The Precarious Reign of a Young Emperor

The year was 1661, and the Qing Dynasty stood at a critical juncture in its consolidation of power over China. Emperor Shunzhi, the first Qing emperor to rule from Beijing, lay dying of smallpox at the tender age of 24. His reign had begun when he was just five years old, following the sudden death of his father Hong Taiji in 1643. For nearly two decades, Shunzhi had nominally ruled an empire in transition, with real power often exercised by regents and his formidable mother, Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang.

Shunzhi’s health had always been fragile, and by his final months, court records describe him as emaciated and weak. When smallpox – one of the most feared diseases of the era – struck the young emperor in the first month of 1661, the imperial court prepared for the worst. Smallpox had no cure in 17th century medicine, and its victims either survived through natural immunity or succumbed to the disease’s ravages.

Three Final Acts of a Dying Emperor

Facing his mortality, Shunzhi performed three significant acts that revealed much about his personal struggles and the political tensions of his court.

First, he fulfilled his long-standing spiritual wish. The emperor had harbored a deep fascination with Buddhism and had previously attempted to abdicate and become a monk, only to be blocked by his mother. Now, five days before his death, he arranged for his favorite eunuch Wu Liangfu to take monastic vows in his stead. In a poignant ceremony, Shunzhi personally witnessed Wu’s head being shaved – a symbolic fulfillment of his own unfulfilled religious aspirations.

Second, the emperor made arrangements for his cremation. The early Qing period still practiced Manchurian funeral customs including cremation, and Shunzhi – influenced by Buddhist beliefs – specifically requested the monk Mao Xisen to perform his cremation rites. This choice held deep personal significance; Mao had previously cremated Shunzhi’s beloved consort Donggo and had once shaved the emperor’s head during an earlier monastic attempt.

Third, and most politically significant, Shunzhi dictated an extraordinary “edict of self-reproach” to the Han Chinese official Wang Xi. Unlike typical imperial testaments that glorified the reign, this document critically examined Shunzhi’s perceived failures as ruler. Historical evidence suggests Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang later altered this controversial document to serve political purposes, likely to strengthen Manchu authority during the delicate transition to a new reign.

A Mother’s Desperate Measures

Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang’s frantic efforts to save her son reveal the limits of 17th century medicine and the depth of maternal devotion. She ordered imperial physicians to exhaust all possible treatments, though contemporary medicine offered no cure for smallpox. In desperation, she issued extraordinary public health decrees banning common activities believed to aggravate smallpox – including stir-frying beans, lighting lamps, and splashing water. Following traditional beliefs that meritorious acts could influence fate, she also ordered a general amnesty of prisoners to accumulate positive karma.

These measures proved futile. On the seventh day of the first lunar month in 1661, the young emperor succumbed to the disease. His death created an immediate succession crisis for the still-fragile Qing regime, which had only completed its conquest of China proper thirteen years earlier.

The Aftermath: Sacrifice and Spectacle

The emperor’s passing prompted extraordinary displays of loyalty. Two individuals voluntarily committed suicide to accompany Shunzhi in death: Consort Zhen (a neglected imperial concubine) and Fudali, a devoted bodyguard. While the practice of live burial with rulers had been abolished in China since the Ming dynasty, voluntary殉葬 (xunzang) still occurred, particularly among Manchu nobility. The court permitted Fudali’s burial near the Eastern Qing Tombs, marking his exceptional status.

Shunzhi’s funeral became a spectacular display of imperial power and Buddhist ritual. At Jingshan Park, the emperor’s coffin was placed atop an enormous pyre before assembled officials and grieving relatives. As the monk Mao Xisen lit the funeral pyre, witnesses described extraordinary phenomena: the sound of pearls bursting like firecrackers, and multicolored flames likely caused by burning precious stones and metals interred with the emperor. These accounts, recorded in official documents, served both as testimony to the emperor’s divine status and as justification for the vast wealth consumed in the funerary rites.

The Historical Significance of Shunzhi’s Death

Shunzhi’s premature death marked a turning point in Qing history. His successor, the seven-year-old Kangxi Emperor, would go on to become one of China’s greatest rulers under the guidance of Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang and a council of regents. The controversial “edict of self-reproach,” whether authentic or modified, served to legitimize policy changes that strengthened Manchu control during this vulnerable transition.

The funeral practices surrounding Shunzhi’s death represent a fascinating cultural intersection. While maintaining Manchurian traditions like cremation, the ceremonies incorporated substantial Buddhist elements reflecting the late emperor’s personal beliefs. This syncretism would become characteristic of Qing imperial culture, which skillfully blended Manchu, Han Chinese, and Tibetan Buddhist traditions.

Modern historians view Shunzhi’s reign as a critical bridge between the Qing’s military conquest and its development as a stable dynasty governing China proper. His personal struggles with power, identity, and spirituality humanize this often-overlooked emperor, while the political maneuvering surrounding his death reveals the complex dynamics of early Qing court politics. The smallpox epidemic that claimed Shunzhi’s life continued to threaten the Qing court, ultimately leading to the development of variolation (an early form of smallpox inoculation) under the Kangxi Emperor – one of many ways in which Shunzhi’s tragic death influenced the course of Chinese history.