Nurhaci

Nurhaci (Manchu: ; simplified Chinese: 努尔哈赤; traditional Chinese: 努爾哈赤; pinyin: Nǔ'ěrhāchì; alternatively Nurhachi; 21 February 1559 – 30 September 1626) was an important Jurchen chieftain who rose to prominence in the late sixteenth century in Manchuria. Nurhaci was part of the Aisin Gioro clan, and reigned from 1616 to his death in September 1626.

Nurhaci reorganized and united various Jurchen tribes (the later "Manchu"), consolidated the Eight Banners military system, and eventually launched an assault on Ming Dynasty and Korea's Joseon Dynasty. His conquest of China's northeastern Liaoning province laid the groundwork for the conquest of the rest of China by his descendants, who would go on to found the Qing Dynasty in 1644. He is also generally credited with the creation of a written script for the Manchu language.