Yongzheng Emperor

The Yongzheng Emperor (Wade-Giles: Yung-cheng Emperor; Chinese: 雍正帝; pinyin: yōngzhèngdì, Manchu: ᡥᡡᠸᠠᠯᡳᠶᠠᠰᡠᠨ ᡨᠣᠪ, Hūwaliyasun Tob hūwangdi, Mongolian: Nairalt Töv Khaan; 13 December 1678 – 8 October 1735), born Yinzhen (Wade-Giles: Yin-chen; Chinese: 胤禛; pinyin: yìnzhēn; Manchu language: ᡳᠨ ᠵᡝᠨ; Möllendorff transliteration: in jen), was the fifth emperor of the Manchu-led Qing Dynasty and the third Qing emperor from 1722 to 1735. A hard-working ruler, Yongzheng's main goal was to create an effective government at minimal expense. Like his father, the Kangxi Emperor, Yongzheng used military force to preserve the dynasty's position. Suspected by historians to have usurped the throne, his reign was known as despotic, efficient, and vigorous.

Although Yongzheng's reign was much shorter than the reigns of both his father (the Kangxi Emperor) and his son (the Qianlong Emperor), his sudden death was probably brought about by a heavy workload. Yongzheng continued an era of peace and prosperity; he cracked down on corruption and waste, and reformed the financial administration. During his reign the formulation of the Grand Council began, an institution which had an enormous impact on the future of imperial China.