Ep. 269 | Eunuchs in Chinese History (Part 3)
The story continues. After wrecking the Han and Tang Dynasties, the eunuchs emerge again in the Ming as an evil force. In this episode, we’ll also look at the Song Dynasty eunuch general and politician Tong Guan. Then we’ll look at the life of the first of the so-called Four Eunuch Dictators, Wang Zhen.
His greed and avarice almost caused the Ming Dynasty to fall.
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Terms in Episode
| Pinyin/Term | Chinese | English/Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Bái Qǐ | 白起 | Another great general of the Warring States and Qin State periods. Lived 332-257 BCE |
| Chénghuà Emperor | 成化帝 | Ninth Ming Emperor who tried to do his best but he could not. By the end of his reign, eunuchs controlled palace affairs |
| Cài Jīng | 1047-1126, Northern Song era politician and calligrapher. One of Huizong's main guys | |
| Dàtóng | 大同 | City in Shanxi Province, not too far from Beijing |
| Dōng Chǎng | 东厂 | Eastern Depot, the eunuch run secret police and spy agency |
| Emperor Tàizǔ | 宋太祖 | See Zhao Kuangyin above |
| Emperor Āi | 唐哀帝 | Last emperor of the Tang Dynasty 904-907 |
| Èrshísì Yámen | 二十四衙门 | The 24 (Palace) Offices, Twelve Directorates, four agencies and eight bureaus |
| Esen (Yěxiān) Tàishī | 也先太师 | Ruler of the Northern Yuan Mongol Dynasty, reigned 1454-1455. |
| Fāng Là | 方腊 | Died 1121, rebel leader and Water Margin character. Started a rebellion against the Song down in Zhejiang |
| Gānsù | 甘肃 | Province in China. Lanzhou is the capital |
| Huīzōng | 宋徽宗 | Northern Song emperor featured in CHP episodes 132 to 135 |
| Hángzhōu | 杭州 | City west of Shanghai, capital of Zhejiang province, site of the Southern Song capital |
| Hèlì Jīqún | 鹤立鸡群 | A Crane Among Chickens....someone who stands out |
| Hòu Zhōu | 后周 | The Later Zhōu Dynasty of the Five Dynasties Ten Kingdoms period |
| Hóngwǔ | 洪武帝 | See Zhu Yuanzhang above |
| Jiànwén | 建文帝 | Second Ming Emperor but Yongle tried to erase him from the histories. reigned 1398-1402 |
| Jiǎ Xiàn | 贾宪 | 1010-1070, another palace eunuch mathgematician who described Pascal’s Triangle six hundred years before Blaise Pascal himself came up with it. Others too (in India and elsewhere, also achieved this) |
| Jǐngtài | 景泰帝 | Emperor who reigned after the Zhengtong Emperor was captured. Jingtai reigned 1449-1457 |
| Jǐnyīwèi | 锦衣卫 | The Embroidered Uniform Guard |
| Kāifēng | 开封 | City along the Yellow River in Henan. Capital of the Northern Song Dynasty. Used to be called Bian, Bianjing, Bianliang |
| Liáo Dynasty | 辽朝 | Dynasty in the north of China that ran 916-1125. The Khitan people of Manchuria ran the Liao Dynasty |
| Liú Chéngguī | 劉承珪 | Palace Eunuch who lived 951 to 1016. Known for standardizing weights and measures and inventing the Děngzi 戥子….a small steelyard, a scale that’s used for weighing precious metals, gems, medicine |
| Língchí | 凌迟 | The dreaded death of a thousand cuts |
| Lǐ Màozhēn | 李茂贞 | 856-924 another powerful Tang warlord who, after assisting Zhu Wen to destroy the dynasty, went on to found the Qi Kingdom |
| Méng Tián | 蒙恬 | Died in 210 BCE, great Qin Dynasty general, inventor and builder of the Great Wall |
| Nèigōng Jiān | 内宫监 | Directorate of Palace Eunuchs |
| Níngxià | 宁夏 | Province (actually Autonomous Region) in China |
| pái mǎpì | 拍马屁 | To flatter someone, literally to pat the horses rump |
| Pán Gǔ | 盘古 | God-type figure who formed heaven and earth and molded all the geographic features on earth |
| Qīnzōng | 送亲宗 | Son of Huizong, the final emperor of the Northern Song 1126-1127 |
| Shénzōng | 宋神宗 | Song Emperor 1067-1085 |
| Shānxī | 山西 | Province in China with capital at Taiyuan |
| Shǎnxī | 陕西 | Province in China. Xian is the capital |
| Southern Sòng Dynasty | 南宋 | The second half of the Song Dynasty after the Jurchens chased them out of the north. It ran from 1129-1279 |
| Sòng Dynasty | 宋朝 | Dynasty that lasted 960-1127 in the north and 1129-1279 in the south |
| Sòng Shǐ | 宋史 | Official History of Song |
| Sīlí Jiān | 司礼监 | Directorate of Ceremonial - These guys ran the entire eunuch bureaucracy |
| Tiānjìn | 天津 | City one hour away from Beijing |
| Tiānshùn emperor | 天顺低 | See Zhengtong Emperor above. During his second time out as emperor, he was given this Era Name |
| Táng Dynasty | 唐朝 | Dynasty that ran 618-907 with a split in the middle for Wu Zetian's Zhou Dyansty 690-705 |
| Tóng Guàn | 童贯 | 1054-1126, Eunuch general, politician and adviser during the time of Emperor Huizong |
| Tǔmù Bǎo zhībiàn | 土木堡之变 | The Tǔmù Fortress Crisis of September 1, 1449 that saw Emperor Zhengtong captured by Oirat Mongols |
| Western Xià | 蔡京 | Empire that ran 1038-1227 and was situated mostly around Gansu and Ningxia |
| Wáng Zhèn | 王振 | First of the most notorious bad eunuchs of the Ming Dynasty. He engineered the whole Tumu Crisis |
| Wāng Zhí | 汪直 | We'll look at this second eunuch dictator next episode. He served during the Chenghua Emperor's reign. |
| Wǔdài Shíguó | 五代十国 | The Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period that followed the Tang. Ran from 907 to 979 |
| Xuāndé | 宣德 | Ming Emperor from 1425-1435, grandson of Yǒnglè |
| Yú Qiān | 于谦 | Minister of War who helped save the Ming Dynasty after the Tumu Crisis. Later killed because of this |
| Yēlǜ Ābāojī | 耶律阿保机 | Khitan Liao Dynasty founder, lionized in CHP episode 126 |
| Yǒnglè | 永乐帝 | Also known as Emperor Chengzu, reigned 1402-1424 |
| Zhào | 赵 | The surname of the family of Song Dynasty emperors |
| Zhào Kuāngyìn | 赵匡胤 | Founding emperor of the Song Dynasty. He reigned as Emperor Taizu from 960-976 |
| Zhèjiāng | 浙江 | Coastal Province in China |
| Zhèngtǒng Emperor | 正统 | Also known as Emperor Yingzong of Ming, reigned as both the 6th and 8th Ming Emperor |
| Zhéng Hé | 郑和 | Eunuch Admiral who lived 1371 to 1433, famous for his seven voyages to the west |
| Zhāngjiākǒu | 张家口 | City not too far from Beijing also known by its Mongol name of Kalgan. Referred to sometimes as "Beijing's Northern Gateway" |
| Zhōu Gōng | 周公 | The revered Duke of Zhou from the Zhou Dynasty |
| Zhū Wēn | 朱温 | Also known as Zhū Quánzhōng 朱全忠, and Emperor Taizu of Later Liang. He helped finally destroy the eunuch's power but killed the Tang Dynasty along with the eunuchs |
| Zhū Yuánzhāng | 朱元璋 | A.K.A. the Hongwu Emperor, founder of the Ming Dynasty |
| Zhōu Gōng | 周公 | The Duke of Zhou, brother of Zhou King Wu and son of King Wen |
| Zhū Wēn | 朱文 | Also known as Zhū Quánzhōng 朱全忠, and Emperor Taizu of Later Liang. He helped finally destroy the eunuch's power but killed the Tang Dynasty along with the eunuchs |
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