Royals › Empress / Consort
Empress Xiaoxianchun
First empress of the Qianlong emperor, sister of Fuheng, who lost two sons in childhood and died aboard the imperial boat at Dezhou in 1748
In a spring palace garden, a pavilion with round windows stands over a pond of goldfish; a peony-painted round fan, a zither and a lacquer box of pearl hairpins lie in the foreground, and one small figure in a long-sleeved gown stands at the far end of a covered walkway.
Also known as Fucha Shi · Xiao Xian
- Roles
- Empress / Consort
Empress Xiaoxianchun, of the Fuca clan, was the daughter of Lirongboo, commandant of the Chahar, and an elder sister of the grand secretary Fuheng; born in 1712, she was married in 1727 to Hongli, fourth son of the Yongzheng emperor, as his principal wife. After Hongli became the Qianlong emperor she was installed as empress in January 1738. The Draft History of Qing (Qingshigao) says she lived frugally and wore flowers of pith and velvet in her hair instead of pearls and jade. Her son Yonglian, secretly chosen as heir, died at nine, and a second son, Yongcong, died at two; only her daughter, Princess Hejing, grew up. In the spring of 1748 she went with the emperor on his eastern tour to Confucius's grave at Qufu and to Mount Tai, and died on the return journey aboard the imperial boat at Dezhou, aged thirty-seven by Chinese reckoning. Qianlong gave her the name Xiaoxian, which she had once said she wished for, and wrote a lament for her.
Life and times
Dates 1712 CE–1748 CE