Nurhaci: Encyclopedia II - Nurhaci - Background

Nurhaci - Background

Being a member of the Gioro (clan) of the Suksuhu River tribe, Nurhaci also claimed descent from Mönke Timur, a Jurchen headman who lived some two centuries earlier. He named his clan Aisin Gioro around 1612, when he formally ascended the throne. In 1582 his father Taksi and grandfather Giocangga led by the Ming Dynasty General Li Chengliang, were killed in an attack on Gure (see Jianzhou Jurchens) by a rival Jurchen cheiftain Nikan Wailan. The Aisin Gioro family originated in present day North Korea. According to Chinese sources, the young man grew up as a hostage in the household of Li Chengliang in Fushun, where he became literate in Chinese.

From 1583 onwards, Nurhaci began to unify the Jurchen bands. When he was 25, he attacked Nikan Wailan to avenge the deaths of his father and grandfather, starting out with only thirteen suits of armor.

Nurhaci was the organizer of the Eight Banners, which would eventually form the backbone of the military that would dominate the Qing empire. In his later life, Nurhaci declared himself a Khan. He constructed a palace at Mukden (present-day Shenyang in Liaoning province).

In 1599, he had two of his translators, Erdeni Baksi and Gagai Jarguchi, create the written Manchu language by adapting the Mongolian alphabet.

In 1616, he founded the Jin Dynasty (aisin gurun), often called the Later Jin. The first Jin Dynasty of the eleventh century was formed by former citizens of Goguryeo, the largest of the Three Kingdoms of Korea. Jin was renamed Qing by his son Hong Taiji after his death but Nurhaci is usually referred to as the founder of the Qing Dynasty. In 1618, he commissioned a document entitled the Seven Great Vexations in which he enumerated seven grievances against the Ming and began to rebel against the Ming Dynasty.

Nurhaci led many successful engagements against the Ming Dynasty, the Koreans, the Mongols, and other Jurchen clans, greatly enlarging the territory under his control. In the first serious military defeat of his life, Nurhaci was beaten by the Ming general Yuan Chonghuan at Ningyuan. Nurhaci was wounded in the battle by Yuan's Portuguese cannon. His morale and physical self did not recover, and he died on September 30, 1626.

Nurhaci was succeeded by his eighth son, Hong Taiji, erroneously referred to as Abahai.

His posthumous name was given on 1736: Chengtian-guangyun-shengde-shengong-zhaozhi-liji-renxiao-ruiwu-duanyi-qin'an-hongwen-dingye Gao Emperor (承天廣運聖德神功肇紀立極仁孝睿武端毅欽安弘文定業高皇帝).

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Background", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki