| 姓： | 爱新觉罗 | |||||||||
| 名： | 福临 | |||||||||
| 网笔号： | 清世祖 | |||||||||
| ||||||||||
生平
崇德八年（1643年）二月十六日承袭父位，时年六岁，由叔父睿亲王多尔衮及郑亲王济尔哈朗辅政。1644年改元顺治。九月自盛京迁都北京，十月初一日即皇帝位于武英殿。福临是于顺治元年入关的清朝的第一位皇帝。十四岁（1651年）亲政。在位十七年（1644-1661）
子女
皇长子：牛钮（夭折），母为庶妃巴氏
皇次子：裕宪亲王福全，母为宁悫妃董鄂氏
皇三子：圣祖仁皇帝玄烨，母为孝康章皇后佟佳氏
皇四子：赐荣亲王（夭折），母为孝献端静皇后董鄂氏
皇五子：恭亲王常宁，母为庶妃陈氏
皇六子：奇授（夭折），母为庶妃唐氏
皇七子：纯靖亲王隆禧，母为庶妃钮氏
皇八子：永干（8岁殇），母为庶妃穆克图氏
大公主：（夭折），母为庶妃陈氏
二公主：和硕恭悫长公主，15岁时下嫁给瓜尔佳氏讷尔杜，母为庶妃杨氏
三公主：（夭折），母为庶妃巴氏
四公主：（夭折），母为庶妃乌苏氏
五公主：（夭折），母为庶妃王氏
六公主：（夭折），母为庶妃纳喇氏
养女一：和硕和顺公主，13岁时下嫁尚之隆，承泽亲王硕塞之二女，其母为纳喇氏
养女二：和硕柔嘉公主，12岁时下嫁耿聚忠，安郡王岳乐之第二女
养女三：固伦端敏公主，18岁时下嫁博尔济吉持氏班第，简亲王济度之第二女
至于世祖章皇帝到底是怎么离位的传统上有两种说法。
第一种就是世祖章皇帝在顺治十八年因病而死。具体原因是因为爱妃董鄂氏（後追封孝献端静皇后）及其爱子（即董鄂妃的儿子）相继病亡，福临受到了巨大的精神打击，身体每况愈下，后又染上了天花，顺治十八年（1661年）正月初七日子刻崩于紫禁城内的养心殿，年仅24岁。中国历史第一档案馆的档案支持第一种说法。据历史文献记载，福临确实想要出家，但受到皇宫内保守势力的极度反对，最终未能成行；而不久则死于天花。他也是清朝历史上唯一公开皈依禅门的皇帝。
另一种民间传说就是说因爱妃董鄂妃因病去世，爱宗教的福临看破红尘，出家当了和尚，而且这种说法一般还把董鄂妃与董小宛（秦淮名妓）当作同一人。但是，根据史学界的考证，董小宛25岁死时，董鄂妃也只有13岁，还未入宫，所以已经基本否定这种说法。
最近历史学家又提出了第三种说法，即炮击致死说，认为顺治在试图征服台湾时，被郑成功的大炮炮击致死。
1663年葬入河北遵化清东陵的孝陵内。有8子、6女
崇德八年（1643年）八月，盛京皇宫中发生了一件大事：太宗皇帝在端坐中突然无疾而终！经过一番兵戎相持的较量，太宗皇太极第九子福临，在叔父摄政睿亲王多尔衮辅佐下即了帝位，改元顺治，并于顺治元年（1644年）九月由沈阳进京，在太和门举行了登极大典，成为清入关后的第一位皇帝。
6岁登上王位的福临是在多智多勇又独断专行的叔父多尔衮与深明大义的寡母孝庄文皇后教导之下成长起来的皇帝。多尔衮摄政7年间，清廷在以武力统一全国的过程中，发兵追剿李自成、张献忠的农民起义军和南明抗清势力，推行剃发易服、圈地等民族高压政策。多尔衮病逝后，顺治开始摆脱傀儡地位，对多尔衮实行了削除封号爵位、罢撤庙享谥号、籍没家财等身后惩处。为加强皇权，他废除了诸王贝勒管理各部事务的旧例，又采取了停止圈地，放宽逃人法等一系列缓和民族矛盾的措施。尽管顺治很想有番作为，也颇为中原文化所吸引，但终因他周围尚未形成一支以他为主导的强有力的政治势力，致使他在与朝中反对汉化的勋旧大臣的较量中败下阵来。
政治上的失意，使顺治帝沉湎于与其弟媳董鄂氏的爱情之中。随着与佛教高僧木陈忞等人的交往，他产生了遁入空门的思想。当他挚爱的皇贵妃董鄂氏死后，他的精神支柱完全崩溃，健康状况每况愈下，24岁时又染上天花，很快便撒手人寰。
顺治帝在位不足18年。卒谥体天隆运定统建极英睿钦文显武大德弘功圣仁纯孝章皇帝。庙号世祖。骨灰葬河北遵化清东陵“孝陵”。
清代宫廷大事表
崇德八年(1643年 癸未 明崇祯十六年)
正月 太宗有病，命和硕亲王以下，副都统以上，诣堂子行礼。
八月 太宗坐逝于寝宫清宁宫，无疾而终。礼亲王代善及诸王文武群臣定议，拥立太宗第九子福临为嗣皇帝，以郑亲王济尔哈朗、睿亲王多尔衮辅政，明年改元顺治。福临于大政殿举行即位大典。
九月 葬太宗于盛京昭陵。
十月 上太宗尊谥为应天兴国弘德彰武宽温仁圣睿孝文皇帝，庙号太宗。
顺治元年（1644年 甲申）
正月 顺治帝御大政殿（笃恭殿）受贺，命礼亲王代善勿拜。郑亲王济尔哈朗谕部院各官，凡白事先启睿亲王，而自居其次。
二月 祔葬太妃博尔济吉特氏于福陵。改葬以罪赐死之妃富察氏于陵外。
三月 大学士希福等进删译《辽史》、《金史》、《元史》。李自成攻陷北京。明崇祯帝自缢。
四月 固山额真何洛会告肃亲王豪格悖妄罪，废为庶人。晋封多罗饶余贝勒阿巴泰为多罗饶余郡王。大学士范文程启睿亲王多尔衮往定中原。以大军南伐祭告太祖、太宗。
五月 多尔衮率大军抵达燕京，明文武诸臣士庶郊迎清军入城。多尔衮进入皇城，居火后余生的武英殿理事。令官吏军民以帝礼为明帝发丧。令故明内阁、部院诸臣以原官同满洲官一体办事。按制葬明庄烈帝皇后周氏、妃袁氏，熹宗皇后张氏、神宗妃刘氏。明福王朱由崧即位于江南，改元弘光，以史可法为大学士，驻守扬州督师。
六月 多尔衮及诸王、贝勒、贝子、大臣等定议迁都燕京，遣辅国公屯齐喀、和托、固山额真何洛会前往盛京迎驾。迁明太祖神主于历代帝王庙。铸各官印兼用国书。
七月 考定历法，为时宪历。以迁都祭告上帝、陵庙。多尔衮谕令，因军事方殷，新补各官可暂服用明式衣冠。设故明长陵以下十四陵官吏。多尔衮致书史可法，劝其主削号归藩，史可法严词拒绝。始修乾清宫。
八月 顺治帝车驾到达广宁，给明十三陵陵户祭田，禁止樵牧。
九月 于紫禁城东南建堂子。顺治帝车驾到达通州，多尔衮率诸王、贝勒、贝子、文武群臣于行宫朝见顺治帝。顺治帝自正阳门入宫。初定郊庙乐章。奉安太祖武皇帝、孝慈高皇后、太宗文皇帝神主于太庙。
十月顺治帝亲诣南郊告祭天地，遣官告祭太庙、社稷。以睿亲王多尔衮功最高，命礼部建碑纪绩。上太宗尊谥，告祭郊庙、社稷。顺治帝御皇极门（后改称太和门），举行入关后的登极典礼，颁诏天下，大赦。加封和硕睿亲王多尔衮为叔父摄政王，和硕郑亲王济尔哈朗为信义辅政王，多罗武英郡王阿济格为和硕英亲王，多罗豫郡王多铎为和硕豫亲王，复封豪格为和硕肃亲王。定诸王、贝勒、贝子岁俸。定摄政王及诸王、贝勒、贝子、公等冠服宫室之制。定皇帝卤簿仪仗。仿照盛京清宁宫之制，定坤宁宫祭萨满礼。定朝会乐章。定赐宴群臣朝贺大典，内监不得列席。
十一月 设满洲司业、助教，官员子孙有欲习国书、汉书者，并入国子监就读。罢明定陵守者，其十二陵仍设太监二人，量给岁时祭品。入关内首次祀天于圜丘。
十二月 出明府库财物，赏八旗将士及蒙古官员。以太宗第六女固伦公主下嫁固山额真阿山子夸扎。以何洛会、巩阿岱分别祭祀福陵、昭陵，告慰进军关内功成。假冒故明太子案发，诛杀相关人员15人。入关后第一次大规模圈地。
清朝在颁布剃发令要求将头颅四周的头发都剃掉，只留一顶如钱大，结辫下垂。在头顶留发一钱大，大于一钱要处死！清定：“剃发不如式者亦斩。”顺治四年，浒墅关民丁泉“周环仅剃少许，留顶甚大”，被地方官拿获，以“本犯即无奸宄之心，甘违同风之化，法无可贷”为由上奏，奉朱批：“着就彼处斩”，县官也以失察“从重议处，家长、地邻即应拟罪”，因留发不留头而惨遭杀害的各族达千万
秦世祯《抚浙檄草》：“小顶辫发”把头发剃去，只留下铜钱大一点，梳成一根小辫，叫“金钱鼠尾”式。将四周头发全部剃去，仅留头顶中心的头发，其形状一如金钱，而中心部分的头发，则被结辫下垂，形如鼠尾.
1647年广州剃发易服令：“金钱鼠尾，乃新朝之雅政；峨冠博带，实亡国之陋规。”
福州遗民所撰《思文大纪》：“时剃头令下，闾左无一免者。金钱鼠尾，几成遍地腥膻。”
顺治二年（1645年 乙酉）
正月 命多罗饶余郡王阿巴泰为都统，代豪格征山东。以太宗第七女固伦公主下嫁内大臣鄂齐尔桑子喇玛思。命房山县岁以太牢祭金太祖、世宗陵。
二月 始修《律例》。谕豫亲王多铎移师定江南，英亲王阿济格征讨李自成。
三月 始祀辽太祖、金太祖、世宗、明太祖于历代帝王庙，并定从祀大臣。
四月 葬故明殉难太监王承恩于明帝陵侧，给祭田、建碑。豫亲王多铎师至扬州，谕南明史可法投降，史可法拒降被杀，清兵对城内人民持续进行了十天大屠杀，史称“扬州十日”。以太宗第八女固伦公主下嫁科尔沁土谢图亲王巴达礼子巴雅斯护朗。初行武乡试。
五月 命内三院大学士冯铨、洪承畴、李建泰、范文程、刚林、祁充格等纂修《明史》。赐诸王以下百官冰，著为令。多铎师至南京，故明福王朱由崧及大学士逃遁太平，忻城伯赵之龙、大学士王铎、礼部尚书钱谦益以城投降。命满洲子弟就学，十月一日赴监考课，春秋五日一演射。定叔父摄政王仪注，凡文移皆曰皇叔父摄政王。免皇后租，并崇文门米麦院。宣诏平定江南捷音。乾清宫修缮竣工，开始修缮太和殿、中和殿、位育宫（即保和殿）。
六月再次强制推行剃发令，皇太妃逝。发布诏告：清廷兴兵，本无意兼并，只为明清和好；但因李自成兴兵导致了明国祚灭亡；清军自关外整旅入关，乃是代明雪恨…… 以此来消弭汉族的反满情绪。并命于十月在江南举行乡试，以笼络汉族士人。册封孔子为“大成至圣文宣先师”，多尔衮亲自谒拜孔子庙。
闰六月 李自成逃亡湖北九宫山，自缢而死。定群臣公以下及生员耆老顶戴品级。诏谕严禁谏官朋党相争。定满洲文武官品级。定诸王、贝勒、贝子、宗室公顶戴式。明唐王朱聿键在福州建隆武政权，鲁王朱以海在绍兴建鲁王监国政权。
七月 享太庙。上太祖武皇帝、孝慈武皇后、太宗文皇帝玉册玉宝于太庙。设明太祖守陵太监四人，给祀田二千顷。禁中外军民衣冠不遵国制。清兵进至嘉定，进行三次大屠杀，史称“嘉定三屠”。
八月 以英亲王阿济格出师有罪，降郡王，鳌拜等议罚有差。
十月 豫亲王多铎师还，顺治帝幸南苑迎劳之。以太宗次女固伦公主下嫁察哈尔汗子阿布鼐。加封和硕豫亲王多铎为和硕德豫亲王。
十二月 更定朝仪，开始罢内监朝参。
顺治三年（1646年 丙戌）
正月 以肃亲王豪格为靖远大将军，率师西征四川。增定俸给之制：最高摄政王年俸银2000两，最低骁骑校30两。郑成功在福建沿海一带抗清。
二月 罢江南旧设部院，差在京户、兵、工三部满汉侍郎各一人驻江宁，分理部务。
三月 翻译完成《洪武宝训》。赐傅以渐等进士及第出身有差。多罗饶余郡王阿巴泰逝。
四月 摄政王多尔衮谕停诸王大臣启本。修盛京孔子庙。
五月 多尔衮贮信符于睿王府。重申严禁奴仆逃亡的“逃人法”。
十月 和硕德豫亲王多铎还师，上郊劳之。太和殿、中和殿修缮完成。定皇帝行幸迎送礼。
十一月 明唐王朱聿在广州建立绍兴政权。明桂王朱由榔在广东肇庆建永历政权。
十二月 位育宫修缮完成。定诸王入朝降舆及列朝坐次仪注。郑成功在海上起兵抗清。
顺治四年（1647年 丁亥）
正月 因辅政郑亲王济尔哈朗府邸殿堂台基逾制及擅用铜狮铜鹤，罚银2000两。定亲王世子例，其爵秩视郡王，仪仗照亲王例。
三月 赐吕宫等进士及第有差。谕京官三品以上及督、抚、提、镇各送一子入朝侍卫，察才人使，无子者以弟及从子代之。命郊社太牢仍用腥。《大清律》成。停止圈地。
七月 加封和硕德豫亲王多铎为辅政叔德豫亲王。建射殿（即箭亭）于左翼门外。多尔衮罢郑亲王听政，只令豫亲王参与。顺治帝幸边外阅武。
十月 更定銮仪卫品级，每级官员各降一级。
十二月 礼部尊谕新定服制。定摄政王对皇帝停止行跪拜礼。是年，在京畿大规模圈地。
顺治五年（1648年 戊子）
正月 和硕肃亲王豪格师还，衍禧郡王罗洛宏卒于军，至是丧归，辍朝三日。
三月 和硕郑亲王济尔哈朗因罪降为多罗郡王。和硕肃亲王豪格有罪论死，顺治帝以不忍置之于法，幽禁之。寻因激愤死于禁所。
闰四月 复济尔哈朗爵为和硕亲王。
六月 太庙成。
七月 初设六部汉尚书、都察院左都御史。定诸王、贝勒、贝子、公、公主、和硕格格等应用金器数目。
八月 允许满汉官民互相嫁娶。
十一月 祀天于圜丘，以太祖武皇帝配享。追尊太祖以上四世为皇帝，并奉册宝于太庙。
顺治六年（1649年 己丑）
正月 定内三院官制。
三月 辅政和硕德豫亲王多铎薨，摄政王多尔衮师次居庸，还京临丧。
四月 皇太后（即太宗中宫皇后博尔济吉特氏）逝。
六月 英亲王阿济格向摄政王多尔衮争叔王衔，论其为骄妄罪并禁议部事。
十二月 多尔衮妻元妃死，令两旗牛录章京以上官员及妻皆衣缟素，六旗牛录章京官员以上皆去缨。
顺治七年（1650年 庚寅）
正月 多尔衮纳肃亲王豪格妻。
二月 上太后谥为孝端正敬仁懿庄敏辅天协盛文皇后，合葬昭陵。
五月 多尔衮至连山亲迎朝鲜国之女，是日成婚。
七月 顺治帝幸摄政王多尔衮府邸。
十一月 摄政王多尔衮有疾，猎于边外。
十二月 初九日，摄政王多尔衮逝于喀喇城。顺治帝亲自祭奠于郊外，臣民为其服制。收摄政王信符，贮藏内库。尊摄政王为懋德修道广业定功安民立政诚敬义皇帝，庙号成宗。议英王阿济格罪。顺治帝亲政。
顺治八年（1651年 辛卯）
正月 和硕英亲王阿济格谋乱，幽禁之。十日，礼部上顺治帝亲政仪注，十二日，顺治帝亲政，御太和殿。
二月 上昭圣慈寿皇太后尊号。苏克萨哈、詹岱、穆齐伦首告摄政王多尔衮逆节皆实，籍其家，诛杀其党羽；追罪多尔衮 ，削其尊号及其母妻追封，撤庙享。
闰二月 幽禁阿济格于别室，籍其家。定阿附多尔衮诸臣罪，刚林、祁充格俱获罪。
三月 命诸王、贝勒、贝子分管六部、理藩院、都察院事。定王公朝集例。定斋戒例。许满洲、蒙古、汉军子弟科举，以甲第除授。
四月 遣官祭祀岳镇海渎、帝王陵寝、先师孔子阙里。定元旦、冬至、皇帝万寿为三大节及其仪注。定诸王大臣陪祭、扈从、接驾、送驾仪注及驾出巡幸，别造香宝随行，并铸扈从各印，加“行在”二字。
六月 定诸陵坛庙祀典。诏明神宗陵如其他十二陵，以时致祭，设守陵户。命修缮祖陵，设守陵户，定祭礼。复朝日、夕月礼。定皇后大婚仪及皇后仪仗制。
八月 定顺天府乡试满洲、蒙古为一榜，汉军、汉人为一榜，会试、殿试如之。戊午，册立科尔沁卓礼克图亲王亲王吴克善女博尔济吉特氏为皇后。
九月 定朝仪。改承天门为天安门。建朝日坛于朝阳门外，夕月坛于阜成门外。
十月 赐阿济格死。封肇祖、兴祖陵山曰启运山，景祖、显祖陵山曰积庆山，福陵山曰天柱山，昭陵山曰隆业山。
顺治九年（1652年 壬辰）
二月 颁布六谕碑文于天下。加封郑亲王济尔哈朗为叔和硕郑亲王。
三月 罢诸王、贝勒、贝子管理部务。赐满洲、蒙古贡士麻勒吉，汉军及汉贡士邹忠倚等进士及第出身有差。
四月 定诸王以下官员舆服制。允礼部议，一月三朝，春秋一举经筵。定常朝仪注。设宗人府官。
五月 更定詹事府官品级。定皇后、皇妃纳采礼制。
七月 定名皇城北门为地安门。
八月 更定王公以下婚娶礼。
九月 更定王以下祭葬礼。幸太学释奠。拟定亲往外边迎达赖喇嘛。
十月 尊太宗大贵妃为懿靖大贵妃，淑妃为康惠淑妃。
十二月 顺治帝于南苑召见五世达赖喇嘛。每旗设宗学，凡未受封宗室之子十岁以上均可入学。
顺治十年（1653年 癸巳）
正月 谕令改变仅有满臣奏事的局面，此后，凡章奏，令满汉侍郎、卿以上会同奏进。更定多罗贝勒以下岁俸。顺治帝阅读《通鉴》，问大臣历史上的各个圣明之君谁最优，陈名夏以唐太宗对，而顺治帝以为明太祖的各种立法可垂永久。
三月 幸南台较射。赐太常卿汤若望号通玄教师。命各部院奏事停用绿头牌。
四月 亲试翰林官成克巩等。陈名夏事件发生，28名汉官遭到训斥。
五月 追封舒尔哈齐为和硕亲王，额尔衮、界堪、雅尔哈齐、祜塞为多罗郡王。
六月 追封塔察篇古、穆尔哈齐为多罗贝勒。慈宁宫成。增置内三院汉大学士，院各二人。设立十三衙门，谕戒宦官干政，所设太监级不过四品。
七月 以皇太后谕，发内廷节省银八万两赈济遇水灾民。
八月 以太宗十四女和硕公主下嫁平西王吴三桂子吴应熊。二十四日谕内院，查历代废后事例具闻。二十六日，谕礼部，以皇后为睿王所定，未经选择为由，废除皇后为静妃。二十七日，诸臣上疏，废皇后之事要慎重详审。
十月 命大学士、学士于太和门内更番入值。
顺治十一年（1654年 甲午）
正月 罢织造官。
二月 朝日于东郊。始行耕耤礼。定每年仲春亥日行耕耤礼。
三月 皇三子玄烨（即康熙皇帝）生。以多罗慧哲郡王额尔衮、多罗宣献郡王界堪、多罗通达郡王雅尔哈齐配享太庙。
四月 以皇太后命，停命妇更番入侍后妃旧例。
五月 定皇后、嫔妃、亲王福金、固伦公主以下，辅国公夫人以上之顶珠服饰例。幸西苑，赐大臣宴。
六月 立科尔沁镇国公绰尔济女博尔济吉特氏为皇后。停宗室子弟习汉字诸书。定銮仪卫制度。
十二月 和硕承泽亲王硕塞薨。
顺治十二年（1655年 乙未）
正月 修《顺治大训》。纂《资政要览》，顺治帝亲写序文。以修建乾清宫、景仁宫、承乾宫、永寿宫，遣官告祭天地、太庙。
三月 颁布重视文教上谕。设日讲官。
四月 诏修《太祖圣训》、《太宗圣训》。
五月 郑亲王济尔哈朗逝。辍朝七日。
六月 封博果铎为和硕庄亲王。命名宫禁为紫禁城，后山为景山，西苑南台为瀛台。命内十三衙门立铁牌，严禁内监干政。
九月 定武会试中式者殿试如文进士。
十月 定纂修《玉牒》之制。
顺治十三年（1656年 丙申）
正月 修《通鉴全书》、《孝经演义》。
三月 初幸瀛台。
闰五月 乾清宫、坤宁宫、交泰殿及景仁宫、永寿宫、承乾宫、钟粹宫、储秀宫、翊坤宫修缮完成。
六月 谕善待满洲包衣家人。
七月 和硕襄亲王博穆博果尔逝。顺治帝开始移居乾清宫。
八月 承皇太后训示，编《内则衍义》书成，顺治帝亲写序言。
九月 追封和硕肃亲王豪格为和硕武肃亲王。谕礼部，晋内大臣鄂硕之女贤妃董鄂妃为皇贵妃。
十一月 兴京陵成。
十二月 册内大臣鄂硕女董鄂氏为皇贵妃，颁恩赦。加上皇太后尊号为昭圣慈康恭简安懿章庆皇太后。命礼部筹建奉先殿。准开玉牒馆纂修《玉牒》，每十年一开馆。定三年举行一次大阅礼。
顺治十四年（1657年 丁酉）
正月 祈谷于上帝，以太祖武皇帝配享。谕令停止八旗举行乡会两试。
二月 祭社稷。
三月 奉太宗文皇帝配享圜丘及祈谷坛。以太祖武皇帝、太宗文皇帝配享方泽。以配享礼成，大赦天下。顺天、江南等地发生科场舞弊案。
四月 设置盛京奉天府。
九月 初御经筵。
十月 以开日讲祭告先师孔子于弘德殿。幸南苑。始行阅武。修孔子庙。昭事殿、奉先殿成。召见海会寺僧憨璞聪。
十一月 奉先殿修成，奉列朝帝后神位，定元旦、冬至、万寿、册封、月朔望，奉帝位于前殿，帝亲行礼。
十二月 以皇太后疾愈，赉旗兵，赈贫民。
是年 编制《赋役全书》
顺治十五年（1658年 戊戌）
正月 因皇后于皇太后病中有失定省之仪，命停其笺奏，只存皇后之号，册宝照旧。顺治帝亲试丁酉科顺天举人，考场设在太和门，以满兵监视。因皇太后病愈，下诏大赦。停祭祀堂子。因皇太后病愈，祀圜丘，祀方泽，祀太庙社稷。
二月 因内监交接外廷，命内大臣严讯。
三月 提审内监吴良辅交结外官，受贿钻营，拟斩。追封科尔沁巴图鲁王女为悼妃。追封皇四子为和硕荣亲王，建坟园如制。
五月 裁撤詹事府。
六月 停诸王以下孀居福金岁给俸禄银米，照八旗孀居命妇例各半俸一年。
七月 改内三院大学士为殿阁大学士。设翰林院及掌院学士官。
九月 以内院大学士觉罗巴哈纳、金之俊为中和殿大学士，额色黑、成克巩为保和殿大学士，蒋赫德、刘正宗为文华殿大学士，洪承畴、傅以渐、胡世安为武英殿大学士，卫周祚为文渊阁大学士，李霨为东阁大学士。
十一月 定宫中女官员额品级。
顺治十六年（1659年 己亥）
二月 以云贵荡平，命今秋举行会试。
五月 发内帑银三十万，以其半赈济云贵贫民，一半当作兵饷。
九月 尊兴京祖陵为永陵。
十一月 顺治帝猎于近郊，先后次汤泉、三营屯。遣官祭祀明帝诸陵，并增陵户，加以修葺，禁止樵采。
十二月 定世职承袭例。加公主封号。
顺治十七年（1660年 庚子）
正月 京师文庙成。以御极十七年以来，天下未治，下诏，本年正月祭告天地、太庙、社稷，抒忱引责，自今而后，元旦、冬至、寿令节庆停止所上表章，并颁恩赦。
二月 定每年孟春合祭天地日月及诸神于大享殿。谕礼部：“向来孟春祈谷礼于大享殿举行，今既行合祭天地日月于大享殿，以后祈谷于圜丘举行”。
三月 谕礼部：“朕载稽旧制，岁终祫祭之外，有奉先殿合祭之礼。自后元旦、皇太后万寿及朕寿节，合祭于奉先殿。其详议礼仪以闻”。定王、贝勒、贝子、公妻女封号。更定王公、侯、伯以下，章京以上盔缨制。
六月始命翰林官于景运门入值。增祀商中宗、高宗、周成王、康王、汉文帝、宋仁宗、明孝宗于历代帝王庙。罢辽太祖庙祀及宋臣潘美、张浚从祀。以祈雨步至南郊斋宿。祀天于圜丘。命修举天下名山大川、帝王圣贤祀典。以顺治帝之兄承泽亲王硕塞之女抚养宫中，封为和硕顺公主，下嫁平南王尚可喜第七子尚之隆。
八月 十九日，皇贵妃董鄂妃薨，辍朝五日，以宫女多人殉葬，丧礼逾制。二十一日，追封董鄂妃氏为皇后。
九月 十日，火化董鄂妃。幸昌平，观故明诸陵。
十月 大觉禅师玉林琇劝阻顺治帝削发为僧。
顺治十八年 （1661年 辛丑）
正月 初二日，顺治帝患痘，病危。召原任大学士麻勒吉、学士王熙起草遗诏。初七日，逝于养心殿。遗诏中对十八年的朝政进行检讨，共有十四项罪责。遗诏立第三子玄烨为太子，特命内大臣索尼、苏克萨哈、遏必隆、鳌拜四大臣辅政，辅佐年仅八岁的幼帝。初八日，遣官颁行遗诏于全国。初九日，玄烨即皇帝位。
二月 移顺治帝梓宫于景山寿皇殿。裁撤十三衙门。诛杀内监吴良辅。设立武备院，专门制作收藏宫中所用军械及陈设器物。诏令江宁、苏州、杭州三织造隶内务府。
三月 为顺治帝上尊谥“章皇帝”，庙号“世祖”。
四月 以一等阿达哈哈番侍卫傅达理随葬顺治帝，予祭葬，谥忠烈。 郑成功收复台湾。江南苏、松、常、镇四府发生奏销案。
六月 罢内阁，复内三院。
十一月 康熙帝亲祀于圜丘。世祖章皇帝升祔太庙。
十二月 平西王吴三桂率大军入缅，缅甸人执明永历帝朱由榔以献。宗人府进《玉牒》。
是年 为防内地民众与郑成功抗清势力联系，实行海禁，勒令江南、浙江、福建、广东沿海居民分别内迁三十里至五十里，并尽烧船只，片板不准下海，此即“迁海令”。
注：此表按年号纪年排定，公元纪年只括注到年。
清初,统治者颁布剃头令：头顶只留发一钱大,大于一钱要处死。
清初的满人皆是此风俗：头顶只有金钱大小一片头发，蓄做手指粗细的小辫子，须得能穿过清铜钱的方孔才算合格。满人称之为金钱鼠尾。后来经过了200年，才逐渐演化成清末时期的剃半光头。
清兵攻陷广州时,清颁布剃发易服令说：“金钱鼠尾，乃新朝之雅政；峨冠博带，实亡国之陋规。”
清一代男子的发式经历了数次演变：嘉庆以前为金钱鼠尾，嘉庆初年进入中期，开始流行猪尾，清末演变为半光头。 其实满族女人也剃发，要到成年婚嫁后才可蓄发。
那种清末才有的、现在不合事实地垄断了所有清装戏的阴阳头发式，放在清初就是死罪，因为清初规定：“剃发不如式者亦斩。”顺治四年，浒墅关民丁泉“周环仅剃少许，留顶甚大”，被地方官拿获，以“本犯即无奸宄之心，甘违同风之化，法无可贷”为由上奏，奉朱批“着就彼处斩”，县官也以失察“从重议处，家长、地邻即应拟罪”。
1、后金时期以剃发为汉人归降的标准，男人的大部分头发被剃掉，只留脑后小手指细的一绺，拧成绳索一样下垂，称金钱鼠尾式。配合这样的发式，胡须只留上唇左右十余根。
2、清初时期以剃发为治国之策，自辽东地区广大汉族民众的反抗至清入关后的无数次反剃发斗争，成千上万的汉人为之付出了巨大牺牲。而此时的蓄发部位已悄然无声地逐步由脑后移到了头顶，但仍可称金钱鼠尾式。
3、清代中叶，经过清初大屠杀以后，发式约自嘉庆初年起有所变化。头顶着发的部位虽没有变，但面积已远不止于一个金钱大，而是足有四或五个金钱大，相当于一掌心的面积，蓄发数量明显增加。胡须亦从只留上唇左右几根变成包括下巴在内的全部。
4、清代后期，即嘉庆以后男子的发式逐步演变为将顶发四周边缘只剃去寸许，而中间保留长发、分三绺编成辫子一条垂在脑后，名为辫子或称发辫。
5、清代末期，在觉悟了的知识青年和学生掀起的革命斗争中，把剪辫子作为一项重要内容。从清末开始，到清朝灭亡之时，剪辫子成了全国范围从下到上又从上到下的革命运动。
抵抗 汉族人民为保护世代相承的文物衣冠进行了此起彼伏的斗争。满清入侵者对此进行了暴力镇压。1645年发生的嘉定三屠即与“剃发易服”有关
剃发易服造成的社会矛盾
“剃发易服”是清初主要的社会矛盾之一。针对当时各地汉人的抗争此起彼伏的情况，当时的陈名夏曾说过：“留发复衣冠，天下即可太平。”然而不久他就因为说了这句话而被满门抄斩。顺治二年十月，原任陕西河西道孔闻謤（孔子后人）上书：“近奉剃头之例，四氏子孙又告庙遵旨剃发，以明归顺之诚，岂敢再有妄议。但念先圣为典礼之宗，颜、曾、孟三大贤并起而羽翼之。其定礼之大莫要于冠服。……惟臣祖当年自为物身者无非斟酌古制所载章甫之冠，所衣缝掖之服，遂为万世不易之程，子孙世世守之。自汉、唐、宋、金、元以迄明时，三千年未有令之改者，诚以所守者是三代之遗规，不忍令其湮没也。即剃头之例，当时原未议及四氏子孙，自四家剃发后，章甫缝掖不变于三千年者未免至臣家今日而变，使天下虽知臣家之能尽忠，又惜臣家未能尽孝，恐于皇上崇儒重道之典有未备也。应否蓄发，以复本等衣冠，统惟圣裁。” 多尔衮回应如下：“剃发严旨，违者无赦。孔闻謤疏求蓄发，已犯不赦之条，姑念圣裔免死。况孔子圣之时，似此违制，有玷伊祖时中之道。著革职永不叙用。 ”顺治十年，刑部逮捕了两个因为扮演旦角而没有剃发的人，清廷因此下诏：“剃头之令，不遵者斩，颁行已久，并无戏子准与留发之例。今二犯敢于违禁，好生可恶。着刑部作速刊刻告示，内外通行传饬，如有借前项戏子名色留发者限文到十日内即行剃发；若过限仍敢违禁，许诸人即为拿获，在内送刑部审明处斩，在外送该管地方官奏请正法。如见者不行举首，勿论官民从重治罪。” 由此可见一斑。
影响 全国平定后，清朝满族统治者取得胜利，汉族男子普遍接受剃发结辫，改穿满族衣冠。也有不愿改换衣冠者逃到海外，或遁入空门带发修行。
辛亥革命推翻清朝后，剃发令废除，不少人（包括满人，由于怕受到汉人报复，因此也改变发型）遂剪去辫子，但仍有如张勋等保皇人士，坚持留辫子并率领辫子军，以表示对清朝的效忠。而当时在日本殖民统治下的台湾，剃发与缠足、吸食鸦片并列为台湾三大陋习之一，但与后两者不同，日本人未对台湾人的发型进行强制规范，而台湾人在受到日本统治影响后，多为自发性主动剪去辫子。
而经过两百多年影响，改良过的满人服饰，取代了汉服成为多数中国人认知的代表中国人个民族服饰或传统服饰。诸如旗袍、长袍马褂等等。2001年在上海举行的APEC会议，会后领袖代表所穿着的传统服饰，虽称为唐装但实际上即是马褂。
当今中国社会有部分人士主张“回复汉服”的运动，希望推广鼓励汉人重新穿着传统汉服，不过在现代中国服装高度西化影响下，未能成为潮流。剃发易服，是指中国明末清初时期满族统治者用暴力手段强迫全国汉族人改剃满族发型、改穿满族服装的政令。
汉族自古以来就非常重视衣冠服饰。《孝经》有言：“身体发肤，受之父母，不敢毁伤，孝之始也。”汉人成年之后就不可剃发，男女都把头发绾成发髻盘在头顶。满族的发型与汉人迥异，该族男子把前颅头发剃光，后脑头发编成一条长辫垂下。汉人的服装汉服以交领、右衽、无扣等为主要特色，满装的主要特点是立领、对襟、盘扣等。
清朝由居于中国东北的满族人建立。在入关之前，满族统治者在关外已然推行“剃发易服”政策。对被征服的汉人一律强令改变发式、更换服装，投降的明朝将士也必须剃发易服，作为臣服的标志。
清军于1644年（明崇祯十七年）入关时曾颁发“剃发令”，因引起汉人的不满和反抗，于是公开废除此令。1645年清兵进军江南后，汉臣孙之獬受到其他汉大臣的排挤，恼羞成怒之下向摄政王多尔衮提出重新颁发“剃发令”。于是，多尔衮下令再次颁发“剃发令”，规定清军所到之处，无论官民，限十日内尽行剃头，削发垂辫，不从者斩。其执行口号是：“留头不留发，留发不留头”。汉族人民为保护世代相承的文物衣冠进行了此起彼伏的斗争。清朝统治者对此进行了暴力镇压，例如1645年发生的嘉定三屠事件即与“剃发易服”有关。此起彼伏的斗争历经37之年久，最终结果是满族封建统治者取得胜利，汉族大部分生者都剃发结辫，改穿满族衣冠；坚持不愿改换衣冠者要么被杀，要么逃到海外，要么遁入空门，带发修行。
清朝满族统治者推行“剃发易服”的原因：一般认为，满族统治者希望通过剃发易服来打击、摧垮广大汉族人民尤其是上层人士的民族精神；保持满族的统治地位，保持满族不被汉族同化。后来的历史表明，满族统治者的这一措施基本达到了预期效果。汉人逐渐淡忘本民族服饰，习惯了满族的发式和服装。到辛亥革命推翻清帝国，号召民众剪去辫子时，仍然有许多人不愿意剪，其中原因之一就是害怕剪去辫子后被官府杀头，可见“留头不留发，留发不留头”的“剃发易服”政策对汉族影响极深。
“剃发易服”是清初主要的社会矛盾之一。针对当时各地汉人的抗争此起彼伏的情况，当时的陈名夏曾说过：“免剃头复衣冠，天下即可太平”。然而不久他就因为说了这句话而被满门抄斩。
“1644年，这是中国历史上“天崩地裂”的一年，这年3月，李自成北上攻取燕京，崇祯帝自缢殉国，李自成派唐通招抚山海关总兵吴三桂。吴三桂经过考虑，决定归顺新朝，并回京朝见“新君”李自成，在回京途中，因听闻家产被抄，爱妾被虏，所以改变初衷，回师山海关，袭击唐通部。李自成闻讯，决定征剿吴三桂，21日，双方激战山海关，22日晨，吴三桂情势危急，带随从冲出重围，至关外向驻扎在关外觊觎已久的多尔滚部剃发称臣，归降满洲军，双方合兵。26日，李自成败退回北京，旋即西撤，清军入关，“定鼎燕京”。
伴随着满洲入关而来就是剃发易服令
此前，辽东汉民早已深受剃头之荼。早在满洲建国时期，满洲统治者就强令投降的汉人效法满洲人的发式，把剃发作为归顺的标志，如天聪五年（1631年）清太宗在大凌河之役胜利时令“归降将士等剃发”，崇德三年（1638年）又下令：“若有效他国衣帽及令妇人束发裹足者，是身在本朝，而心在他国。自今以后，犯者俱加重罪。”
清军入关，继续推行这个政策。顺治元年（1644年）四月二十二日，清军打败李自成进入山海关的第一天就下令剃头。五月初一日，摄政王多尔滚率领清军过通州，知州迎降，多尔滚“谕令剃发”。初二进北京，次日多尔滚给兵部和原明朝官民分别发出命令，命兵部派人到各地招抚，要求“投诚官吏军民皆着剃发，衣冠悉遵本朝制度”。这是清朝进入北京后正式下达剃发和易衣冠的法令。
但是这一政策遭到汉族人民的强烈反对，在朝汉族官员遵令剃发的为数寥寥，不过孙之獬等最无耻的几个人。不少官员观望不出，甚至护发南逃，畿辅地区的百姓也常揭竿而起。多尔滚见满洲贵族的统治还不稳固，自知操之过急，被迫宣布收回成命。顺治元年五月二十日谕旨中说：“予前因归顺之民无所分别，故令其剃发以别顺逆。今闻甚拂民愿，反非予以文教定民心之本心矣。自兹以后，天下臣民照旧束发，悉从其便。” 所以清军入关后，剃发、易衣冠的政策只实行了一个月。
然而，这一政策并未就此完结。当满洲统治者认为天下大定之时，立刻以民族征服者的姿态，悍然下令全国男性官民一律剃发。顺治二年（1645年）六月初五日，在接到攻占南京的捷报之时，多尔滚即遣使谕给在江南前线的总指挥豫亲王多铎命令“各处文武军民尽令剃发，倘有不从，以军法从事”。十五日谕礼部道：“向来剃发之制，不即令画一，姑令自便者，欲俟天下大定始行此制耳。今中外一家，君犹父也，民犹子也；父子一体，岂可违异？若不画一，终属二心……”同年七月，又下令“衣冠皆宜遵本朝之制”。要求礼部通告全国军民剃发。规定实行期限，自布告之日起，京城内外限于十日内，各地方，亦是在通令到达后的十日内“尽行剃发”。规定惩治办法：“……自今布告之后，京城内外限旬日，直隶各省地方自部文到日亦限旬日，尽令剃发。遵依者为我国之民，迟疑者同逆命之寇，必置重罪；若规避惜发，巧辞争辩，决不轻贷。”这是对民众的。同时要求地方官员严厉执行，更不许疏请维持束发旧制，否则“杀无赦。”这是一道严令，只能执行，不许违抗。很多文章都指出，满清的辫子绝不仅仅是一个头发问题，而是一个政治问题！满洲统治者其实把辫子作为的“良民证”使用！多尔滚在顺治元年五月讲到剃发令时，就明它的功能是“以别顺逆”：“因归顺之民，无所分别，故令其剃发，以别顺逆”！
剃发令在清初各地引起的震动极为重大，它激起了汉族各阶层人士的反对，反抗以至于大规模的武装斗争几乎遍及全国，导致了长期的政局不稳，以至生灵涂炭。
顺治皇帝遗诏
清代皇帝的自我批评——三读顺治遗诏
作者：冯伯群
奉天承运，皇帝诏曰：
朕以凉德承嗣丕基，十八年于兹矣。自亲政以来，纪纲法度、用人行政，不能仰法太祖、太宗谟烈，因循悠乎，苟安目前，且渐习汉俗，于淳朴旧制日有更张，以致国治未臻，民生未遂，是朕之罪一也。
朕自弱龄即遇皇考太宗皇帝上宾，教训抚养，惟圣母皇太后慈育是依，大恩罔极，高厚莫酬，惟朝夕趋承，冀尽孝养，今不幸子道不终，诚悃未遂，是朕之罪一也。
皇考宾天时，朕止六岁，不能衰经行三年丧，终天抱恨，帷事奉皇太后，顺志承颜，且冀万年之后，庶尽子职，少抒前憾，今永违膝下，反上廑圣母哀痛，是朕之罪一也。
宗皇诸王贝勒等，皆系太祖、太宗子孙，为国藩翰，理应优遇，以示展亲。朕于诸王贝勒等，晋接既正东，恩惠复鲜，以致情谊睽隔，友爱之道未周，是朕之罪一也。
满洲诸臣，或历世竭忠，或累年效力，宣加倚托，尽厥猷为，朕不能信任，有才莫展。且明季失国，多由偏用文臣，朕不以为戒，反委任汉官，即部院印信，间亦令汉官掌管，以致满臣无心任事，精力懈弛，是朕之罪一也。
朕夙性好高，不能虚己延纳，于用人之际，务求其德于己相侔，未能随材器使，以致每叹乏人。若舍短录长，则人有微技，亦获见用，岂遂至于举世无材，是朕之罪一也。
设官分职，惟德是用，进退黜陟不可忽视，朕于廷臣中，有明知其不肖，刀不即行罢斥，仍复优容姑息，如刘正宗者，偏私躁忌，朕已洞悉于心，乃容其久任政地，诚可谓见贤而不能举，见不肖而不能退，是朕之罪一也。
国用浩繁，兵饷不足，然金花钱粮，尽给宫中之费，未常节省发施，及度支告匮，每令会议，即诸王大臣会议，岂能别有奇策，只得议及裁减俸禄，以赡军需，厚己薄人，益上损下，是朕之罪一也。
经营殿宇，造作器具，务极精工，求为前代后人所不及，无益之地，糜费甚多，乃不自省察，罔体民艰，是朕之罪一也。
端敬皇后于皇太后克尽孝道，辅佐朕躬，内政聿修，朕仰奉慈纶，追念贤淑，丧祭典礼概从优厚，然不能以礼止情，诸事太过，岂滥不经，是朕之罪一也。
朕性闲静，常图安逸，燕处深宫，御朝绝少，以致与廷臣接见稀疏，上下情谊否塞，是朕之罪一也。
人之们事，孰能无过，在朕日御万几，自然多有违错，惟肯听言纳谏，则有过必知。朕每自恃聪明，不能听言纳谏。古云，良贾深藏若虚，君子盛德，容貌若愚。朕于斯言，大相违背，以致臣士缄然，不肯进言，是朕之罪一也。
朕既知过，每自尅责生悔，乃徒尚虚文，未能者改，以致过端日积，愆戾逾多，是朕之罪一也。
太祖、太宗创垂基业，所关至重，元良储嗣，不可久虚，朕子玄烨，佟氏妃所生也，年八岁，岐嶷颖慧，克承宗祧，兹立为皇太子，即遵典制，持服二十七日，释服，即皇帝位。特命内大臣索尼、苏克萨哈、遏必隆、鳌拜为辅臣，伊等皆勋旧重臣，朕以腹心寄托，其勉天忠尽，保翊冲主，佐理政务，而告中外，咸使闻知。
顺治十八年正月初七日。
爱新觉罗·福临，是满清王朝入关后的第一代皇帝，年号为顺治。
这位顺治皇帝六岁登基，十四岁亲政，二十四岁去世，打理朝政、主持军国大事十年，政绩颇多。但民间于这位青年皇帝传说较多的却是他与董鄂妃的爱情及其本人消极厌世闹着要出家的故事。其实顺治在政治上是很有作为的。他亲政之初，国内军事、政治、经济各方面都是危机四伏，而这位长期生活在关外的满洲皇帝连汉文的奏章都看不太懂，更不要说学习历代汉家皇帝的治国经验了。但他以皇帝之尊，并未沉溺于享乐，而是极其刻苦地学习汉族文化，天不亮就起床读书，为了背诵一些名篇名著，彻夜不睡。在每日处理大量的军务政务的同时，汲取了大量的文化知识，不断完善他的统治方法和手段。
在军事上，面对全国蜂起的战乱，他广泛听取各方面意见，制定了重抚轻剿的策略，大胆放手地任用汉族降官，不断取得军事上的胜利，稳定了国内局势。在政治上，他整顿吏治、严惩贪官，力求建立廉洁、高效的行政机构。在经济上，他招抚流民，鼓励开荒，免除自明末以来对百姓的种种科派，连各地向皇上进贡土特产品也下令免除，救灾救荒，大力发展生产。
顺治在治理国家方面，清明之举不少，其中比较突出的一条是他能诚心听取下情，容许臣下犯颜直谏，即使提的意见非常尖锐，他也不以为忤。相反，臣下不提意见，他反而不高兴。如此大度的气节，不仅远远超过他的先辈，对其后代也发生着深刻影响。清朝诸帝大多勤政而有作为，能听得不同意见，很少如前代皇帝，一语不合，便把提意见甚至提建议的大臣打个皮开肉绽，直到要了人家脑袋。这里顺治皇帝的表率不能不说对他的后人有着重要的影响。更难得的是，当时的福临，只有十几岁，二十出头，以我们今天许多家庭的条件来看，还不过是个孩子，但那时的福临就能有这般见识，这般作为，实属难能可贵了。
前面所录的诏书，是顺治染上天花后，自知不起，召来他的亲信大臣礼部侍郎兼翰林院掌院学士王熙、学士麻勒吉撰拟的遗诏，这份遗诏是顺治帝临终前最后一次自责自切；也是他自我批评精神的最后体现。
遗诏除最后交待了帝位的继承人和辅政大臣名单外，其余内容全部是顺治检讨自己执政以来的罪累计达十四条之多，可说地地道道是一道“罪己诏”了。
第一条，顺治检讨说，自己并无高厚的德行，却继承了祖宗大业，但却没有治理好国家，没有致福于百姓，这是自己的一条罪过。
第二条，说自己先母亲去世，不能孝养母亲，是自己的罪过。
第三条，再强调父亲去世时，自己因尚年幼，未尽孝仪，本应在母亲去世时给予弥补，但今不能承欢母后，反给母亲带来痛苦，是自己的罪过。
第四条说，对宗室诸王贝勒等满洲亲贵未能照应周全，是自己的罪过。
第五条说，在施政之中偏向任用汉族大臣，疏远了满洲官员，是自己的罪过。
第六条说，自己用人所持标准过高，没能很好地发现人才、使用人才，是自己的罪过。
第七条说，自己对不称职的官员未能及时撤换，是自己的罪过。
第八条说，自己在宫中花费过多，影响了官员的俸禄，是自己的罪过。
第九条说，自己在宫殿建造和器具使用上花钱太多，未能体谅百姓生活的艰辛，是自己的罪过。
第十条说，自己宠爱的董鄂妃去世时，自己不能控制自己的感情，丧葬之礼违反定制，过于铺张，是自己的罪过。
第十一条，说自己过分信用太监，致使其营私舞弊，是自己的罪过。
第十二条，说自己图清闲，很少上朝，致使与大臣们缺少联系，是自己的罪过。
第十三条，说自己自以为聪明，听不得不同意见，以致大臣们不肯进言，是自己的罪过。
第十四条，说自己知错而未能改错，以致过错越来越多，是自己的罪过。
实事求是地说，顺治检讨了自己这么多的“罪”，实在是有点过分。这十四条中，第一条可以说是近乎官样文章，有点像今天一些人总结报告中常见的“由于自己水平不高、能力有限、工作做得不好，距离上级领导的要求和群众的期望还差得很远”之类的套话。
第二条、第三条是比较动情的话，福临的母后，即孝庄皇太后，在顺治登基，保住顺治的皇位，帮助他处理对各种复杂的关系方面都发挥了重要的作用，福临未能克尽孝道，深感愧对母亲，此情此感，确实是发自内心。
第四条、第五条所说的对满洲亲贵、满洲大臣未能倚重优遇的话有点言不随心。遏制满洲亲贵的势力，大胆任用汉官，正是顺治帝施政中成功的举措，也正是这种以汉治汉的方针策略，使清军入关之初动荡的形势得以逐步稳定，生产得以恢复发展，顺治在世时一直坚守这种用人方略，对满洲亲贵们的不满情绪一再加以压制。那么临终之时，为何一反平时之态又对此作起检讨呢?这里大概有两个方面的原因：一是福临虽然在治国施政上注意重用汉人，但作为满洲贵族的最高代表，满洲的那些王公大臣，毕竟还是他自己的“家里人”，汉人再能干，也不过是用其所长，再亲也不是“自己人”，满人对汉人的猜忌之心，对顺治帝来说也不可能完全摆脱；与此相关的第二个原因是满洲亲贵纵有种种不满，也是血浓于水，对他们过于严厉也有不妥之处。所以也许就应了那句老话：“人之将死，其言也善”，结合顺治多愁善感的性格，临终之时一反常态，念及满洲亲情，就此做些检讨也是情理之中。
第六、七、八、九、十一、十二、十三、十四条所涉及之事，应该说顺治的表现是很不错的，作为一位青年人，顺治在处理军国大事，宫中事务上，每每有超凡之见、超常之举是很难得的，比起前明一些昏愦平庸的皇帝们，顺治应该算是很不错的一位皇帝了，尽管如此，顺治在遗诏之中仍在自责自艾，便有点儿我们今天所说的“高标准、严要求”了。
真正应该检讨一下的是第十条，顺治的爱妃去世，顺治确实因伤心过度闹得够呛，朝野上下震动一时。说起来这位董鄂妃确实是位值得人心疼的好妃子，她美丽端庄，善良贤惠，不贪财，不争宠，对上孝敬皇太后，在宫中忍辱负重，以德报
怨，与其他后妃和睦相处，太后、皇后及其他妃子生病，董妃可以几天几夜不离病榻，尽心服侍，以致自己由于超负荷的身体透支而多次病倒。董妃的自我牺牲，保障了后宫的安宁，为顺治全力以赴处理政事创造了很好的条件。但感情归感情，封建社会皇家的名份、制度是不可擅动的。顺治为董妃治丧，确如他自己所检讨的“诸事太过”。
第一次读到顺治遗诏，还是二十年前在大学读书时，上古文献课学的一篇课文。由人品和学问都让人敬佩的张成德先生讲授，使我更加深了对这篇文章的理解。也就是那时，我知道了所谓皇帝的罪己诏原来真是言词恳切。以前总以为逢有天灾变异，皇帝下诏罪己不过是应景而已。而顺治这篇遗诏却不是表面文章，从自我批评的角度来看，应该说是比较深刻的。而且象文中出现的“夙性好高”，“自恃聪明”等语也真有点“触及灵魂”的意思。所以自那时起，顺治的这篇遗诏以及遗诏中所反映出来的严以责己的精神给我留下了深刻的印象，而这篇由张先生亲手用蜡纸刻印的讲义，我也一直留到今天。尽管纸张已微微变黄，二十年间又几次搬家，许多装帧讲究的课本，都丢掉了，这份讲义始终留在身边，偶尔拿出来念一念字简句顺，朗朗上口，从中又生发出一些一些的联想，也觉挺有意思的。
第二次读这篇文章，是1985年在皇史参观清宫秘档真迹展览时，见到了当年张挂公布，供军民人等一体观看的遗诏真迹。题图中的这张照片就是当时拍摄下来的。皇帝的自我批评居然是挂在墙上让老百姓随便看的，这确实让我吃了一惊。
第三次与这份遗诏相见，是最近的事了。它所引动人们所作的思考仍一如既往。尽管有人认为这份遗诏在顺治去世后已经皇太后与满洲王公矫政改，但退一步讲所谓改动之处，也不过是四、五两条与满洲亲贵们利益相关的内客。即使如此，遗诏中所体现的深刻自责的精神还是原汁原味儿的。结合顺治帝生前一系列表现，与遗诏中所体现的精神是完全一致的。
顺治十七年，也就是福临去世的前一年，他在祭告天地宗庙时，总结了自己继位十七年以来的行为表现，从头到尾没有丝毫的自吹自擂，没有给自己评功摆好。相反通篇都是对自己的检讨反省，认为自己有负上天，愧对祖宗，对不起皇太后，让天下百姓失望，据此，他下令，今后逢元旦、冬至、万寿三大节，不得再给自己上庆贺的表章。
前不久，一个偶然的机会，我在中国第一历史档案馆库房见到一份标名为“上传稿”的档案，上书文字如下：
内三院于顺治十年初三日辰时接出圣谕；近来言官条奏，多系细务，未见有规切朕躬者。朕一日万机，岂无未合天意、未顺人心之事?尔诸臣得无畏惮忌讳而不敢进谏者?朕虽不德，于古帝王纳言容直每怀欣慕。朕躬如有过失，尔诸臣须直谏无隐，即偶有隔阂，不妨再三开陈，庶得者改误失，力行正道，希臻至平。进言切当者，必加旌奖，言之过者，亦不谴责。内三院即传与大小诸臣，卑咸悉朕意。钦此，合行传知。
从这份档案看，年轻的顺治皇帝确实是真心实意地希望臣下给自己提出意见，而且希望不要净说些琐碎的具体事务，要直接针对自己的言行，指出有何不当之处，倘若我一时接受不了，也应该再三陈述，说对了有奖，言词过激也不会怪罪你们。
顺治帝这么说，也的确是这么做的。有一位叫朱之弼的给事中曾上疏指责顺治，说“今日之病在六部，六部之病在尚书，尚书之病在推诿，推诿之病在皇上不择人，不久任，不责成效，不定赏罚。”这位大臣倒真是不客气，把官僚衙门产生种种弊端的原因，一古脑儿全扣在了皇帝头上，矛头直指顺治，确实让人很难下台。但这位青年皇帝尽管也很要面子，但想到是自己提倡臣下进言，所以还真咽下了这口气，表示确实是自己用人不当，赏罚不明。
还有一次他下诏说国家没有治理好，百姓生活不安定，边疆战事不断，屡屡征兵征粮，这都是自己领导无方所造成的，并下令自即日起给他上的奏章都不许称圣。几年后，一位在工科任给事中的马屁精姚延启上疏大事赞美他的文治武功，请求恢复称圣，结果顺治不吃这套，将这位溜须小人臭骂一顿了事。
《顺治遗诏》此件档案现存于中国第一历史档案馆
顺治时期文字狱
朝人“言论自由之人权”的第一次恶化，起于顺治四年——广东和尚函可身携一本纪录抗清志士悲壮事迹的史稿《变记》，被南京城门的清兵查获，在严刑折磨一年后，定谳流放沈阳。次年，又有毛重倬等坊刻制艺序案，毛重倬为坊刻制艺所写的序文不书“顺治”年号，被大学士刚林认为是“目无本朝”，有关“正统”的“不赦之条”。由此规定：“自今闱中墨牍必经词臣造订，礼臣校阅，方许刊行，其余房社杂稿概行禁止”，从此诞生了中国言论检查官，开始了中国的言论出版审查专制，中国人的“言论自由之人权”由此大倒退。 清人“言论自由之人权”的第二次恶化，是顺治十八年（166１）至康熙二年（1663）的庄廷龙明史案。浙江湖州富户庄廷龙双目皆盲，受到“左丘失明，厥有《国语》”的鼓励，出钱购买明末人朱国祯一部未完成的《明史》，然后延揽名士，增润删节，补写崇祯朝和南明史实，窃改为己作，定名《明史辑略》。因所续诸传多有冒犯清朝开国事，被落职知县吴知荣在敲诈未遂后举报京城，从顺治十八年查至康熙二年，历时二年，重辟７０余人，凌迟１８人，已故庄廷龙，也被“戳其尸”。这一次恶化的重要标志在于，“文字狱”可以“株连极广”，不仅九族须灭，所有撰稿者、作序者、校对者、抄写刻字者以及购书者，“一个也不能少”，“皆不免于难”。中国“文化恐怖主义”的言论钳制至此上了一个新台阶。清人“言论自由之人权”的第三次恶化，起于雍正三年十二月的汪景祺以《西征随笔》问斩枭示案。汪景祺之所以成为雍正朝第一个以文字之故被杀的文人，是因雍正“恨屋及乌”所株连的——雍正在铲除功臣年羹尧后，发现党附年羹尧的“入幕之宾”汪景祺曾称颂年羹尧为“宇宙之第一伟人”，雍正恨得咬牙切齿，但却深知，仅仅以汪景祺党附年羹尧，高歌年羹尧，罪不致死，于是就借在年寓中查抄出汪景祺所写的《读书堂西征随笔》大做文章，栽赃诬陷其书中有“ 皇帝挥毫不值钱”之诗句，有“功臣不可为”和“历代年号论”等“诽谤先帝”的“悖谬狂乱，至于此极”之大罪，令 “着将汪景祺立斩枭示，其妻子发遗黑龙江给与穷披甲人为奴，其期服之亲兄弟亲侄俱革职，发遗宁古塔，其五服以内之族人现任及候选候补者，俱著查出，一一革职”。汪景祺案不仅仅创造了株连政敌的“帮闲文人”之先例，而且立下了可将“文字狱”案犯枭示十年的创举——汪景祺立 斩后，其头骨在北京菜市口枭示（悬挂）了十年！这一残酷“文字狱”使许多士子“避席畏闻文字狱，著书只为稻梁谋 ”，纷纷立下了“不当烈士”的犬儒座右铭，中国文化人的气节从此每下愈况。
A committee of Manchu princes chose the young Fulin to succeed his father Hong Taiji in September 1643 when he was only five. Two co-regents were also appointed: Nurhaci's fourteenth son Dorgon, and Nurhaci's nephew Jirgalang. From 1643 until Dorgon's death on the last day of 1650, political power lay mostly in the hands of Dorgon. After the young emperor started to rule personally in 1651, he tried, with mixed success, to fight corruption and to reduce the political influence of the Manchu nobility. He died of smallpox, a lethal disease that was endemic in China, but against which the Manchus had no immunity. He was succeeded by his third son Xuanye, who had already survived smallpox, and who subsequently reigned for sixty years as the Kangxi Emperor.
Under the leadership of Dorgon and the Shunzhi Emperor, the Qing dynasty conquered most of the territory of the fallen Ming and its last claimants and established the basis of Qing rule over China despite highly unpopular policies like the "haircutting command" of 1645, which forced Qing subjects to shave their forehead and braid their remaining hair into a queue. Because the Shunzhi reign is not well documented, it constitutes a relatively little-known period of Qing history.
When Hong Taiji, the second Qing Emperor, died on 9 September 1643 without having named a successor, the fledgling Qing state faced a possibly serious crisis. Several contenders started to vie for the throne. With his uterine brothers Dodo and Ajige, Dorgon controlled the Plain and Bordered White Banners, whereas Hong Taiji's eldest son Hooge had the loyalty of his father's two Yellow Banners.
The decision about who would become the new Qing emperor fell to the Deliberative Council of Princes and Ministers, which was the Manchus' main policymaking body until the emergence of the Grand Council in the 1720s. Many Manchu princes advocated that Dorgon, a proven military leader, should become the new emperor, but Dorgon refused and insisted that one of Hong Taiji's sons should succeed his father. To recognize Dorgon's authority while keeping the throne in Hong Taiji's descent line, the members of the council named Hong Taiji's ninth son Fulin as the new Emperor, but decided that Dorgon and Jirgalang (a nephew of Nurhaci who controlled the Bordered Blue Banner) would act as the five-year-old child's regents.
On 8 October 1643, Fulin was officially crowned Emperor of the Qing dynasty; it was decided that he would reign under the era name "Shunzhi."
Dorgon's regency (1643–1650)
Prince Regent Dorgon in imperial regalia. He reigned as a quasi emperor from 1643 to his death in 1650, a period during which the Qing conquered almost all of China.
A quasi emperorOn 17 February 1644, Jirgalang, who was a capable military leader but looked uninterested in managing state affairs, willingly yielded control of all official matters to Dorgon. After an alleged plot by Hooge to undermine the regency was exposed on 6 May of that year, Hooge was stripped of his title of Imperial Prince and his co-conspirators were executed. Dorgon soon replaced Hooge's supporters (mostly from the Yellow Banners) with his own, thus gaining closer control of two more Banners. By early June 1644, he was in firm control of the Qing government and its military.
The fall of the Ming and the Qing takeoverJust as Dorgon and his advisors were pondering how to attack the Ming, peasant rebellions were ravaging northern China and dangerously approaching the Ming capital Beijing. In February 1644, rebel leader Li Zicheng had founded the Shun Dynasty in Xi'an and proclaimed himself king. In March his armies had captured the important city of Taiyuan in Shanxi. Seeing the progress of the rebels, on 5 April the Ming Chongzhen Emperor requested the urgent help of any military commandant in the Empire. But it was too late: on 24 April Li Zicheng breached the walls of Beijing, and the Emperor hanged himself the next day on a hill behind the Forbidden City. He was the last Ming emperor to reign in Beijing.
Soon after the emperor had called for help, powerful Ming general Wu Sangui had left his stronghold of Ningyuan north of the Great Wall and started marching toward the capital. On 26 April, his armies had moved through the fortifications of Shanhai Pass (the eastern end of the Great Wall) and were marching toward Beijing when he heard that the city had fallen. He returned to Shanhai Pass. Li Zicheng sent two armies to attack the Pass but Wu's battle-hardened troops defeated them easily on 5 May and 10 May. Then on 18 May, Li Zicheng personally led 60,000 of his troops out of Beijing to attack Wu. At the same time, Wu Sangui wrote to Dorgon to request the Qing's help in ousting the bandits and restoring the Ming dynasty.
An old Chinese map of the complex of fortifications of Shanhai Pass. After Wu Sangui let Qing troops through the pass on 27 May 1644, Wu and the Qing defeated rebel troops led by Li Zicheng in the decisive Battle of Shanhai Pass.Meanwhile Wu Sangui's departure from the stronghold of Ningyuan had left all territory outside the Great Wall under Qing control. Dorgon's Chinese advisors, the two most illustrious of which were Hong Chengchou and Fan Wencheng (范文程), urged the Manchu prince to seize the opportunity of the fall of Beijing to claim the Mandate of Heaven for the Qing dynasty. When Dorgon received Wu's letter, he was already leading an expedition to attack northern China and therefore had no intention to restore the Ming. When Dorgon asked Wu to work for the Qing instead, Wu had little choice but to accept.
After Wu formally surrendered to the Qing in the morning of 27 May, his elite troops charged the rebel army repeatedly, but were unable to break the enemy lines. Dorgon waited until both sides were weakened before ordering his cavalry to gallop around Wu's right wing to charge Li's left flank. Li Zicheng's troops were quickly routed and fled back toward Beijing. After their defeat at the Battle of Shanhai Pass, the Shun troops looted Beijing for several days until Li Zicheng left the capital on 4 June, one day after he had defiantly proclaimed himself Emperor of the Great Shun.
The circular mound of the Altar of Heaven, where the Shunzhi emperor conducted sacrifices on 30 October 1644, ten days before being officially proclaimed Emperor of China. The ceremony marked the moment when the Qing dynasty seized the Mandate of Heaven.After six weeks of mistreatment at the hands of rebel troops, the Beijing population sent a party of elders and officials to greet their liberators on 5 June. They were startled when, instead of meeting Wu Sangui and the Ming heir apparent, they saw Dorgon, a horseriding Manchu with his shaved forehead, present himself as the Prince Regent. In the midst of this upheaval, Dorgon installed himself in the Wuying Palace (武英殿), "the only reasonably undamaged structure" after Li Zicheng had set fire to the palace complex on 3 June.
Just two days after entering the city, Dorgon issued special proclamations to officials around the capital, assuring them that if the local population accepted to shave their forehead and surrender, the officials would be allowed to stay at their post. He had to repeal this command three weeks later after several peasant rebellions erupted around Beijing, threatening Qing control over the capital region.
Dorgon greeted the Shunzhi Emperor at the gates of Beijing on 19 October 1644. On 30 October the young emperor performed sacrifices to Heaven and Earth at the Altar of Heaven. A formal ritual of enthronement for Fulin was held on 8 November, during which the merits of Dorgon as regent were compared to those of the Duke of Zhou. During the ceremony, Dorgon's official title was raised from "Prince Regent" to "Uncle Prince Regent" (Shufu shezheng wang 叔父攝政王), in which the Manchu term for "Uncle" (ecike) represented a rank higher than that of imperial prince. Three days later Dorgon's co-regent Jirgalang was demoted from "Prince Regent" to "Assistant Uncle Prince Regent" (Fu zheng shuwang 輔政叔王). In June 1645, Dorgon eventually decreed that all official documents should refer to him as "Imperial Uncle Prince Regent" (Huang shufu shezheng wang 皇叔父攝政王), which left him one step short of claiming the throne for himself.
The conquest of ChinaHistorian Dai Yingcong has called Dorgon "the mastermind of the Qing conquest." Under his reign, the Qing subdued the capital area, received the capitulation of Shandong local elites and officials, and conquered Shanxi and Shaanxi, then turned their eyes to Jiangnan as they were also pursuing the last remnants of regimes established by Li Zicheng (killed in 1645) and Zhang Xianzhong (Chengdu taken in early 1647). The Qing also eliminated remnants of the loyalist Southern Ming regime in Nanjing (1645), Fuzhou (1646), and Guangzhou (1647), and chased Zhu Youlang, the last monarch of the Southern Ming, into the far southwestern reaches of China.
Suppressing the banditsSee also: Zhang Xianzhong and Li Zicheng
Very soon after entering Beijing in June 1644, Dorgon despatched Wu Sangui and his troops to pursue Li Zicheng, the rebel leader who had driven the last Ming emperor to suicide, but had been defeated by the Qing in late May at the Battle of Shanhai Pass. Wu managed to engage Li's rearguard many times, but Li still managed to cross Gu Pass (故關) into Shanxi; Wu then broke pursuit to return to Beijing. Li Zicheng then reestablished a power base in Xi'an (Shaanxi province), where he had declared the foundation of his Shun dynasty in February 1644. After repressing revolts against Qing rule in Hebei and Shandong in the Summer and Fall of 1644, in October of that year Dorgon sent several armies to extirpate Li Zicheng from his Shaanxi stronghold. Qing armies led by Ajige, Dodo, and Shi Tingzhu (石廷柱) won consecutive engagements against Shun forces in Shanxi and Shaanxi, forcing Li Zicheng to leave his Xi'an headquarters in February 1645. Li retreated through several provinces until he was killed in September 1645, either by his own hand or by a peasant group that had organized for self-defense in this time of rampant banditry.
In early 1646 Dorgon sent two expeditions to Sichuan to try to destroy Zhang Xianzhong's regime: the first expedition did not reach Sichuan because it was caught up against remnants; the second one, under the direction of Hooge (the son of Hung Taiji who had lost the succession struggle of 1643) reached Sichuan in October 1646. Hearing that a Qing army led by a major general was approaching, Zhang Xianzhong fled toward Shaanxi, splitting his troops into four divisions that were ordered to act independently if something were to happen to him. Before leaving, he ordered a massacre of the population of his capital Chengdu. Zhang Xianzhong was killed in a battle against Qing forces near Xichong in central Sichuan on 1 February 1647. Hooge then easily took Chengdu, but found it in a state of desolation he had not expected. Unable to find food in the countryside, his soldiers looted the area, killing resisters, and even resorted to cannibalism as food shortages grew acute.
Jiangnan
A late-Qing woodblock print representing the Yangzhou massacre of May 1645. Dorgon's brother Dodo ordered this massacre to scare other southern Chinese cities into submission, but by the late nineteenth century the massacre was used by anti-Qing revolutionaries to arouse anti-Manchu sentiment among the Han Chinese population.A few weeks after the Chongzhen Emperor committed suicide in Beijing in April 1644, some descendants of the Ming imperial house started arriving in Nanjing, which had been the auxiliary capital of the Ming dynasty. Agreeing that the Ming needed an imperial figure to rally support in the south, the Nanjing Minister of War Shi Kefa and the Fengyang Governor-general Ma Shiying (馬士英) agreed to form a loyalist Ming government around the Prince of Fu, Zhu Yousong, a first cousin of the Chongzhen emperor who had been next in line for succession after the dead emperor's sons, whose fates were still unknown. The Prince was crowned as emperor on 19 June 1644 under the protection of Ma Shiying, who had arrived in Nanjing two days earlier with a large war fleet. It was decided that the next lunar year would be the first year of the Hongguang (弘光) reign. This Hongguang regime was ridden with factional bickering that facilitated the Manchu conquest of Jiangnan, which was launched from Xi'an in April 1645. Greatly aided by the surrender of Southern Ming commanders Li Chengdong (李成東) and Liu Liangzuo (劉良佐), the Qing army took the key city of Xuzhou north of the Huai River in early May 1645, leaving Shi Kefa in Yangzhou as the main defender of the Southern Ming's northern frontiers.
A man in San Francisco's Chinatown around 1900. The Chinese habit of wearing a queue came from Dorgon's July 1645 edict ordering all men to shave their forehead and tie their hair into a queue like the Manchus.Several contingents of Qing forces converged on Yangzhou on 13 May 1645. Shi Kefa's small force refused to surrender, but could not resist Dodo's artillery: on 20 May Qing cannon breached the city wall and Dodo ordered the "brutal slaughter" of Yangzhou's entire population, probably to instill fear in the population of other Jiangnan cities so that they would surrender to the Qing instead of fighting on. On 1 June Qing armies crossed the Yangzi River and easily took the garrison city of Zhenjiang, which protected access to Nanjing. The Qing arrived at the gates of Nanjing a week later, but the Hongguang emperor had already fled. The city surrendered without a fight on 16 June after its last defenders had made Dodo promise he would not hurt the city's inhabitants. Within less than a month, the Qing had captured the fleeing Ming emperor (he died in Beijing the following year) and seized Jiangnan's main cities, including Suzhou and Hangzhou; by then the frontier between the Qing and the Southern Ming had been pushed south to the Qiantang River.
On 21 July 1645, after the Jiangnan region had been superficially pacified, Dorgon issued "the most untimely promulgation of his career." He ordered all Chinese men to shave their forehead and to braid the rest of their hair into a queue just like the Manchus. The punishment for non-compliance was death. To the Manchus this policy might both be a symbolic act of submission and in practical terms an aid in telling friend from foe, however for the Han Chinese it went against their traditional Confucian values. The haircutting command united Chinese of all social backgrounds into resistance against Qing rule, and thus "broke the momentum of the Qing conquest." Hundreds of thousands of people were killed before all of China was brought into compliance.
The Southern MingMain article: Southern Ming Dynasty
The Longwu Emperor of the Southern Ming, whom Qing troops captured and killed in Fujian in October 1646.Meanwhile the Southern Ming had not been eliminated. When Hangzhou fell to the Qing on 6 July 1645, Prince of Tang Zhu Yujian, a ninth-generation descendant of Ming founder Zhu Yuanzhang, retreated up the Qiantang River and proceeded to Fujian from a land route that went through northeastern Jiangxi and mountainous areas in northern Fujian. Crowned as the Longwu Emperor in the coastal city of Fuzhou on 18 August, he depended on the protection of Zheng Zhilong (known in many western sources as "Nicholas Iquan"), a seatrader with exceptional organizational skills who had surrendered to the Ming in 1628. The childless emperor adopted Zheng's eldest son, granted him the imperial surname, and gave him a new personal name: Chenggong. The name Koxinga by which this adopted son is known to Westerners is a distortion of his title "Lord of the Imperial Surname" (Guoxingye 國姓爺). Only in October 1645 did the Longwu emperor hear that another Ming pretender, the Prince of Lu Zhu Yihai, had named himself regent in Zhejiang, and thus represented another center of loyalist resistance. But the two regimes failed to cooperate, making their chances of success even lower than they already were. In February 1646, Qing armies seized land west of the Qiantang River from the Lu regime and defeated a ragtag force representing the Longwu emperor in northeastern Jiangxi. In May of that year Qing forces besieged Ganzhou, the last Ming bastion in Jiangxi. In July, a new Southern Campaign led by Manchu Prince Bolo sent the Zhejiang regime of Prince Lu into disarray and proceeded to attack the Longwu regime in Fujian. Zheng Zhilong, the Longwu emperor's main military defender, fled to the coast. On the pretext of relieving the siege of Ganzhou in southern Jiangxi, the Longwu court left their base in northeastern Fujian in late September 1646, but the Qing army caught up with them. Longwu and his empress were summarily executed in Tingzhou (western Fujian) on 6 October. After the fall of Fuzhou on 17 October, Zheng Zhilong surrendered to the Qing and his son Koxinga fled to the island of Taiwan with his fleet.
A cannon cast in 1650 by the Southern Ming. (From the Hong Kong Museum of Coastal Defence.)
Portrait of Shang Kexi by Johan Nieuhof (1655). Shang recaptured Guangzhou from Ming loyalist forces in 1650 and organized a massacre of the city's population. Known to the Dutch as the "Old Viceroy" of Guangdong, he was one of the Three Feudatories who rebelled against the Qing in 1673.The Longwu Emperor's younger brother Zhu Yuyue, who had fled Fuzhou by sea, soon founded another Ming regime in Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong province, taking the reign title Shaowu (紹武) on 11 December 1646. Short of official costumes, they had to purchase robes from local theater troops. On 24 December, Prince of Gui Zhu Youlang established the Yongli (永曆) regime in the same vicinity. The two Ming regimes fought each other until 20 January 1647, when a small Qing force led by former Southern Ming commander Li Chengdong (李成東) captured Guangzhou, killing the Shaowu Emperor and sending the Yongli Emperor fleeing to Nanning in Guangxi. Li Chengdong suppressed more loyalist resistance in Guangdong in 1647, but mutinied against the Qing in May 1648 because he resented having been named only regional commander of the province he had conquered. The concurrent rebellion of another former Ming general in Jiangxi helped the Yongli regime to retake most of southern China, leaving the Qing in control of only a few enclaves in Guangdong and southern Jiangxi. This resurgence of loyalist hopes was short-lived. New Qing armies managed to reconquer the central provinces of Huguang (present-day Hubei and Hunan), Jiangxi, and Guangdong in 1649 and 1650. The Yongli emperor fled to Nanning and from there to Guizhou. Finally on 24 November 1650, Qing forces led by Shang Kexi––one of the "Three Feudatories" who would rebel against the Qing in 1673––captured Guangzhou after a ten-month siege and massacred the city's population, killing as many as 70,000 people.
The northwest
"Moghul embassy" (actually emissaries from a Mughal prince who ruled Turfan in Central Asia) as portrayed in 1656 by Dutch visitors to Shunzhi's Beijing.In 1646 sultan Abu al-Muhammad Haiji Khan, a Mughal prince who ruled Turfan, sent an embassy requesting the resumption of trade with China, which had been interrupted by the fall of the Ming dynasty. The mission was sent without solicitation, but the Qing accepted to receive it, allowing it to conduct tribute trade in Beijing and Lanzhou (Gansu). Later in 1646, forces assembled by a Muslim leader known in Chinese sources as Milayin (米喇印) revolted against Qing rule in Ganzhou (Gansu). He was soon joined by another Muslim named Ding Guodong (丁國棟). Proclaiming that they wanted to restore the fallen Ming, they occupied a number of towns in Gansu, including the provincial capital Lanzhou. Morris Rossabi sees these rebels' willingness to collaborate with non-Muslim Chinese as a sign that they were "not motivated solely by religious considerations and did not plan to establish a purely Muslim state." To pacify the rebels, the Qing government quickly despatched Meng Qiaofang (孟喬芳), governor of Shaanxi, a former Ming official who had surrendered to the Qing in 1631. Both Milayin and Ding Guodong were captured and killed in 1648, and by 1650 the Muslim rebels had been crushed in campaigns that inflicted heavy casualties. Tribute and trade with Hami and Turfan, which had aided the rebels, were resumed in 1656. In 1655, however, the Qing court had announced that tributary missions from Turfan would be accepted only once every five years.
Transition and personal rule (1651–1661)
Portrait of the Shunzhi Emperor in adulthood.Dorgon's sudden death triggered a period of fierce factional struggles and opened the way for deep political reforms. Because Dorgon's supporters were still influential at court, Dorgon was given an imperial funeral and posthumously elevated to imperial status as the "Righteous Emperor" (yi huangdi 義皇帝). On the same day of mid-January 1651, however, several officers of the White Banners led by former Dorgon supporter Ubai arrested Dorgon's brother Ajige for fear he would name himself as the new regent; Ubai and his officers named themselves as presidents of several Ministries and prepared to take charge of the Qing government. Meanwhile Jirgalang, who had been stripped of his title of regent in 1647, gathered support among Banner officers who had been disgruntled during Dorgon's rule. Oboi, who would become the main regent for the Kangxi Emperor in 1661, was among these officers, and Jirgalang appointed him to the Council of Deliberative Princes to reward him for his support. On 1 February, Jirgalang announced that the emperor, who was about to turn thirteen, would now assume personal power. After building up more support, Jirgalang moved to the attack. In late February or early March 1651 he accused Dorgon of usurping imperial prerogatives: Dorgon was found guilty and all his posthumous honors were removed. Jirgalang continued to purge former members of Dorgon's clique and to bestow high ranks and nobility titles upon a growing number of followers in the Three Imperial Banners (shang san qi 上三旗), so that by 1652 all of Dorgon's former supporters had been either killed or effectively removed from government.
The Shunzhi Emperor in his mature years.The Emperor stripped both Dorgon and Dorgon's brother Dodo of their titles and assumed full imperial authority.
To counteract the power of the Imperial Household Department and the Manchu nobility, in July 1653 Shunzhi established the Thirteen Offices (十三衙門), which were manned by Chinese eunuchs rather than Manchu bondservants. Eunuchs had been kept under tight control during Dorgon's regency, but the young emperor used them to counter the influence of other power centers like the Empress Dowager and former regent Jirgalang. By the late 1650s eunuch power became formidable again: they handled key financial and political matters, offered advice on official appointments, and even composed edicts. Because eunuchs isolated the emperor from the bureaucracy, Manchu and Chinese officials feared a return to the abuses of eunuch power that had plagued the late Ming. Despite the emperor's attempt to impose strictures on eunuch activities, Shunzhi's favorite eunuch Wu Liangfu (吳良輔), who had helped the young emperor defeat the Dorgon faction in the early 1650s, was caught in a corruption scandal in 1658. The fact that Wu only received a reprimand for his accepting bribes did not reassure the Manchu elite, which saw eunuch power as a degradation of Manchu power. The Thirteen Offices would be eliminated (and Wu Liangfu executed) by Oboi and the other regents of the Kangxi Emperor in March 1661 soon after Shunzhi's death.
A portrait of Johann Adam Schall von Bell, a Jesuit missionary the Shunzhi Emperor affectionately called mafa ("grand'pa" in Manchu).During his short reign, the Shunzhi emperor encouraged the Han Chinese to participate in government activities. He was a scholar and employed Han Chinese to teach his children. He was also an open minded emperor and relied on the advice of Johann Adam Schall von Bell 湯若望, a Jesuit missionary from Cologne in Germany, for guidance ranging from astronomy, technologies, to tips for governing an empire. In late 1644, Dorgon had put Schall in charge of preparing a new calendar because his eclipse predictions had proven more reliable than those of the official astronomer. After Dorgon's death Schall also developed a personal relationship with the young emperor, who called him "grand-father" (mafa in Manchu). At the height of his influence in 1656 and 1657, Schall reports that Shunzhi often visited his house and talked to him late into the night. He was excused from prostrating himself in the presence of the emperor, was granted land to build a church in Beijing, and was even given imperial permission to adopt a son (because the emperor worried that Schall did not have an heir), but the Jesuits' hope of converting the emperor to Christianity was crushed when Shunzhi became a devout follower of Chan Buddhism in 1657.
The Emperor married his mother's niece, but demoted the Empress several years later.
Because of power issues in the Qing's ancestors' way, Shunzhi ultimately took another step to consolidate the power of the emperor. According to the old way, the 8 Banners were passed with succession much like how Nurhaci decided to give his Yellow Banners to Dorgun, but could potentially be controlled by someone like Huang Taji who switched the Banners. To solve this problem, Shunzi ordered the Upper 3 Banners- Plain Yellow, Striped Yellow, and Plain White to be under the control of the emperor. This would be maintained until Yongzheng and Qianlong's reign when they took the last step and controlled all 8 Banners.
After he assumed personal rule in 1651, the Emperor tried to root out corruption in the realm, but with little success.
Death and succession
Electron micrograph of the smallpox virus. Because they had no immunity to this highly contagious and lethal disease, the Manchus were particularly fearful of it. The Shunzhi emperor died of smallpox, and Kangxi was chosen to succeed him because he had already survived the disease.In September 1661, Shunzhi's favourite concubine Donggo suddenly died as a result of grief over the loss of a child. Overwhelmed with grief himself, the emperor fell into dejection for months, until he contracted smallpox on 2 February 1661. On 4 February, officials Wang Xi (王熙) and Margi (the latter a Manchu) were called to the emperor's bedside to record his last will. On the same day, his seven-year-old third son Xuanye was chosen to be his successor, probably because he had already survived smallpox. The emperor died on 5 February 1661 in the Forbidden City at the age of twenty-two.
An official court portrait of Oboi, who in 5 February 1661, was named as the main regent to the newly enthroned Kangxi Emperor.The emperor's last will, which was made public on the evening of 5 February, appointed four regents for his young son: Oboi, Soni, Suksaha, and Ebilun, who had all helped Jirgalang to purge the court of Dorgon's supporters after Dorgon's death on the last day of 1650. It is difficult to determine whether Shunzhi had really named these four Manchu nobles as regents, because they and Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang clearly tempered with the emperor's testament before promulgating it. His will expressed the emperor's regret about his Chinese-style ruling (his reliance on eunuchs and his favoritism toward Chinese officials), his neglect of Manchu nobles and traditions, and his headstrong devotion to his concubine rather than to his mother. Though the emperor had often issued self-deprecating edicts during his reign, the policies his will rejected had been central to his government since he had assumed personal rule in the early 1650s. The will as it was formulated gave "the mantle of imperial authority" to the four regents, and served to support their pro-Manchu policies during the period known as the Oboi regency, which lasted from 1661 to 1669.
Because court statements did not clearly announce the cause of the emperor's death, rumors soon started to circulate that he had not died but in fact retired to a Buddhist monastery to live anonymously as a monk, either out of grief for the death of his beloved consort, or in a coup by the Manchu nobles his will had named as regents. These rumors were not so incredible, because the emperor had become a fervent follower of Chan Buddhism in the late 1650s, even letting monks move into the imperial palace. But much circumstantial evidence––including an account by one of these monks that the emperor's health greatly deteriorated in early February 1661 because of smallpox, and the fact that a concubine and an Imperial Bodyguard committed suicide to accompany the emperor in burial––suggests that Shunzhi's death was not staged.
Contrary to Manchu customs at the time, which usually dictated that a deceased person should be cremated, the Shunzhi Emperor was buried. He was interred in what later came to be known as the Eastern Qing Tombs, 125 kilometers/75 miles northeast of Beijing, one of two Qing imperial cemeteries. His tomb was part of the Xiaoling (孝陵) mausoleum complex, known in Manchu as the Hiyoošungga Munggan.
Family
AncestorsHis father was the previous Qing emperor Hong Taiji; his mother was Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang.
Father: Hong Taiji (1592–1643), emperor of the Qing dynasty (of whom Fulin was the 9th son).
Mother: Bumbutai (1613–1688), or concubine Zhuang; daughter of a Mongol prince of the Borjigit clan (the descendants of Genghis Khan's brother Hasar); known posthumously as Empress Xiaozhuangwen (Manchu: Hiyoošungga Ambalinggū Genggiyenšu Hūwanghu).
Paternal grandfather: Nurhaci (1559–1626), founder of the Qing dynasty.
Paternal grandmother: Monggo (1573–1603), of the Yehenara clan; posthumously known as Empress Xiaocigao.
Empresses and consortsAlthough only nineteen Empresses and Consorts are recorded for Shunzhi in the Aisin Gioro genealogy made by the Imperial Clan Court, burial records show that he had at least thirty-two of them. Eleven bore him children. There were two Empresses in his reign, both relatives of Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang from the Borjigit clan. After the 1644 conquest, Imperial Consorts and Empresses were usually known by their titles and by the name of their patrilineal clan.
First Empress: the Demoted Empress Suoerna, from the Borjigit clan; niece of Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang. She was made Empress in 1651, but the monarch disliked her so much that he had her demoted in 1653.
Second Empress: Empress Xiaohuizhang (d. 1718) from the Borjigit clan. She was named Empress in 1654.
Concubine from the Tunggiya clan (1640–1663). Her family was of Jurchen origin but had lived among Chinese for generations. It had Chinese family name Tong (佟) but switched to the Manchu clan name Tunggiya. She was made Empress Dowager Cihe in 1661 when Kangxi became emperor. She is known posthumously as Empress Xiaokangzhang.
Imperial Noble Consort from the Donggo clan (1639–1660), posthumously raised to Empress Xiao Xian Duan Jing. She had a Han Chinese mother. The Emperor was deeply in love with her and was very grieved when she died soon after their first son (Shunzhi's fourth) had died in infancy. He died of smallpox shortly thereafter.
ChildrenEleven of Shunzhi's thirty-two spouses bore him a total of fourteen children, but only four sons (Fuquan, Xuanye, Changning, and Longxi) and one daughter (Princess Gongyi Chang) lived old enough to marry. Unlike later Qing emperors, the names of Shunzhi's sons did not include a generational character.
Sons1.Niuniu 牛鈕 (13 December 1651 – 9 March 1652). Born to Consort Ba 巴.
2.Fuquan 福全 (8 September 1653 – 26 January 1706). Born to Consort Ningyi 寧懿 from the Donggo clan. Became Prince Yu (裕親王) in 1667.
3.Xuanye 玄燁 (Manchu: Hiowan Yei) (4 May 1654 – 20 December 1722), later became the Kangxi Emperor. Born to Empress Xiaokangzhang.
4.4th son (5 November 1657 – 25 February 1658), who died before he was given a name. Born to Imperial Noble Consort Donggo. Posthumously granted the title of Prince Rong (榮親王).
5.Changning 常寧 (8 December 1657 – 20 July 1703). Born to Consort Chen 陳. Became Prince Gong (恭親王) in 1671.
6.Qishou 奇授 (3 January 1660 – unknown date, at the age of seven sui). Born to Consort Tang 唐.
7.Longxi 隆禧 (30 May 1660 – 20 August 1679). Born to Consort Niu 鈕. Became Prince Chun (純親王) in 1674; posthumouly called Prince Chun Jing (純靖親王). He fathered a son who died heirless.
8.Yonggan 永幹 (23 January 1661 – unknown date, at the age of eight sui). Born to Consort Muktu 穆克圖.
Daughters1st Daughter (1652–1653). Born to Consort Chen 陳.
2nd Daughter (1653–1685): second-rank Princess (M.: hošoi gungju) Gongyi Chang (Ch.: heshuo Gongyi Chang gongzhu 和碩恭懿長公主). Married in 1667. Born to Consort Yang 楊.
3rd Daughter (1653–1658). Born to Consort Ba 巴.
4th Daughter (1654–1661). Born to Consort Usu 烏蘇.
5th Daughter (1654–1660). Born to Consort Wang 王.
6th Daughter (1657–1661). Born to Consort Nala 那拉.
Adopted daughtersPrincess Heshun (1648–1691). Married to Shang Zilong in 1660.
Princess Roujia (1652–1673). Married to Guan Juzhong in 1663.
Princess Duanmin (1653–1729). Married to Bandi in 1670.
| << 前一君主: 太宗 应天兴国弘德彰武宽温仁圣睿孝敬敏昭定隆道显功文皇帝 皇太极 | 清代顺治 Shun Chi (1644年～1661年) | 后一君主 >>: 清圣祖 康熙 |