Consort Dun

Consort Dun (1746 - 1806) was a consort of the Qianlong Emperor of the qing dynasty.

Biography

Consort Dun was born of the Manchu Wang (汪) clan. Her personal name is unknown. Her father was Sige (四格), a commander (都統) of the Plain White Banner of the Eight Banners. Lady Wang entered the Forbidden City in 1762 during the Qianlong Emperor's reign. She was chosen to join the imperial harem and was given the rank of First Class Female Attendant Yong (永常在). In 1770 she was promoted to the position of Imperial Concubine Dun (惇嬪).

In 1775 Lady Wang gave birth to the Qianlong Emperor's tenth daughter Kurun Princess Hexiao. The Qianlong Emperor was very fond of the princess and he started showing favour towards Lady Wang. A year later in 1776, Lady Wang was elevated to the status of Consort Dun (惇妃).

In 1778 Lady Wang had a palace maid severely beaten for making a minor mistake and the maid died from her injuries. Homicide was a grave offence under the laws of the qing dynasty and Lady Wang ought to be harshly punished. However, in consideration of how Kurun Princess Hexiao would be affected if her mother was heavily penalised, the Qianlong Emperor eventually decided to demote Lady Wang to the rank of Imperial Concubine Dun. Lady Wang was also ordered to compensate the maid's family with 100 taels of silver, and pay half of the financial penalty levied on her servants, whose salaries were suspended for a year or two. Two years later in 1780 Lady Wang was restored to her status as a Consort.

Lady Wang died in 1806 during the reign of the Jiaqing Emperor, the Qianlong Emperor's successor. She was interred in the Yuling Mausoleum (裕陵) for the Qing emperors' concubines.

Last update 28-05-2012

References