It was a Ming dynasty plot against the Jiajing Emperor in which 16 women of the palace tried to murder the emperor.
A portrait of the Jiajing Emperor. (Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons)
New Delhi: There are several examples in history when women have pulled off daring heists. But there are few incidents where women have tried to kill an emperor by forming a group. That is what happened in the Palace plot of Renyin year, which is also called the Palace Women’s Uprising. It was a plot in which 16 women of the palace tried to murder the emperor.
The grievances against the Jiajing Emperor
The Jiajing Emperor followed Taoist beliefs, especially divination and alchemy. To prolong his life, he took an alchemical concoction which was prepared from female virgins’ menstrual blood and the substance was called red lead. Girls aged between 13 years and 14 years were kept and were given to eat only mulberry leaves and rainwater. According to some sources, this maltreatment resulted in the uprising.
There is another version which states that the Jiajing Emperor drank the morning collected on the many banana trees in his garden longevity. Every morning, young girls were sent to collect the dew and it made many sick. Sometimes, older women were also sent. Once, the emperor got a ‘longevity turtle’ and he entrusted its care to his lower-ranking concubines. The turtle died and the Emperor ordered that the concubines had to collect the morning dew as punishment. At that time, Imperial Concubine Wang Ning started to spread rumours about the emperor, and she was ordered by the emperor to collect the dew. She met other concubines in the garden and they formed a plan.
The attempted murder of the emperor
In 1542, the emperor was in the quarters of Consort Duan when some palace women tied a hemp rope around his neck and tried to strangle him to death. The rope was not tied properly and the emperor only fainted from terror. Empress Fang was alerted and she hurried over, and the emperor was revived by the palace eunuchs. Since the Jiajing Emperor remained unconscious for several days, Empress Fang set the punishment. She ordered the palace women to death and even sentenced Consort Duan to death.
Notably, the attempted murder did not stop the Jiajing Emperor from creating red lead. Around 300 girls aged between 11 and 14 were made new palace women in 1547. In 1552, 200 girls were made palace women and the minimum age limit was set at eight years old. Around 150 girls who were not even 8 years old were taken into the palace in 1555.
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