MING DYNASTY, AD 1368 to 1644

After 88 years of rule by the Mongols of the Yuan dynasty, the Chinese people finally regained control in AD 1368. The Ming dynasty is noted for a high degree of culture with a strong literature, and for the fine porcelain they produced.

There were a total of 17 emperors during the Ming dynasty. Most of them cast coins, but some of them are very rare. In spite of this being one of the more recent dynasties, the exact attribution of some of the rarer Ming coins is still in question.

EMPERORS OF THE MING DYNASTY

Emperor T'AI TSU, AD 1368 to 1398
reign title: HUNG-WU, AD 1368 to 1398

Emperor CH'ENG TSU, AD 1403 to 1424
reign title: YUNG-LO, AD 1403 to 1424

Emperor HSUAN TSUNG, AD 1426 to 1435
reign title: HSUAN-TE, AD 1426 to 1435

Emperor HSIAO TSUNG, AD 1488 to 1505
reign title: HUNG-CHIH, AD 1488 to 1505

Emperor SHIH TSUNG, AD 1522 to 1566
reign title: CHIA CHING, AD 1522 to 1566

Emperor MU TSUNG, AD 1567 to 1572
reign title: LUNG-CH'ING, AD 1567 to 1672

Emperor SHEN TSUNG, AD 1573 to 1619
reign title: WAN-LI, AD 1573 to 1619

Emperor KUANG TSUNG, AD 1620
reign title: T'AI-CH'ANG, AD 1620

Emperor HSI TSUNG, AD 1621 to 1627
reign title: T'IEN-CH'I, AD 1621 to 1627

Emperor CHUANG LIEH, AD 1628 to 1644
reign title: CH'UNG CHEN, 1628 to 1644

For more information on the coinage of the Ming Dynasty, please check our Reference Guide.

MING REBELS, AD 1644 to 1681

In AD 1644, the Chinese were once again conquered by foreigners, as the Manchurians established the Ching Dynasty. It took the Ching emperors a few years to consolidate control over the entire country, as a series of pretenders and rebels continued to fight.

We often refer to these pretenders and rebels as the Ming Rebels and think of them as supporters of the Ming against the Ching. This is generally not the case as the first of them, Li Tzu-Ch'eng, was responsible for the final overthrow of the Ming dynasty. While a few of them were descended from the Ming, it seems to be more a case of individual rebels fighting both the Ming and the Ching in an attempt to start their own dynasties.

After only a little study of the history of the Ming Rebels, I found that the order by which Schjoth lists them does not make any sense. I have listed them here, by what I hope is a more logical sequence.

MING REBEL RULERS

LI TZU-CH'ENG, AD 1644
Reign title: LI-YUNG, AD 1674 to 1677

CHU YU-SUNG, PRINCE OF FU, AD 1644 to 1646
Reign title: Hung-Kuang, AD 1644 to 1446

PRINCE YUNG-MING, AD 1646 to 1659
Reign title: Yung-Li, AD 1646 to 1459

WU SAN-KUEI, AD 1674 to 1678
Reign title: LI-YUNG, AD 1674 to 1677
Reign title: CHAO-WU, AD 1678

WU SHIH-FAN, AD 1678 to 1681
Reign title: HUNG-HUA, AD 1678 to 1681

CHANG HSIEN CHUNG, AD 1644
Reign title: TA-SHUN, AD 1644

SUN K'O-WANG, AD 1644 to 1650
Reign title: HSING-CHAO, AD 1644 to 1650

CHU-YU-CHIEN, Prince of T'ang, AD 1645 to 1646
Reign title: LUNG-WU, AD 1645 to 1646

For more information on the coinage of the Ming Rebels, please check our Reference Guide.

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