The Fragile Court of the Yongli Emperor

The Yongli Emperor Zhu Youlang’s reign (1646-1662) represented the last gasp of the Ming dynasty’s southern resistance against the Qing conquest. By the early 1650s, his court had become a pawn in the power struggles between former peasant rebellion leaders turned Ming loyalists. The most formidable of these was Sun Kewang, a former general of the rebel Zhang Xianzhong’s Daxi regime who now controlled vast territories in southwestern China.

Sun’s relationship with the Yongli Emperor was fraught with tension. Though nominally a Ming subject, Sun effectively held the emperor hostage in the remote Guangxi town of Anlong after 1652. Contemporary records describe Sun’s court protocol violations – receiving memorials before the emperor saw them, issuing parallel edicts under “Imperial Decree by Prince Qin’s Command,” and openly discussing replacing the Ming with his own dynasty through a staged “abdication” ritual.

The Failed Secret Appeal to Li Dingguo

Fearing deposition or assassination, the Yongli Emperor’s inner circle – led by Grand Secretary Wu Zhenyu and eunuchs Zhang Fulu and Quan Weiguo – devised a desperate plan in late 1652. They secretly reached out to Li Dingguo, another former Daxi commander who had become the Ming’s most successful field general against the Qing.

The covert operation involved:
– A tearful secret edict drafted by Rui Qianchang
– Hidden imperial seals applied by palace eunuchs
– Official Lin Qingyang’s dangerous mission to Li’s camp under cover of attending a funeral

When the message reached Li Dingguo in mid-1653, he reportedly “kowtowed until his forehead bled,” vowing to rescue the emperor despite his longtime association with Sun Kewang. However, the plot unraveled when courtier Liu Yixin accidentally revealed details to Sun’s ally Ma Jixiang.

The Anlong Purge and Execution of the Eighteen Scholars

Sun Kewang’s retaliation in early 1654 was brutal. His forces stormed the Anlong palace, arresting and torturing nearly twenty officials connected to the plot. Under duress, some confessed to forging the edict without imperial knowledge to protect the emperor.

The subsequent show trial resulted in:
– Three leaders (Zhang Juan, Zhang Fulu, Quan Weiguo) executed by lingchi (slow slicing)
– Fourteen others beheaded, including six senior ministers
– Grand Secretary Wu Zhenyu forced to commit suicide

This “Eighteen Scholars Incident” became legendary in Southern Ming historiography. The victims were later reburied with honors, their tomb in Anlong remaining a pilgrimage site into modern times.

The Geopolitical Consequences

Sun Kewang’s actions had far-reaching impacts:
1. Military Fragmentation: The purge accelerated the split between Sun’s faction and Li Dingguo’s forces, weakening anti-Qing resistance.
2. Legitimacy Crisis: Sun’s heavy-handedness alienated other Ming loyalists like Zheng Chenggong, making coordinated campaigns impossible.
3. Qing Advantage: The infighting allowed Qing forces to consolidate control over Huguang and Guangxi provinces.

As historian Qian Bingdeng noted, Sun fundamentally misunderstood the political landscape. Unlike Yuan dynasty warlords who could ignore the nominal emperor, anti-Qing forces needed the Ming imperial mystique to maintain cohesion. His bid for personal power proved disastrous for the Southern Ming cause.

Historical Memory and Modern Significance

The Anlong tragedy endures as:
– A case study in the perils of warlord politics during dynastic transitions
– An example of Confucian martyrdom, with the Eighteen Scholars celebrated for loyalty
– A reminder of the complex alliances between former rebels and the Ming establishment

Recent archaeological work at the Anlong site and new studies of Li Dingguo’s campaigns continue to shed light on this pivotal moment when the last hopes for a Ming restoration effectively died with eighteen scholars in a remote Guangxi town.