Emperor Qianlong loved power as much as his life, but why did he abdicate early?

If you want to ask the oldest emperor in ancient times, it must be the Qianlong emperor of the Qing Dynasty, who lived 89 years.

He ascended the throne at the age of twenty-five, with the title "Qianlong", which means "Heaven prospers". He actually ruled the Qing Dynasty for 63 years, which was the longest time that the ancient emperor actually took power.

As we all know, the feudal monarchy was practiced in ancient times, and one monarch ruled the world. There is no fixed term. Generally, after the death of the emperor, his children inherit the throne and continue to exercise the power of the emperor.

However, Emperor Qianlong chose to abdicate voluntarily. He chose to abdicate at the age of eighty-five, and then became the emperor's father for three years. So what did the emperor's father, Gan Long, do in these three years?

Emperor Qianlong's grandfather was Emperor Kangxi, a promising emperor who made great contributions to the Qing Dynasty. When Kangxi was in power, he liked the emperor Sun Ganlong very much. Gan Long admired Kangxi except his family, and he admired Kangxi's ruling ability very much.

After Qianlong became emperor, he moved closer to Kangxi's achievements and managed very well. However, Qianlong has a great misfortune, that is, whoever becomes a prince will not live long. So after several sad things, Qianlong was very cautious about the prince.

A few years later, he even gave up the idea of establishing a prince. A.D. 1773, Qianlong was in his sixties, so he should consider building a reservoir. So, this winter, Qianlong secretly made Yan Yong the Crown Prince, wrote a secret imperial edict and hid it behind the plaque in Gan Qing Palace.

By 1778, he has been in power for forty-three years and is about to become an old man. At this time, outsiders have questioned whether Qianlong was greedy for imperial power. In the face of such doubts, Gan Long must answer "How can I be greedy?" ?

Therefore, in September of that year, Qianlong issued an imperial edict, in addition to telling the experience of establishing the reserve team, there was another sentence: "My grandfather Emperor Kangxi was in office for 6 1 year, and I dare not compare with it. If God bless me to live a long life, I will be eighty-five years old when I get to Qianlong for sixty years. I will pass on the throne and then I will retire. "

Unexpectedly, Ganlong not only lived to be sixty years old, but also was in good health. But in the face of the oath he once made in public, as the king of a country, how can he break it? He has no choice but to cash it.

So he took out the secret letter hidden behind the plaque in Gan Qing Palace and announced that "the 15th prince will inherit the throne forever".

Ganlong's move is of certain progressive significance to the historical process. Because he abdicated voluntarily, he was either persecuted or seriously ill and had to abdicate, which had never happened since the Emperor of Zhou.

But Qianlong seems to have voluntarily given up the position of emperor, but he did not give up the imperial power and still clung to it. Although he gave up the throne, he did not "retire" and still controlled state affairs. The actual ruler of this dynasty still hasn't changed hands.

After all, the emperor's power is so tempting that no one can resist its temptation. Therefore, Qianlong only fulfilled the first half of the oath and gave up the position of emperor, but did not fulfill the second half of the oath and handed over the imperial power. This is the way that Qianlong came up with after careful consideration.

After Gan Long officially announced his abdication, he also issued an "order". Although he abdicated, he still has to listen to his opinions on the appointment of military and political officials and court officials. The memorial handed in by ministers should be divided into two parts, one for Jiaqing Emperor and the other for Emperor Tai Shang Gan Long to read. In addition, he also made it clear that the newly appointed Emperor Jiaqing would accept his political instructions every day.

Officially speaking, Qianlong's birthday should be called "Long live", and Jiaqing can only be called "Long live". Visible, whether it is the actual power or etiquette specifications, Gan Long must be Gao Jiaqing.

All this implies that although he abdicated, he was still the supreme ruler of the dynasty. Emperor Jiaqing knew this very well and dared not have the slightest dissatisfaction. He is always cautious and careful everywhere.

During the Qianlong period, Ningshou Palace was built, which was magnificent and was his retirement place. However, after taking a back seat, Qianlong did not move into Ningshou Palace, but still lived in hall of mental cultivation, where the emperor lived.

His reason is that "it is a habit not to sleep for 60 years", which means that he has lived here for 60 years and is used to it. On the other hand, he thinks that as long as he lives in Yangxintang, his body will always be healthy, and it is possible to live to a hundred years old.

In addition, living in Yangxintang is also very convenient for the minister to report his work, which is also an important reason why he is unwilling to move away. Perhaps, these are just excuses for his prevarication, and the main reason is to show his position and let everyone know who is the real master of the Qing Dynasty.

Although Qianlong repeatedly said that he would immediately move out of hall of mental cultivation and go to Ningshou Palace to enjoy his old age, it was always empty talk, and it was not fulfilled until his death.

As we all know, in ancient times, there was an emperor with a title. It stands to reason that when Jiaqing inherited the great unification, the dynasty should also change its title, but the imperial court continued the title of "Qianlong" from top to bottom.

In addition, the same is true of coinage. At this time, Jiaqing Bao Tong should be circulated. However, due to the prestige of Qianlong, the Mint took a compromise approach, that is, two currencies were circulated at the same time, and "Qianlong Bao Tong" and "Jiaqing Bao Tong" were each cast in half.

For this method, Gan Long readily agreed and raised no objection. As for Emperor Jiaqing, I dare not complain. After all, if he angered his father, he might not have a good life as an "emperor" or even be abolished, so Jiaqing could only endure it.

These three years have been very hard for Emperor Jiaqing. He must report everything to the "real emperor", and all he can do as a nominal emperor is to attend some ceremonial activities, such as sacrifices and banquets.

Until the fourth year of Jiaqing, Qianlong held the emperor to make a vassal and died in hall of mental cultivation's bedroom. Jiaqing is forty years old at this time. Compared with Qianlong's accession to the throne at the age of 25, Jiaqing is really miserable.

However, the days of suffering have finally passed. From then on, Jiaqing became the real ruler of the Qing Dynasty, and a new era of the Qing Dynasty began.