Empress Xiaoyichun

Empress Xiao Yi Chun (* 1727 in China, † February 28, 1775 in Beijing) was the concubine of the Chinese emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty.

Life

Xiao Yi Chun was born in the fifth year of the reign of Emperor Yongzheng in a family of Han Chinese. The father of her Wei Qingtai family was for some time in the employ of the Manchu dynasty.

1745 Yi Chun came in the Forbidden City in Beijing and was a concubine of Emperor Qianlong. She received the title of Imperial consort Ling and gave birth to the emperor six children, including as the second son of the Prince Yong Yan, who succeeded his father as Emperor Jiaqing. 1765 she undertook with the Emperor an inspection tour to southern China, south of Yangtze River. It was followed by other missions to Tai Shan in Shandong and north to Jehol.

After the death of Ulanara, the second empress, empress was no more bestallt, the Imperial consort Ling was responsible for the affairs of the imperial household. She made sure that her son Prince Yong Yan was appointed heir to the throne of Qianlong secretly.

Yi Chun was buried outside of Beijing in the Yuling Mausoleum, in which also Qianlong's first wife had been buried. She was posthumously awarded the title of Imperial consort Ling Yi. After the accession of her son, she was appointed Empress Xiao Yi Chun. The Chinese name of their family Wei was changed into the Manchu name Weigiya.

Trivia

In the popular Chinese TV series Princess Returning Pearl or Huan Zhu Ge Ge, the Empress Xiao Yi Chun is represented under the name of concubine Ling.