Kangxi Emperor - Disputed Succession

Disputed Succession

The matter of Kangxi's will is one of the "Four Greatest Mysteries of the Qing Dynasty". To this day, whom Kangxi chose as his successor is still a topic of debate amongst historians: on the face of things, he chose Yinzhen, the fourth prince, who later became the Yongzheng Emperor, and indeed there is strong evidence that this is correct. However many have claimed that Yinzhen forged the will, and that in reality the 14th prince Yinti, had been chosen as the successor.

Kangxi's first spouse, Empress Xiaochengren, gave birth to his second surviving son Yinreng, who at the age of two was named crown prince, a Han Chinese custom, to ensure stability during a time of chaos in the south. Although Kangxi left the education of several of his sons to others, he personally oversaw the upbringing of Yinreng, intending to groom him into a perfect heir. Yinreng was tutored by the mandarin Wang Shan, who remained devoted to him, and spent the later years of his life trying to persuade Kangxi to restore Yinreng as the crown prince.

Yinreng did not prove himself to be worthy of the succession despite his father showing favoritism towards him. He was said to have beaten and killed his subordinates, and was alleged to have had sexual relations with one of his father's concubines, which was deemed as incest and a capital offence. Yinreng also purchased young children from Jiangsu to satisfy his pedophiliac pleasure. In addition, Yinreng's supporters, led by Songgotu, gradually formed a "Crown Prince Party" (太子黨), that aimed to help Yinreng get the throne as soon as possible, even if it meant using unlawful methods.

Over the years, Kangxi kept constant watch over Yinreng and became aware of his son's many flaws, while their relationship gradually deteriorated. In 1707, Kangxi decided that he could no longer tolerate Yinreng's behavior, which he partially mentioned in the imperial edict as "too embarrassing to be spoken of", and decided to strip Yinreng off his position as crown prince. Kangxi placed his oldest surviving son, Yinzhi, in charge of overseeing Yinreng's house arrest. However, Yinzhi attempted to sabotage Yinreng numerous times and requested for his father to order Yinreng's execution. Kangxi was enraged and stripped Yinzhi of his titles. Kangxi advised his subjects to stop debating about the succession issue, and despite attempts to reduce rumours and speculation as to who the new crown prince might be, the imperial court's daily activities were disrupted. Apart from that, Yinzhi's actions also caused Kangxi to suspect that Yinreng might have been framed, hence Kangxi restored Yinreng as crown prince in 1709, with the support of the 4th and 13th princes, and on the excuse that Yinreng had previously acted under the influence of mental illness.

In 1712, during Kangxi's last inspection tour to the south, Yinreng, who was put in charge of state affairs during his father's absence, tried to vie for power again with his supporters. He allowed an attempt at forcing Kangxi to abdicate when his father returned to Beijing. However, Kangxi received news of the planned coup d'etat, and was so angry that he deposed Yinreng and placed him under house arrest again. After the incident, Kangxi announced that he would not appoint any of his sons as crown prince for the remainder of his reign. He stated that he would place his Imperial Valedictory Will inside a box in the Palace of Heavenly Purity, which will only be opened after his death.