The Fractured Legacy of the Southern Ming

When the Hongguang regime collapsed in 1645, the Southern Ming faced an existential crisis. With Emperor Zhu Yousong captured and the Prince of Lu surrendering to the Qing, the imperial lineage appeared broken. In this power vacuum, two distant imperial relatives—Zhu Yujian (Prince of Tang) and Zhu Yihai (Prince of Lu)—were separately proclaimed rulers by regional officials in Fujian and Zhejiang. This accidental duality of power, born from poor communication and regional loyalties, set the stage for a bitter rivalry that would cripple anti-Qing resistance.

The Rise of Competing Regimes

Zhu Yujian, crowned as the Longwu Emperor, established his court in Fujian with broader recognition from Southern Ming holdouts. Meanwhile, Zhu Yihai’s “Supervisory State” (鲁监国) in Zhejiang, though militarily weaker, refused to submit. The Longwu Emperor attempted reconciliation, offering Zhu Yihai the title “Imperial Nephew” and promising shared governance. However, factions within the Lu regime split violently over whether to accept this compromise.

Key figures like Grand Secretary Zhu Dadian argued for unity: “With the enemy at our gates, how can we achieve restoration while fighting among kin?” Yet hardliners, led by Grand Secretary Zhang Guowei, countered: “Victory alone should decide supremacy—let history judge!” The debate escalated until Zhu Yihai temporarily abdicated in protest, only to be reinstated by hawkish ministers who rejected Longwu’s envoys.

Escalation and Bloodshed

By 1646, tensions turned lethal. Longwu’s envoy, Lu Qingyuan, was murdered while delivering silver to Zhejiang troops. Zhu Yujian retaliated by executing Lu’s emissaries, including the influential General Chen Qian—a move that alienated the powerful Zheng Zhilong, whose naval support was critical. Both courts engaged in reckless patronage, awarding titles to secure loyalty rather than merit. As one official lamented: “Now even vagrants claim generalships, selling fake edicts while peasants boast of raising armies!”

Strategic Myopia and Its Consequences

The Lu regime’s insistence on independence was geopolitically untenable. Zhejiang, though a frontline against the Qing, lacked the resources to challenge Longwu’s broader legitimacy. Zhu Yihai’s ministers pinned hopes on capturing Nanjing to legitimize their rule, but this ignored the Qing’s overwhelming force. Meanwhile, Fujian’s Zheng Zhilong cynically exploited the divide, withholding troops to let Zhejiang bear the brunt of Qing attacks.

The Cultural Toll of Division

Beyond battlefields, the rivalry eroded Ming loyalist morale. Intellectuals like Wu Zhonglian warned against the corruption of “office-selling,” but their appeals were drowned out by wartime desperation. The schism also distorted historical narratives—later chroniclers like Li Yuqiu and Xu Fanglie framed the conflict as either principled resistance (Lu) or pragmatic unity (Longwu), reflecting enduring partisan divides.

Legacy: A Cautionary Tale of Disunity

The Tang-Lu conflict’s resolution was tragically predictable: by late 1646, the Qing crushed both regimes. Zhejiang fell first, with Zhu Yihai fleeing to Taiwan, while Fujian collapsed after Zheng Zhilong’s defection. Modern historians view this infighting as symbolic of the Southern Ming’s broader failure—ideological purity and personal ambition trumped collective survival.

Today, the episode serves as a stark lesson: fragmented resistance invites conquest. Whether in 17th-century China or contemporary politics, the Tang-Lu rivalry reminds us that solidarity, not supremacy, is the bedrock of effective opposition.