book Qing Huangshi Sipu, includes a passage that seems to suggest Hongshi died on the same day he was expelled from the imperial clan, but did not elaborate further.

Many historians remain skeptical that Hongshi was put to death by his father.

Hongshi's death made Hongli the undisputed heir apparent for the remainder of the Yongzheng Emperor's reign.

Shortly after the death of the Yongzheng Emperor in 1735, the imperial prince Yunlu wrote a memorial to the newly enthroned Hongli, the Qianlong Emperor, asking for Hongshi to be posthumously rehabilitated and restored to the Aisin Gioro clan.

The Qianlong Emperor obliged and remarked that while Hongshi was "young and reckless", because "many years have passed since his demise", such harsh treatment was no longer necessary.