Zhengde Emperor - Legacy

Legacy

Though bred to be a successful ruler, Zhengde thoroughly neglected his duties, beginning a dangerous trend that would plague future Ming emperors. The abandonment of official duties to pursue personal gratification would slowly lead to the rise of powerful eunuchs that would dominate and eventually ruin the Ming dynasty.

However, more modern historians have come to view his reign in a new light and debate that his actions along with that of his successors such as Wanli were a direct reaction to the bureaucratic gridlock that affected the Ming in its later half. The emperors were very limited in their policy decision and could not really implement any sort of lasting effective reforms despite the obvious need, while they were faced with constant pressure and were expected to be responsible for all the troubles the dynasty faced. As a result, the ministers became increasingly frustrated and disillusioned about their posts, and protested in different forms of what is essentially an imperial strike. Thus emperors like Zhengde snuck out of the palace while emperors like Jiajing and Wanli simply didn't show up at court.