Biography
Zhu Qiyu ascended the throne in 1449 after his older brother (the Zhengtong Emperor) was defeated and taken prisoner by the Oirat Mongols of Esen Khan.
The Zhengtong Emperor was eventually released in 1450 after the Mongols learned that the Ming government had installed Jingtai as the new emperor. After that, Jingtai continued to rule as emperor while his brother was granted a technical title of "grand-emperor" and was forced to live in obscurity.
During Jingtai's reign, aided by the prominent minister Yu Qian, he paid particular attention to matters affecting his country. He repaired the Grand Canal as well as the system of dykes along the Yellow River. As a result of his administration, the economy prospered and the dynasty was further strengthened.
Zhu Qiyu reigned for eight years. When his death was imminent in 1457, he refused to name an heir, particularly because his own son had died mysteriously — perhaps poisoned. The sidelined Zhengtong saw an opportunity to regain the throne and through a military coup overthrew Jingtai and declared himself his successor. Zhengtong, now emperor again, renamed his era Tianshun (it has never been discovered why he changed his era name). The former Jingtai Emperor was demoted to the rank of Prince of Cheng, which was the title he had held before ascending the throne, and was placed under house arrest in Xiyuan (西苑). Jingtai died a month later with some sources hinting that he was murdered by eunuchs on the order of the Tianshun emperor.
After Jingtai's death, the Tianshun Emperor denied his brother's rightful honor to be buried at the Ming Dynasty Tombs (together with his predecessors) located north of Beijing. He was instead buried well away from that locale in the hills west of Beijing and was buried as a prince rather than an emperor. His posthumous name was also shortened to five characters, instead of the normal seventeen, to reflect his demoted status.
Read more about this topic: Jingtai Emperor
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