A Precarious Inheritance

When the Shunzhi Emperor died in 1661, he bequeathed to his seven-year-old son Kangxi an empire both vast and vulnerable. Spanning from Manchuria to the edge of Central Asia, this newborn Qing dynasty remained politically fragile despite its military conquests. The child emperor’s reign would be guided – and challenged – by four regents whose complex rivalries reflected the tensions of a Manchu elite still adapting to ruling China.

This quartet of powerbrokers represented competing factions within the Banner system: Sonin of the Plain Yellow Banner, Suksaha of the Plain White Banner, Ebilun of the Bordered Yellow Banner, and the infamous Oboi from the same Bordered Yellow Banner. Their uneasy alliance would shape the young emperor’s formative years and ultimately determine whether the Qing could transition from warlord regime to stable dynasty.

Sonin: The Aging Lion of the Plain Yellow Banner

At the apex of the regency council stood Sonin, a living bridge to the dynasty’s founding generation. His credentials were impeccable – as a young officer he had ridden with Nurhaci himself during the early conquests. Fluent in Manchu, Mongolian and Chinese, the founder-emperor had honored him with the prestigious “Baksi” title for his scholarly achievements alongside battlefield valor.

Sonin’s defining political moment came during the 1643 succession crisis following Huangtaiji’s death. As leader of the Plain Yellow Banner, he risked open confrontation with the powerful Prince Dorgon, nearly drawing swords in council chambers to insist on Shunzhi’s succession. This loyalty came at great personal cost when Dorgon later persecuted him over minor offenses, forcing temporary exile to guard Huangtaiji’s mausoleum.

By Kangxi’s accession, the once-ferocious statesman had become a cautious elder. Now in his sixties, Sonin frequently pleaded illness to avoid court intrigues. His passive leadership created a power vacuum that younger regents would aggressively fill. Yet his mere presence maintained crucial continuity between the conquest generation and the new imperial administration.

Suksaha: The Turncoat of the Plain White Banner

If Sonin embodied continuity, Suksaha represented the treacherous currents of Manchu factionalism. His career traced an improbable arc from Dorgon’s trusted lieutenant to the prince’s chief accuser. When Shunzhi sought to posthumously disgrace his powerful uncle Dorgon in 1651, Suksaha provided the damning evidence – testifying about forbidden imperial regalia secretly buried with the prince.

This betrayal propelled Suksaha into the regency council, but left him morally compromised. Contemporary observers noted how his rapid ascent from Dorgon’s protégé to princely rank reeked of opportunism. The Plain White Banner’s resentment toward their former comrade simmered beneath the surface, waiting to boil over during the coming power struggles.

Ebilun: The Royal Kinsman and His Cursed Blade

Among the regents, Ebilun boasted the most intricate web of imperial connections. As Nurhaci’s grandson, Huangtaiji’s nephew and brother-in-law, Shunzhi’s cousin and Kangxi’s father-in-law, his blood ties to the throne were unmatched. His military record shone equally bright, having led vanguard forces during critical campaigns against Ming loyalists.

Yet history remembers Ebilun chiefly for the artifact that bears his name – the infamous Ebilun Sword. This ornate weapon, now housed in Beijing’s Palace Museum, served three times as an imperial authority symbol, most notably during the Jinchuan campaigns. Court whispers attributed sinister powers to the blade, noting how each recipient met misfortune. The Qianlong Emperor’s inscription ironically contrasted with its reputation as an omen of doom.

Oboi: The Archetypal Villain

Completing the quartet was Oboi, the Bordered Yellow Banner commander who would dominate the early regency. Unlike his cautious colleague Sonin, Oboi approached governance with warlord instincts – seizing lands, purging opponents, and treating state affairs as personal fiefdom. His粗暴 methods reflected the unvarnished martial values of the conquest generation, increasingly at odds with the civil administration needed to govern China.

Contemporary records depict Oboi’s faction eliminating rivals through show trials, including false charges against Suksaha in 1667. His heavy-handed rule provoked growing resistance from Han officials and Manchu modernizers alike, setting the stage for Kangxi’s dramatic coup in 1669 when the young emperor personally arrested him.

The Regency’s Fractured Legacy

These four men’s competing agendas mirrored the Qing dynasty’s broader tensions. Sonin’s passive conservatism, Suksaha’s precarious position, Ebilun’s court connections and Oboi’s brute force governance represented different solutions to the central challenge: how should a nomadic conquest elite adapt to governing an ancient civilization?

Kangxi’s eventual triumph over the regents marked a turning point. By outmaneuvering Oboi at age fifteen, the emperor demonstrated the political acumen that would characterize his 61-year reign. The regency period’s turbulent politics provided the young ruler with invaluable lessons in statecraft, preparing him to unify the empire’s fractious elements into what became China’s last imperial golden age.

The Ebilun Sword still resting in the Forbidden City serves as an apt metaphor – a relic of violent conquest transformed into a museum piece, much like the Qing itself would eventually transition from warlord regime to sophisticated bureaucracy under Kangxi’s steady hand.