The Qing dynasty (1644–1912) of China developed a complicated peerage system for imperial and noble ranks.
Rule of inheritance
In principle, titles were downgraded one grade for each generation of inheritance.
Direct imperial princes with the Eight Privileges were downgraded for four generations, after which the title could be inherited without further diminution. Direct imperial princes without the Eight Privileges were downgraded until the rank of feng'en jiangjun, which then became perpetual. Cadet line imperial princes and lords were downgraded until they reached feng'en jiangjun, which could be further inherited three times before the title expired completely. For non-imperial peers, the title could be downgraded to en jiwei before becoming perpetually heritable.
Occasionally, a peer could be granted the privilege of shixi wangti (; "perpetual heritability"), which allowed the title to be passed down without downgrading. Throughout the Qing dynasty, there were 12 imperial princely families that had this privilege. They were known as the "iron-cap princes".
The noble titles were inherited through a system of loose primogeniture: the eldest son from the peer's first wife was usually the heir apparent, but inheritance by a younger son, a son of a concubine, or a brother of the peer was not uncommon. According to his birth (by the chief consort, a secondary consort, or a concubine) and his father's rank, a non-heir son of an imperial prince was also entitled to petition for a lower title than the one he would have received had he been the heir. Non-heir sons of other peers were also occasionally granted lower titles.
Whether imperial or not, the inheritance or bestowal was never automatic, and had to be approved by the Emperor, the Ministry of Personnel, or the Imperial Clan Court. Imperial princes, upon reaching adulthood at the age of 20, had to pass tests in horse-riding, archery and the Manchu language before they were eligible for titles. Imperial princesses, other than the Emperor's daughters, were usually granted titles upon marriage, regardless of age. Princesses' titles were also usually fixed after they were granted, and were not affected by changes in their fathers' noble ranks.
Grading system Yunjiwei ("sub-commander of the cloud cavalry") was originally a military rank created in the Sui dynasty, but it was later turned into a military honour in the Tang dynasty as part of the xun guan () system. The Qing dynasty abolished the separate military honour system and merged it into the nobility rank system, using yunjiwei as the lowest grantable rank of nobility, and the basic unit of rank progression.
For example, a yunjiwei who received another grant of yunjiwei became a jiduwei. A first-class duke plus yunjiwei was the equivalent of 23 grants of yunjiwei.
Official rank (pin) The Qing dynasty, much like previous dynasties, used an "official rank" system (). This system had nine numbered ranks, each subdivided into upper and lower levels, in addition to the lowest "unranked" rank: from upper first pin (), to lower ninth pin (), to the unranked (), for a total of 19 ranks. All government personnel, from the highest chancellors to the lowest clerk, held an official rank ex officio, which determined their salary, uniform, privileges and order of precedence.
This pin system existed in parallel to the noble ranks detailed in this article. Many higher noble titles ranked above this system (). And while some titles corresponded to a pin, they were considered equivalents of convenience rather than actual official ranks.
Titular names Historically, Chinese noble titles were usually created with a shiyi (; fief) each, although the fief could be only nominal. The Hongwu Emperor of the Ming dynasty enfeoffed cadet branch princes and other nobles in different regions of China. The Qing dynasty ended this tradition; with only a few exceptions, no fief was ever named. No Qing prince was enfeoffed with territory. Instead, noble titles were created without a name, or were bestowed a meihao (; titular name). These names were usually descriptive of the peer's merit, virtue, or the circumstances leading to his ennoblement. The Dukes Yansheng kept their traditional fief in Shandong under Qing rule.
Titular names were unique for imperial princes, while non-imperial peers' titular names may overlap. Following Ming dynasty tradition, single-character names were reserved for qinwangs, while junwangs used two-character names. All other peers normally had two-character names, but could receive up to four characters.
Since noble titles were primarily awarded for military service, the titular names predominantly described martial virtues, e.g., zhongyong gong (; "loyal and brave duke"). However, a particularly common titular name was cheng'en gong (; "duke who receives grace"), which was frequently granted to the Empress's family members.
Imperial clan
Eight Privileges At the top of the imperial hierarchy, the highest six ranks enjoyed the "Eight Privileges" (; jakūn ubu). These privileges were:
Promotional books inscribed on jade, set of seals for correspondence, red carriage wheels, purple horse reins, right for reported entry, red walls of the residence, use of corner lanterns, use of leopard tail guns. Precious stones on the mandarin hat crests, clothes with encircled dragon patterns, use of imperial porcelain tea sets, purple reins, red wheels, doornails on the gate, employment of guards. Finials on mandarin hats embellished with precious stones, use of two-eyed peacock feather, surcoats with encircled dragon patterns, purple reins, right to enter the imperial palace by horse, leopard tail guns, separate manor in the capital, employment of officials and eunuchs.
Peacock feathers, however, were prohibited for princes above the rank of beizi and direct imperial clansmen. The "Eight Privileges" entitled the prince to participate in state councils and share the spoils of war. However, the prince was also bound to reside in the capital and render service to the imperial court. In 1816, the princes were forbidden from reporting matters via eunuchs. Thus, most of the princes employed officials as managers of domestic affairs. The range of tasks of those officials included conveyance of memorials on behalf of the prince. The supervisor of princely manor held lower fourth rank in the nine pin system.
Male members Heshuo qinwang ( hošo-i cin wang; ; ), commonly simplified to qinwang, translated as "Prince of the First Rank" or "Prince of the Blood". "Heshuo" ("hošo") means "four corners, four sides" in Manchu. Shizi (; šidzi), meaning "heir son", refers to the heir apparent to a qinwang. Duoluo junwang ( doro-i giyūn wang; ; ), commonly simplified to junwang, translated as "Prince of the Second Rank" or "Prince of a Commandery". Zhangzi (; jangdzi), meaning "eldest son" or "chief son", refers to the heir apparent to a junwang. Duoluo beile ( doro-i beile; ; ), means "lord", "prince" or "chief" in Manchu, commonly simplified to beile, and translated as "Prince of the Third Rank", "Venerable Prince", or "Venerable Lord". "Duoluo" ("doro") means "virtue, courtesy, propriety" in Manchu. It was usually granted to the son of a qinwang or junwang. As beile is the best known Manchu, non-Chinese title, it is commonly used to refer to all Manchu princes. Gushan beizi ( gūsa-i beise; ; ), commonly simplified to beizi, and translated as "Prince of the Fourth Rank", "Banner Prince" or "Banner Lord". "Gushan" ("gūsai") means "banner" in Manchu, a reference to any of the Eight Banners. "Beizi" ("beise") is the plural form of "beile", but since 1636, "beile" and "beizi" were used to refer to two different ranks of nobility.
The four ranks above were granted solely to direct male-line descendants of the Emperor. These titles below were granted to cadet lines of the imperial clan.
Feng'en zhenguo gong ( kesi-be tuwakiyara gurun-be dalire gung; ; ), translated as "Duke Who Receives Grace and Guards the State", simplified to "Duke Who Guards the State", also translated as "Defender Duke by Grace" or "Duke of the First Rank". Feng'en fuguo gong ( kesi-be tuwakiyara gurun-de aisilara gung; ; ), translated as "Duke Who Receives Grace and Assists the State", simplified to "Duke Who Assists the State", also translated as "Bulwark Duke by Grace" or "Duke of the Second Rank".
The above six ranks are titles that enjoy the "Eight Privileges". The titles below do not enjoy the "Eight Privileges" and have no imperial duties.
Burubafen zhenguo gong ( jakūn ubu-de dosimbuhakū gurun-be dalire gung; ; ), translated as "Duke Without the Eight Privileges Who Guards the State", also translated as "Lesser Defender Duke" or "Duke of the Third Rank". Burubafen fuguo gong ( jakūn ubu-de dosimbuhakū gurun-be aisilara gung; ; ), translated as "Duke Without the Eight Privileges Who Assists the State", also translated as "Lesser Bulwark Duke" or "Duke of the Fourth Rank".
All of the above titles are chaopin (), outranking official ranks. The ranks below are ranked first to fourth pin respectively. The first three jiangjun ranks are each further subdivided into four classes: first class plus yunjiwei, first class, second class, and third class.
Zhenguo jiangjun (; gurun be dalire janggin; ; ), translated as "General Who Guards the State", "Defender General", or "(Hereditary) General of the First Rank". Fuguo jiangjun (; gurun de aisilara janggin; ; ), translated as "General Who Assists the State", "Bulwark General", or "(Hereditary) General of the Second Rank". Fengguo jiangjun (; gurun be tuwakiyara janggin; ), translated as "General Who Receives the State", "Supporter General", or "(Hereditary) General of the Third Rank". Feng'en jiangjun (; kesi-be tuwakiyara janggin; ), translated as "General Who Receives Grace", "General by Grace", or "(Hereditary) General of the Fourth Rank". This rank has no sub-classes. This title is not granted per se, but were given to heirs of fengguo jiangjuns.
Regardless of title and rank, an imperial prince was addressed as "A-ge" (; age; ), which means "lord" or "commander" in Manchu.
Comparison of imperial titles for male members +TitleTitle equivalentTitle of vassal stateClassSubclass Emperor Above ranks None Crown Prince Khan Prince of the First Rank Prince of the Second Rank Shizi Prince of the Third Rank Zhangzi Prince of the Fourth Rank Prince Consort of the First Rank Duke of the First Rank Prince Consort of the Second Rank Duke of the Second Rank Duke of the Third RankJasagh Taiji/Tabunang Duke of the Fourth Rank General of the First Rank Taiji/Tabunang 1 1–3 General of the Second Rank 2 1–3 General of the Third Rank 3 1–3 General of the Fourth Rank 4 1–3
Female members
The following titles were granted to female members of the imperial clan:
Gulun gongzhu (; gurun-i gungju), translated as "Princess of the Empire" or "Princess of the First Rank". It was usually granted to a princess born to the empress. "Gulun" means "all under Heaven" in Manchu. Heshuo gongzhu (; hošo-i gungju), translated as "Princess of the State" or "Princess of the Second Rank". It was usually granted to a princess born to a consort. "Heshuo" ("hošo") means "four corners, four sides" in Manchu. Junzhu (; hošo-i gege), translated as "Princess of a Commandery" or "Princess of the Third Rank". It was usually granted to the daughter of a qinwang. Also called heshuo gege (和碩格格) or qinwang gege (親王格格). Daughters of qinwang also could be promoted to heshuo gongzhu or gulun gongzhu if they were adopted by the emperor. Xianzhu (; doro-i gege), translated as "Princess of a County" or "Princess of the Fourth Rank". It was usually granted to the daughter of a junwang or shizi. Also called duolun gege (多倫格格) or junwang gege (郡王格格).