Chenghua Emperor Zhu Jianshen

Timeline

1. 1447–1462Capital · North ChinaEldest son of the Yingzong Emperor, made crown prince in childhood. After the Tumu Crisis the Yingzong was captured and the Jingtai Emperor took the throne; in 1450 Jianshen was deposed to Prince of Yi and moved to the Southern Palace. In the eighth year of Jingtai the Yingzong was restored, and in the first year of Tianshun he was again made crown prince, forming a deep bond of dependence with court ladies such as Wan Zhen'er.
2. 1462–1464Capital · North ChinaIn the eighth year of Tianshun the Yingzong fell gravely ill and the crown prince began handling state affairs, gaining his first contact with court politics. Consort Wan's influence in the Eastern Palace grew steadily, foreshadowing her later dominance. By this stage Jianshen was an adult, making political and ceremonial preparations for succession.
3. 1464–1470Capital · North ChinaHe ascended the throne in January 1464, changing the era name to Chenghua. In the early years he honored Grand Empress Dowager Zhou and his birth mother Empress Dowager Qian, appointed Confucian ministers such as Shang Lu to the Grand Secretariat, and pacified the remnants of Cao and Shi factions. From 1465 he appointed Han Yong as Governor-General of the Two Guang to quell the Yao rebellion, with Xiang Zhong and others also participating in frontier defense and pacification; the court was generally stable.