Zhengtong Emperor - First Reign

First Reign

Zhu Qizhen was the son of the Xuande Emperor Zhu Zhanji and his second wife, Empress Sun. At the beginning of Zhengtong's reign, the Ming Dynasty was prosperous and at the height of its power as a result of Xuande Emperor's able administration. Zhengtong's accession at the age of eight made him the first child emperor of the dynasty hence Zhengtong was easily influenced by others, especially the eunuch Wang Zhen. Zhengtong completely relied on Wang for advice and guidance.

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