The Collapse of the Ming Dynasty and the Rise of the Southern Ming

The mid-17th century marked a turbulent period in Chinese history as the once-mighty Ming Dynasty crumbled under internal rebellions and external invasions. In 1644, Beijing fell to the rebel forces of Li Zicheng, prompting the last Ming emperor, Chongzhen, to take his own life. Shortly afterward, the Manchu-led Qing Dynasty seized control of northern China, establishing their rule over the heartland of the empire.

Amid the chaos, remnants of the Ming court fled south, establishing a series of short-lived regimes collectively known as the Southern Ming. Among these, the Yongli Emperor, Zhu Youlang, emerged as the last significant claimant to the Ming throne. Supported by loyalist generals such as Li Dingguo, the Yongli court sought to resist Qing expansion from its base in Yunnan and Burma.

The Qing Campaign Against the Southern Ming

By 1660, the Qing Dynasty had consolidated much of China, but the Yongli Emperor remained a symbolic threat. In August of that year, the Qing court, at the request of the defector Wu Sangui—now a Qing general with the title “Prince Who Pacifies the West”—authorized a military expedition into Burma to capture the Yongli Emperor and eliminate Li Dingguo’s resistance forces.

Aisin-Gioro Aisingga, a high-ranking Manchu noble, was appointed as the “General Who Pacifies the West” and dispatched with a contingent of elite Manchu troops to assist Wu Sangui. The Qing forces advanced methodically, securing key locations and pressuring the Burmese king to surrender the Ming fugitives.

The Yongli Emperor’s Desperate Plea

As Qing troops closed in, the Yongli Emperor penned a final, poignant letter to Wu Sangui, appealing to his former loyalty to the Ming. The letter, filled with sorrow and desperation, questioned Wu’s betrayal and begged for mercy.

“You were once a distinguished minister of our dynasty, a pillar of the state… How can you now hunt down a helpless sovereign? Is there truly no place under heaven for me?”

The letter revealed the Yongli Emperor’s despair, devoid of defiance but filled with a plea for survival. It underscored the tragic futility of the Southern Ming’s resistance and the moral dilemma faced by former Ming officials who had defected to the Qing.

The Betrayal and Capture

In December 1661, under mounting Qing pressure, the Burmese king decided to hand over the Yongli Emperor to avoid further conflict. On the pretext of relocating him for safety, Burmese soldiers escorted Zhu Youlang and his family to the Qing camp. Only upon arrival did the emperor realize he had been deceived.

Wu Sangui, upon facing the captured monarch, reportedly hesitated, his arrogance crumbling under the weight of the moment. The Yongli Emperor rebuked him:

“Are you not a Han Chinese? Were you not once a subject of the Ming? How can you betray your ruler and country like this?”

Wu, struck with guilt, could barely respond.

The Execution and Its Aftermath

The Yongli Emperor and his son were transported to Kunming, where they were kept under tight guard. Rather than risk an escape during a long journey to Beijing, the Qing court approved their execution. On April 25, 1662, they were strangled with a bowstring—a method chosen to preserve the dignity of a former emperor. Their bodies were burned, though local loyalists later secretly buried some remains.

The Qing celebrated the victory, promoting Wu Sangui to the rank of prince. Yet, the execution of the last Ming emperor left a somber legacy, symbolizing the final extinguishing of Ming resistance.

Legacy and Historical Reflection

The fall of the Yongli Emperor marked the definitive end of the Ming Dynasty’s resistance. For the Qing, it solidified their claim over all of China, but the event also cast a long shadow over Wu Sangui’s reputation. His role in hunting down a former sovereign haunted him, and later historians would debate his motives—was it loyalty to the Qing, or sheer ambition?

For the Southern Ming loyalists, the tragedy underscored the impossibility of their cause. The Yongli Emperor’s passive surrender contrasted sharply with the defiant last stands of earlier Ming rulers, leaving a complex legacy of sorrow rather than heroism.

Today, the story of the Yongli Emperor serves as a poignant reminder of the turbulent transition from Ming to Qing—a period where loyalty, betrayal, and survival intersected in the fading light of a fallen dynasty.