Brief: This article covers the tyrannical rule of eunuch Wei Zhongxian in the late Ming. He manipulated the carpentry-obsessed Tianqi Emperor, formed the pro-eunuch faction, and brutally suppressed the reformist Donglin Party. Officials were persecuted and killed, plunging the court into terror and accelerating the Ming’s decline.
The Turbulent Succession of the Ming Throne
Emperor Wanli of the Ming Dynasty reigned for forty-eight years. When he died, his crown prince Zhu Changluo was nearly forty years old. Zhu Changluo ascended the throne as Emperor Taichang, with the reign title Taichang. No one expected that he would fall seriously ill less than a month after becoming emperor. Unable to establish a crown prince in time, he had to entrust his eldest son Zhu Youxiao to his ministers before passing away. The fifteen-year-old Zhu Youxiao was escorted by the ministers to the throne, becoming Emperor Xizong of the Ming Dynasty, with the reign title Tianqi.
The Fierce Party Struggles in the Court
At this time, the ministers in the court were divided into many factions, and the party struggles intensified again. Judging from the history we have talked about before, party struggles were never a good omen. Since the Wanli reign of the Ming Dynasty, party struggles have become more and more rampant. Officials from the same region often formed a party, such as the Zhe Party, Qi Party, Chu Party, Qin Party, Xuan Party, Kun Party, etc. Among them, the largest group was called the “Donglin Party”.
The earliest leader of the Donglin Party was Gu Xiancheng. During the “Dispute over the Imperial Heir”, he supported Zhu Changluo as the crown prince, which made Emperor Wanli unhappy and dismissed him from office. Gu Xiancheng returned to his hometown Wuxi, discussed with his younger brother Gu Yuncheng, restored the famous Donglin Academy in the local area, and invited several good friends such as Gao Panlong to give lectures at the Donglin Academy and hold regular gatherings. The people who came were all talented but frustrated literati. When they got together, they said they were studying knowledge, but more often they commented on current affairs and criticized the court politics, daring to say anything. Many officials also interacted with them. As their fame grew, others called them the “Donglin Party”.
The Beliefs and Shortcomings of the Donglin Party
The Donglin Party members believed that being an official meant caring about the sufferings of the people, reducing the burden on the people, and reforming the corrupt court politics. Literati should also fulfill their responsibilities and offer suggestions for the prosperity of the country. Gu Xiancheng also wrote a couplet and pasted it at the gate of the academy: “The sound of wind, rain and reading enters the ears; the affairs of the family, the country and the world are all concerned.” In the years when Emperor Wanli sent mining supervisors and tax envoys, the Donglin Party members took the lead in opposing it. Li Sancai, who directly criticized the emperor, was a member of the Donglin Party. For this reason, Emperor Wanli hated the Donglin Party very much, but the literati at the lower level liked them very much.
However, like other factions, the Donglin Party members also liked to form cliques and set boundaries. They were close to those who agreed with them; they excluded and attacked those who did not, without thinking about the consequences of doing so. Other small parties were also like this—after all, if you came to power, I would be unlucky; if I held power, you would leave. After Emperor Wanli’s death, because the Donglin Party had always supported Crown Prince Zhu Changluo, they were reused by Emperor Taichang. Emperor Taichang soon died, and Emperor Xizong, influenced by his father, also liked to use the Donglin Party. In this way, not only the Grand Secretariat, but also various ministries and courts were in the hands of the Donglin Party members. Logically, the Donglin Party members should have set about reforming and doing something to convince everyone. Instead, they were busy seizing positions and driving out those who were not on their side. Whoever did not obey would be punished. As a result, the small parties hated them and wanted to compete with the Donglin Party. Seeing that the emperor liked the Donglin Party, they always wanted to find someone who could influence the emperor as their backer. Soon, such a person really appeared—that was the eunuch Wei Zhongxian.
Wei Zhongxian: From a Rogue to a Powerful Eunuch
Wei Zhongxian was originally a rascal in the countryside. After marrying and having a daughter, he still did not mend his ways, gambling and making trouble all day long. Later, he couldn’t pay his debts and was chased and beaten. In a fit of anger, he castrated himself (cut off his genitals) and became an eunuch. He was assigned to serve Zhu Youxiao in the palace. Although he could not read many characters, he knew some martial arts and understood the tricks of folk entertainment. Zhu Youxiao was also fond of playing since childhood and did not like reading. Wei Zhongxian taught him to walk dogs, ride horses, shoot arrows and play with women, which made the child very happy. When Zhu Youxiao became emperor, Wei Zhongxian became the most trusted eunuch. Even Ke Shi, Emperor Xizong’s wet nurse, took a fancy to him.
Emperor Xizong lost his biological mother when he was a child, and his father Zhu Changluo did not care about him. He was raised and taken care of by his wet nurse. He first drank Ke Shi’s milk, and later was served by her morning and evening, never leaving her for more than ten years. In his eyes, his wet nurse was just like his own mother. After becoming emperor, according to the rules, Ke Shi should be dismissed. But Emperor Xizong was used to relying on her and felt uncomfortable without seeing her for a day. He still let her enter the palace during the day and go back at night, and also conferred the title of “Madam Fengsheng” on her. Ke Shi then became arrogant, giving orders and meddling in everything, more powerful than the empress and concubines. Every night when she went out of the palace to go home (in Fengsheng Hutong, Xicheng, Beijing), she had to take an eight-carried sedan chair, with people kneeling to send her off, and the streets had to be sealed off. At that time, in the palace, every maid had a lover eunuch to help each other in case of trouble and eat together, which was called “duishi” (literally “pair eating”). Ke Shi took a fancy to Wei Zhongxian, and the two became a pair. If Ke Shi wanted to punish any concubine, Wei Zhongxian would avenge her. Ke Shi was also unambiguous, always speaking well of him in front of the emperor.
Seizing Power: Wei Zhongxian Takes Control of the Court
Emperor Xizong wanted to find a writing eunuch to write comments on the ministers’ memorials. Ke Shi mentioned Wei Zhongxian and said: “This is a loyal person, let him do it.” Emperor Xizong really agreed, not thinking that Wei Zhongxian could not read many characters, how could he write? Wei Zhongxian was not afraid. He had already intimidated several eunuchs who could write, letting them write and read for him. How to deal with things was all up to his word. Did Emperor Xizong not care about this? It turned out that this emperor had been fond of carpentry since childhood, and he still did it after becoming the Son of Heaven, sawing and planing every day, making models according to the palaces, and not caring about state affairs at all. Wei Zhongxian took advantage of his busyness to send the documents. How could Emperor Xizong have the mood to read them? He waved his hand and said: “Didn’t you see I’m busy here? I already know everything, go and do your work well!” Soon after, he also made Wei Zhongxian the leader of the Eastern Depot. In this way, Wei Zhongxian took charge of both civil and military power, daring to make any decision by himself, and the power of the country was held by such an eunuch.
The Formation of the Eunuch Party
The court officials who competed with the Donglin Party saw that Wei Zhongxian had become powerful, and swarmed to him like flies. Needless to say, those who gave gifts and money, flattered and curried favor, there was also an upsurge of recognizing godfathers. Wei Zhongxian accepted everyone who wanted to be his godson, and thus had many godsons, all of whom were officials. A minister named Gu Bingqian, who was old, also wanted to recognize a godfather. He took his son to see Wei Zhongxian, knelt down and said: “I originally wanted to be your adopted son, but I was afraid you would not like an old man with white beard, so let my son be your god-grandson!” Wei Zhongxian immediately appointed this god-grandson as an official and let Gu Bingqian enter the Grand Secretariat as the Grand Secretary. Wei Guangwei, a member of the Grand Secretariat, had the same surname as Wei Zhongxian, so he simply recognized him as a member of the family, first calling himself “clan brother”, then lowering his generation to call himself “nephew”. Every secret report was written with “Grand Secretariat Family Report”. Hanlin Feng Quan learned that Wei Zhongxian’s ex-wife was also surnamed Feng, so he quickly recognized her as a clansman and thus entered the Grand Secretariat. These people who jointly excluded the Donglin Party soon drove out all the Donglin Party members, and they controlled the Grand Secretariat. Everyone said it was the “Wei Family Grand Secretaries”. Later, when they harmed others, it was these Grand Secretariat members who acted as advisors and wrote official documents for Wei Zhongxian.
The Grand Secretariat became Wei Zhongxian’s confidants, and the officials of the various ministries below also competed to be his disciples and grandchildren, too many to count. What people remembered were the Five Tigers, Five Tigers, Ten Dogs, Ten Boys, and Forty Grandsons. From these titles, we can tell that they were all thugs and accomplices. Seeing the court like this, many local officials also curried favor and became Wei Zhongxian’s lackeys and minions, forming a huge gang. Because the biggest leader was an eunuch, everyone called these people who defected to Wei Zhongxian the “Eunuch Party” (eunuchs are also called eunuchs; eunuch: yān). From the beginning, the Eunuch Party took the Donglin Party members as their mortal enemies.
The Confrontation: Donglin Party’s Impeachment and Eunuch Party’s Retaliation
The Donglin Party saw that nothing good would come of this. Censor Yang Lian submitted a memorial, listing twenty-four crimes of Wei Zhongxian. He said: “Nowadays, whether in the palace or the government, whether it is a major event or a minor matter, it is Wei Zhongxian who has the final say. The emperor has become a figurehead, and he has become the real power. How can the country go on like this!” Others followed suit and impeached Wei the Eunuch. Wei Zhongxian saw the memorial first, ran to Emperor Xizong, and let someone read one charge and he refuted one, saying: “What crime have I committed? They are all spreading rumors, there is no such thing.” Ke Shi also interjected: “Isn’t this framing a good person? Damn it!” Emperor Xizong got annoyed and said: “How come the affairs of the inner palace are known outside? This Yang Lian really needs to be well disciplined.” As a result, several leaders of the Donglin Party, including Yang Lian and Zuo Guangdou, were dismissed from office. The Eunuch Party gained power and wanted to kill them.
Blacklists and Brutal Persecution
Wang Shaohui, Minister of Personnel, spent a lot of time compiling a blacklist of the Donglin Party called “Donglin Point General Record”, which included all the key figures of the Donglin Party. He also gave them nicknames and rankings according to the way the Liangshan heroes were ranked in “Water Margin”. The first place was “Donglin Founding Marshal, Tota Heavenly King Li Tiancai”, followed by “Two Leaders of the General Military Department: Tiankui Star Hugongyi Ye Xianggao, Tiangang Star Jade Qilin Zhao Nanxing”, etc., a total of 109 people. After compiling it, he showed it to Wei the Eunuch. Wei Zhongxian was very happy when he saw it and said: “With the list, it will be easy to handle. Minister Wang’s pen contains wind, snow, swords and swords, he is really a living treasure of my family!” He also showed it to Emperor Xizong. After this, the shameless literati all imitated and made blacklists, such as “Donglin Comrade Record”, “Huo Huai Feng Jiang Record”, “Hundred Officials Chart”, “Donglin Native Place”, “Donglin Clique Record”, “Dao Bing Donglin Huo”, and many more. The Eunuch Party arrested and convicted people according to these made-up lists.
Wei Zhongxian first ordered the arrest of Wan Jing, a Langzhong (Imperial Attendant Official) of the Ministry of Works who impeached him, and gave him a hundred court floggings. The Tiji (red-clothed soldiers, here referring to the thugs of the Eastern Depot) of the Eastern Depot went to Wan Jing’s house, grabbed his hair, kicked and beat him, and dragged him to the Meridian Gate. He was already covered in injuries. After the court floggings, he was only breathing and died a few days later. To find evidence of crimes against Yang Lian and Zuo Guangdou, the Eunuch Party arrested Wang Wenyan, an official who had a good relationship with them, and forced him to say that Yang and Zuo had accepted bribes and colluded with the enemy. Wang Wenyan was a tough man and refused to say anything. Xu Xianchun (one of the Five Tigers), who was in charge of the trial, simply stopped the trial. After fabricating a false confession, he beat Wang Wenyan to death. Then, the Eunuch Party officials submitted memorials one after another, all in the same tone, exposing Yang, Zuo and others. Wei Zhongxian ordered the arrest of six Donglin Party members: Yang Lian, Zuo Guangdou, Zhou Chaorui, Wei Dazhong, Gu Dazhang, and Yuan Huazhong (historically known as the “First Six Gentlemen”), and interrogated them severely.
The Tragedy of the Six Gentlemen and the Seven Gentlemen
In fact, it was not an interrogation at all. The crime had already been determined—that was the false confession. The witness was dead, so there was no way to cross-examine. The interrogation was just torture to force death. The Six Gentlemen were stripped naked in the prison and tortured naked, suffering all kinds of torture: instruments of torture, shackles, sticks, zan (a kind of torture tool), and clamps. Within a few days, they were all beaten to pieces, covered in blood, with no good place on their bodies, and their flesh was rotten. Gu Dazhang couldn’t stand it and committed suicide by hitting his head. The other five were all killed by torture. Yang Lian was crushed to death with a soil bag, and a nail was pierced through his ear. After Zuo Guangdou was subjected to roasting (a kind of torture), his facial features were burned, and the bones and tendons on his legs were split. When Xu Xianchun saw someone die, he would cut off their Adam’s apple with a knife, put it in a small box, and send it to Wei Zhongxian as a token. Killing people was like playing a game.
After these six people were killed, the Eunuch Party drew up another list of Donglin Party members who opposed them. Among them were seven people: Zhou Qiyuan, Zhou Shunchang, Gao Panlong, Miao Changqi, Zhou Zongjian, Li Yingsheng, and Huang Zunsu (historically known as the “Later Seven Gentlemen”). This time, there was no need for any evidence or false confession—only one rule: whoever opposed Wei Zhongxian was guilty and deserved to be killed or dismembered. These seven people had all exposed Wei the Eunuch and were not on good terms with the Eunuch Party, so they deserved to be imprisoned. The Tiji of the Eastern Depot received the order and immediately set off to arrest people. Unexpectedly, when they arrived in Suzhou, they encountered a tough resistance. The people of Suzhou were all enraged.
Note
Wei Zhongxian
The most powerful and tyrannical eunuch in Ming history. He controlled the teenage Tianqi Emperor, seized state power, persecuted the Donglin Party, and established a brutal eunuch dictatorship.
Emperor Xizong (Tianqi Emperor)
Young, incompetent ruler who loved carpentry more than governing. He gave all power to Wei Zhongxian and his wet nurse.
Ke Shi (Madam Fengsheng)
The emperor’s wet nurse. She was arrogant, formed a political alliance with Wei Zhongxian, and dominated the palace.
Gu Xiancheng
Founder of the Donglin Party. He established Donglin Academy and advocated scholars should care about state affairs.
Yang Lian & Zuo Guangdou
Top leaders of the Donglin Party. They courageously impeached Wei Zhongxian and were tortured to death in prison (the “First Six Gentlemen”).
Xu Xianchun
Head of the Eastern Depot under Wei Zhongxian. He was one of the “Five Tigers” who brutally tortured and killed Donglin officials.
Gao Panlong, Zhou Shunchang
Famous Donglin scholars killed in the second wave of persecution (the “Later Seven Gentlemen”).
Donglin Party
A group of honest scholar‑officials who advocated clean government, opposed corruption and eunuch power. Their motto: “The sounds of wind, rain, and reading fill my ears; the affairs of family, state, and world fill my heart.”
Eunuch Faction (Yan Dang)
Officials, eunuchs, and thugs who submitted to Wei Zhongxian. They included the “Five Tigers, Ten Dogs, Ten Boys, Forty Grandsons” – a gang of cruel followers.
Rise of Wei Zhongxian
A former gambler who castrated himself, became the emperor’s favorite, and seized control of the Eastern Depot (secret police).
Impeachment of Wei Zhongxian
Yang Lian listed 24 crimes of Wei. Instead of being punished, Wei retaliated with mass arrests and torture.
Persecution of the Donglin Party
Wei used blacklists (like Donglin Point General Record) to arrest, torture, and kill Donglin members. Many died horribly in prison.
Uprising in Suzhou
People in Suzhou revolted against Wei’s thugs who came to arrest Zhou Shunchang, showing public anger against the eunuch tyranny.
Eastern Depot (Dongchang)
Eunuch‑led secret police used to spy on, arrest, and torture officials and civilians.
Duishi (Pair Eating)
A close partnership between a eunuch and a palace maid, like a common‑law marriage.
Donglin Academy
Famous academy in Wuxi where the Donglin Party gathered to discuss politics and reform.
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