Was there a brocade guard in the Qing Dynasty? Yes, but it was changed by Shunzhi

Mondo History Updated on 2024-02-22

Jin Yiwei The Ming Dynasty fell in 1644 AD, and the Qing Dynasty of the Ming Dynasty followed many of the systems of the Ming Dynasty, so did the Jin Yiwei, which had been active in the Ming Dynasty, continue in the Qing Dynasty? The answer is yes, but it was later changed by Emperor Shunzhi.

Many people think that after the fall of the Ming Dynasty, the Jinyiwei also disappeared, but in fact, there were still Jinyiwei in the Qing Dynasty. After the Qing Dynasty entered the Central Plains, many policies and systems were imitated by the Ming Dynasty, and the Jinyiwei, which was quite famous in the Ming Dynasty, was also retained by the Qing Dynasty. However, the difference is that the Jinyi Wei of the Qing Dynasty existed for a short time, only for one year. That is, in the second year of Shunzhi (1645 AD), Emperor Fulin of Shunzhi changed a name to Jinyiwei.

Emperor Shunzhi renamed Jinyiwei as Luan Yiwei, and like the commander of Jinyiwei in the Ming Dynasty, the head of Luan Yiwei was also a military general trusted by the emperor, and he was also a first-class military general of the Manchu people. Of course, the duties of the Luan Yiwei have become a little different from the Ming Dynasty Jinyi Guard. The main duties of the Jinyi Guard of the Ming Dynasty at that time were to serve as the emperor's guard of honor, collect intelligence, arrest, interrogation, etc. In the Qing Dynasty, the main duty of the Luan Honor Guard became to be in charge of the chariot and honor guard of the emperor and empress.

At first glance, it seems that Luan Yiwei manages a trivial matter, but in fact, it is not, because the guard of honor in charge of the emperor and empress's chariot is not only responsible for the honor guard of the emperor and empress, but also needs to protect the safety of the emperor and empress, and the safety of the emperor and empress is precisely the top priority. This can also explain why the head of Luan Yiwei is a first-class military general trusted by the emperor, and he must be a Manchu nobleman.

Therefore, it shows that the Jinyiwei of the dynasty did not completely disappear in the Qing Dynasty, but became another institution. Of course, from the perspective of the scope of duties, the Luan Yiwei of the Qing Dynasty cannot be compared with the Jinyi Guard of the Ming Dynasty. However, Emperor Shunzhi's change and adjustment is also a clear choice, although it shows that Chaojin Yiwei has a large scope of responsibility and management, and there are many things to do. But this also caused the power of Jinyiwei to be too large, and for a considerable period of time, Jinyiwei relied on his power to do a lot of things that caused chaos in the government, and this is also a reason why the Ming Dynasty later set up the East Factory, the purpose is to check and balance Jinyiwei.

Now it seems that Emperor Shunzhi's change of Jinyiwei's name at that time was not just to change the name, but the greater consideration may be to redivide the power and responsibilities of the institutions and departments, and also to prevent the Ming Dynasty Jinyiwei from disrupting the government and politics in the Qing Dynasty again.

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