Kangxi Emperor, << kahng shee >> (1654-1722), was the emperor of China from 1661 until 1722. His reign was the longest of any emperor in Chinese history. Kangxi ruled during a prosperous time in the Qing (Pure) dynasty (1644-1912). A dynasty is a series of rulers from the same family. Kangxi became known as one of China’s greatest leaders.
The Manchu people of Manchuria—a region in China now called the Northeast—conquered China and established the Qing dynasty in 1644. Kangxi, called Xuanye as a boy, was born in Beijing in 1654. His father was the Shunzhi Emperor.
Young Xuanye succeeded to the throne in 1661, after his father’s death. The name Kangxi, meaning Peaceful Harmony, was then selected as the name for the period of his reign. He is, therefore, known as the Kangxi Emperor. Four regents ruled China during Kangxi’s childhood. A regent is a person who leads when a rightful ruler is too young or cannot carry out the responsibilities of government. The regents often struggled over power. In 1667, at the age of 13, Kangxi took control of the country.
Early on, Kangxi’s chief task was the consolidation of the empire. In 1673, warlords in three southern provinces rose up in the Revolt of the Three Feudatories. In 1681, after years of bloody warfare, the emperor’s forces defeated the warlords. With China firmly under control, Kangxi soon annexed (attached) Taiwan. He made a treaty with Russia that secured China’s northern border. He then annexed parts of Mongolia. He also was able to establish some Qing influence over the government of Tibet.
Kangxi opened a number of ports to foreign trade. He also welcomed missionaries into Beijing. Kangxi began a series of projects to ease flooding along China’s largest rivers. He also made great efforts to learn the arts, customs, and religions of China’s ethnic groups. Kangxi commissioned a dictionary of Chinese characters called the Kangxi Dictionary; a massive encyclopedia; and a collection of poems written during the Tang dynasty (618-907).
Kangxi died in December 1722. He was buried at the Jingling Mausoleum outside Beijing. The mausoleum is part of the Imperial Tombs of the Ming and Qing Dynasties, a World Heritage Site. Such sites are places of unique cultural importance, as designated by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
