Emperor Kangxi made six southern tours during his reign. Historians have discussed the purpose and significance of the southern tour, but few people have noticed the interaction between Kangxi and missionaries during his southern tour. The last southern tour was obviously different from the previous five. These activities are rarely seen in official documents collected by various countries. Fortunately, some missionaries present at that time vividly recorded interviews and conversations, some of which were printed and sent back to Europe, allowing us to have a glimpse.
1684, after the rebellion between Taiwan and Francisco was put down, Kangxi made his first southern tour on the grounds of river patrol and offering sacrifices to the Ming Tombs of Confucius, inspected officials, understood people's feelings, and took the opportunity to win over Han literati in the south of the Yangtze River. After that, there were five southern tours in succession, and the last time was at 1707. Every time Kangxi made a southern tour, he often asked whether there were churches and priests and personally met missionaries. In the first five expeditions to the south, Kangxi was very friendly to missionaries. The last time, the conflict between the Qing court and the Holy See intensified because of the visit of the special envoy of the Holy See, and the dispute over etiquette reached its climax. Based on the documents and archives collected in China and Europe, we will show the interaction between Kangxi and missionaries during their southern tour, focusing on the attitudes of Kangxi, Wang Zhijun and officials of the Ministry of Internal Affairs towards missionaries during the last etiquette dispute in the southern tour.
Emperor Kangxi had a close relationship with Catholic missionaries all his life. 1668, ministers didn't know that Yang Guangxian (1597-1669) and Ferdinand ferdinand verbiest, a Jesuit, gambled on the sun shadow outside the noon gate, so the young Emperor Kangxi made great efforts to learn western learning. At first, ferdinand verbiest, An Siwen and Li Leisi served as imperial teachers. After 1688, Xu Risheng, Amdo, Zhang Cheng, Bai Jin and others taught western learning. Relying on the skills of missionaries, Kangxi invited them to accompany him every time he went out on patrol. /kloc-in the spring of 0/682, Ferdinand ferdinand verbiest toured the northeast with Emperor Kangxi. 1696 and 1697, Kangxi personally marched into galdan, and Rizo and Amdo also went to the northwest to observe the solar eclipse along the way, measure the height of the North Pole and determine the local latitude and longitude. After 1700, more missionaries drive to Jehol Summer Resort every year. Every time I went out on patrol, I was accompanied by missionaries. Some were doctors, some were translators, some were painters and some were astronomers, ready to ask questions and answer questions about the calendar, medicine, nature and geography of Emperor Kangxi. Western learning and missionaries became an important part of Kangxi's daily life and even his political life, and also became one of his tools and means of governing the country.
Kangxi visited the south and often met missionaries. At that time, missionaries and Christians recorded them, compiled them into books and published them one after another. Among them, Dingchao recorded the first five southern tours, and the sixth southern tour (Hangzhou 1707) was recorded in Zhang et al. These are very rare first-hand information.
According to the statistics of the banknote, the missionaries known by Emperor Kangxi during his southern tour, such as Wang Yu 1684 in Nanjing; 1689 received Koroser, Yin Duoze, Pan Guoliang, Hong Ruo, Gaby and Li Anning in Jin 'an, Hangzhou, Jiangning and Jining respectively; /kloc-received Pan Guoliang in Wuxi and Hangzhou in 0/699 (accompanied by Zhang Cheng and Bai Jin at that time); 1703 received Guo hesheng snow in Hangzhou; 1705, received Meng Wei, Yang Ruohan, Long Sheng, He Nadu and Ai in Huai 'an and Hangzhou. 1707 received Aisi, Guo Zhongchuan and Gong Dangxin in Hangzhou. Among them, most of them are Jesuits, except Munro (a missionary of the Paris Foreign Missionary Society), Ai Hanyu (a Dominican missionary) and He Nadu (a missionary of the Ministry of Communications).
It can be seen from the records that some missionaries went from Hangzhou to Suzhou, Wuxi and Changzhou, some from Yanzhou to Huai 'an, and some from Suzhou to Hangzhou to meet the emperor. Emperor Kangxi, on the other hand, sent guards from the Ministry of Internal Affairs to worship God in the church, which showed his concern for Catholicism and his attention to missionaries. When they meet, Kangxi often asks them their age, nationality, time of coming to China, residence (Catholic church), whether they have been to Beijing, whether they know a missionary and so on. Missionaries usually send "square objects" (western gifts) to express their gratitude and respect to the emperor. As usual, Emperor Kangxi would receive some gifts. In return, he would give food, money and gifts to missionaries. After receiving the gift, the missionary will be "grateful" as usual.
Interestingly, in order to cater to Kangxi's interest in exotic western things, missionaries presented many scientific instruments, such as gas pipes, telescopes, armymen, sundials, moon and moon clocks, astronomical scales, mirrors, glass bottles, glass balls, calendar glasses, western medicine, western stationery, western scales, western paper, fishbone beads and so on. Emperor Kangxi was particularly interested in the celestial sphere and asked Gaby to send the trachea to Beijing. In the dialogue with missionaries, Kangxi also asked them if they knew anything about astronomy, medicine and geography, which showed his keen interest in western science.
Black paint box drawing instrument, made by Qing government in Kangxi period. The upper and lower floors contain more than 30 drawing tools and a blue water bottle for storing ink. Now in the Palace Museum.
Let's take the southern tour in the 28th year of Kangxi (1689) as an example. On February 27th, Emperor Kangxi, under the escort of a number of ministers in Nanjing, arrived at the Star Observatory in the Arctic Pavilion to observe the celestial phenomena. Li Guangdi, the minister, was able to accompany him, vividly recording the activities of Emperor Kangxi observing the old star in the stargazing platform. At that time, French Jesuit Hong Ruo and Italian Jesuit Gaby happened to be in Nanjing. If Hong was a famous French astronomer, he was sent to China as Louis XIV's "king mathematician". Before coming to China, he was famous for his observation in France. After arriving in Beijing from 65438 to 0688, he was received by Kangxi. Emperor Kangxi heard about Hong Re's achievements. In Nanjing, Gaby and Hong Ruo also presented Kangxi with "square objects and measuring instruments". Interestingly, before Emperor Kangxi went to the stargazing platform to watch the stars, he sent Zhao Chang, a bodyguard, to ask Hong Re and Gaby if they could see the old star in Nanjing, and they all answered.
About the forty-four years of Kangxi (1705), it is recorded in the Yin Lun Classic, attached:
At 9 o'clock in the morning of March 44 of Kangxi, the emperor made a southern tour, arrived in Huai 'an Huanghua Pavilion by boat, stayed at Yanzhou Catholic Church in Zhejiang Province, and was a scholar of western learning. Yang Ruohan, a scholar of western learning in Jiangning Catholic Church, took a paladin. The order is to introduce the general manager of Yangxintang, Mr. Zhang, to the royal ship, that is, the consultant said: What nationality are you two? How old are you? How many years have you been in China? Have you been to Beijing? Where do you live now? Play them back one by one. Ask Meng Yun again: Are you from Yanzhou, Zhejiang? As the saying goes, as soon as I heard that long live the southern tour, I was very enthusiastic and came from Yanzhou to pick up the driver. The emperor was very happy. Use 12 kinds of square objects, and I will show them to you. Yu Yun: You can take things back to this province, and I will help you collect them. On the third day of April, Meng Lian greeted the holy drive in Hangzhou, and then presented western things to the Zhifu Palace. Yangxintang always led Zhang Chuan to collect things, and all the royal tours were accepted, which made him very happy, that is, he gave 920 silver. Twelve kinds of things are presented to the Crown Prince, and they are also supervised by the internal staff. On the ninth day, the emperor entered the West Lake Palace. Before the carving was finished, he ordered the minister in charge of the interior office to lead Zhang Chuanzhi, and the next day he ordered the western Jinshi Yanzhou Catholic Church to send someone to see him. On the tenth day of the tenth lunar month, Shenma returned to China, and Meng Qian and Quzhou Catholic Church, Hangzhou Catholic Church, Xiaoshan Catholic Church, and Huzhou Catholic Church hired boats to send them to Tangkou, xie cun. When the emperor saw it, he opened the dragon boat window, motioned the boat to the imperial boat with his hand, and asked the ministers which nationality they belonged to. All five ministers responded. Ask Yun again: Are you okay in that place? Back to the cloud: I am very good with Emperor Hong En of Hermon. He also ordered the censor to cook a cooked pig with royal food and make snacks for five ministers. The ministers kowtowed and thanked them, that is, they followed the dragon boat to Yijin ferry. The emperor asked: Where are you going? The five ministers and others said: I respectfully sent the holy driving and kowtowed to the emperor, with the intention of sending it far away. The emperor himself said: Go home by yourself, don't send it far. I'll go back after thanking you. Fu Niantuo and other western scholars were treated by the emperor, grateful and gentle. I want to pay my last respects in a square book. Don't forget Xiaozhi, there is nothing to report for reconsideration. I wish the son of heaven happiness forever in the vast sea of clouds.
In addition to the "Yin Lun Classic", the officials who followed Kangxi also described it like this:
(April 26th) There is a Catholic church in Beiting Lane during the emperor's trip, and the resume of the album written outside is yellow. I am honored to have been tried in western languages by the emperor, a long-term parking consultant. I was so happy that I drove into the palace under the guidance of eunuch Li. Command: Adult Zhang Chang of Yangxintang will handle this matter and wait for notice. (The Complete Records of Five Blessingg in the South of the Yangtze River)
It can be seen that Emperor Kangxi not only went to the Catholic Church to meet missionaries, but also brought them into the palace, and ordered hall of mental cultivation official Zhang Changchang to take care of them and wait for an opportunity to consult missionaries. Nanjing is an important missionary place. Matteo Ricci stayed in Nanjing until he went to Beijing in the late Ming Dynasty. Besides Hong Ruo and Gaby mentioned above, Tan Ying, the first bishop of China, also preached here, and had close ties with missionaries and Christians in China.
We can see that in the first five expeditions to the south, Kangxi met with western missionaries for the purpose of "staying away from Huairou". When they meet, they are generally "very happy", collecting things, giving meals, rewarding money, and living in peace. However, during the last expedition to the south (1707), the situation changed suddenly, although it was only over a year since the last expedition to the south (1705). Why did Kangxi have such a different attitude towards missionaries? Let's briefly review this history first.
Around 1700, the debate on Chinese etiquette in Europe reached its climax, and its influence spread to China. During 1702, Jesuits collected opinions on the rituals of ancestor worship and Confucius in all parts of China, from emperors and ministers to ordinary literati and Christians, and submitted them to the Holy See for reference. It is in this situation that Doro was sent to the Far East on the orders of Pope Clemens Xi (1700-1721). The purpose of his visit to China was to ban the rituals of offering sacrifices to Confucius and ancestors. Doro left Europe on 1703, passed through India and the Philippines, arrived in Macau on 1705, then set off for the north and arrived in Beijing on February 4 of that year. At first, Doro concealed his true mission to China and was vague about the emperor's inquiry. He only said that he thanked Kangxi for his "gentleness and kindness" to the missionaries, so he was warmly received by Emperor Kangxi as never before.
However, after Doro publicly came to China to ban ancestor worship and worship Confucius, Emperor Kangxi was furious and stopped treating Doro well, and appointed Wang Zhijun, the eldest son of the emperor, to negotiate with missionaries. 1In August, 706, Doro left Beijing and headed south along the canal, ready to return to Europe.
If the etiquette dispute was only an internal affair of Catholicism before this, it gradually evolved into a diplomatic crisis between the Vatican and the Qing court. Feeling that the imperial power had been interfered by foreign countries, Kangxi was greatly displeased, so he issued a decree in June 65438 +0706+February 65438, requiring missionaries in China to come to Beijing to obtain "tickets" to obtain missionary and residence qualifications, and began to restrict the activities of missionaries. But at the same time, Kangxi prepared to communicate with the Vatican and sent several groups of Jesuits to Rome to mediate. European archives record the process and general contents of Kangxi's request for missionaries to collect tickets:
On the seventh day of this month, King Dorothy, Minister He, Zhang Changchang and Zhao Chang of Yangxintang discussed the same topic. Anyone who lives in Catholic churches in various provinces, preaches westerners and has a ticket printed by the Ministry of Internal Affairs is allowed to walk and live. There is no need to ban them. Those who do not print tickets are not allowed to live in any guild hall and are expelled from Macao. Anyone who wants to get tickets to Beijing in various provinces, such as new and old westerners, must not be blocked. Such as the cause of the problem, serve the purpose: according to the discussion. Give it to the ceremony department I admire that.
Later, westerners came to Beijing to give tickets to people with tickets, and they would go outside your department and transfer the number of westerners who printed the tickets through the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Later, westerners gave tickets to people living in the hall, and there was no need to expel them. Those who don't give tickets are not allowed to stay and deported to Macao. Those who are willing to buy tickets don't have to stay there for a long time, but come to Beijing as soon as possible. So list the names of those who give tickets and those who don't, transfer them to your department, and inform the provinces passing through Zhili accordingly. To this end, we inform you that when you arrive at the Ministry, you can also consult Zhili provinces accordingly.
After the will was published, some missionaries came to Beijing to collect tickets one after another. When Doro learned the news, he had already arrived in Nanjing, and he took a tough response. 1October 25th, 1707+65438 issued the Nanjing edict, requiring all missionaries in China to ban Chinese etiquette. This decision made Kangxi more angry and further escalated the diplomatic crisis between the Vatican and the Qing court. From 1706 to 65438+February to 1707, Doro stayed in Nanjing for about three months, and then returned to Guangzhou, where he was going to wait for French or British trading ships to return to Europe. But as soon as he arrived in Guangzhou, he received an imperial edict and was ordered not to board the ship and return, asking him to stay in Macao for a period of time. 1In June, 707, Doro and his party arrived in Macau again under the escort of officials, and lost their personal freedom. Doro, who was ordained as a cardinal, died in Macau prison on June 17 10.
Let's review Emperor Kangxi's last southern tour. The itinerary is probably like this:1On February 24th, 707, Kangxi set out from Beijing, accompanied by the Crown Prince, the eldest son of the emperor (the king of the county of Doro), the thirteen sons, fifteen sons and sixteen sons of the emperor. After Dongchangfu, he arrived in Jining on February 1 1, arrived in Baotawan Palace in Yangzhou on March 30, and arrived in Nanjing on April 8 via Jurong. During his stay in Nanjing, he watched military exercises and paid tribute to Ming Taizu's Xiaoling Mausoleum, and left Nanjing on April 13. After Jurong, Zhenjiang, Changzhou, Wuxi, Suzhou, Songjiang and Jiaxing, I arrived in Renhe (Hangzhou) in April and stayed at the West Lake Palace. After Jiaxing, Suzhou House, Dantu and Yangzhou (Wu Jia and Baotawan Palace in April), they returned to the north.
We saw that this southern tour happened just after Doro issued the Nanjing edict. Therefore, Emperor Kangxi was extremely angry with the Vatican envoy and lost his original kindness to the missionaries. On the way, he let them choose their sides and decide whether to stay or not.
Missionaries have long built churches in Linqing, Yangzhou and Nanjing. Kangxi specially sent Zhijun (that is, Yin Gui, the eldest son of the emperor) to summon missionaries in these places and ask them detailed etiquette. According to the imperial court's will, missionaries can only live permanently in China if they abide by Matteo Ricci's regulations and get tickets, otherwise they will be deported to Macau or repatriated to China.
Linqing is mainly the residence of Franciscans, and Yi Daren, the Bishop of Beijing, also lives there. After Kangxi arrived in Linqing, he made a special phone call to meet Francis. Most of them intend to collect tickets, accept inquiries, and say they will abide by the imperial edict. But at that time, they were not given an invoice immediately, which meant further investigation.
When he arrived in Huai 'an, Kangxi found that no missionaries wanted tickets, so he asked Dominique Parrenin, a French Jesuit, why. Dominique Parrenin replied that he didn't know, so Emperor Kangxi and the King of Zhijun ordered him to go to Zhenjiang for information. /kloc-in April, Kangxi arrived in Yangzhou and introduced five Portuguese Jesuits in Zhenjiang, namely Mulder, An Huairen, Qu and Somano, among whom Mulder was the vice president of Jesuits in China. On April 2nd, these five missionaries were introduced to Naojun, and Naojun asked them if they would like to get tickets and abide by Matteo Ricci's rules. They replied that they were willing to get tickets and abide by Matteo Ricci's rules, but Doro asked them to follow the instructions of the Pope. The next day, Wang Zhijun again asked them not to change their minds, which made Wang Zhijun very angry. So Kangxi issued an edict to send them to Guangzhou:
On the first day of March, 1946, an order was issued: Niels Polduga, a westerner, Mude, I, An Huairen, Se, Qu, all lived in Guangdong Catholic Church, and Long Anguo and Bolai came together. The place to give or not to give tickets was decided at that time, and there was no need to preach the teachings of Iraq.
At that time, there were about 20 missionaries in Nanjing. Besides Jesuits, there were also Italian priest Stiren who had followed Doro and He Jiong, a missionary of the Foreign Missionary Society in Paris. Missionaries were asked to express their views on whether to abide by Matteo Ricci's rules and whether to get tickets. Most Jesuits expressed their willingness to abide by it and never returned to the West. Shi Tijen and He Jiong, on the other hand, said they were unwilling to abide by Matteo Ricci's rules and could not get tickets, so they were reprimanded by the wise king:
On the eighth day of March, Wang Zhijun and Director Zhang performed: He Xuan, a westerner from Chizhou Prefecture, and Shi Tieren, a westerner from jiangning house. They asked Shi Tieren that he came to China with Dole, and China's words were not recognized. He Jiong came to China with Bo, and China dabbled in some books. Q: "Is your teaching compatible with Matteo Ricci?" The two of them said: "Matteo Ricci only worships God, which is consistent with us. Others don't respect Confucius or worship the ancestral tablets." "You are so nonsense, very unreasonable. When Matteo Ricci came to China thousands of years ago, there was nothing wrong with my China theory. It would be better if you didn't come to China. Japan is a small country. If you kill one, what will you do to him? If you talk nonsense again, I'll kill them all. The powers of China want to kill you. What are we afraid of? " You are allowed to go to Guangdong as soon as possible within five days to catch up with Dole's meeting. If Dole talks nonsense again, even Dole will be killed. If you send troops to kill Dolza, I will fight him and bring Wan Lican to China. Can't I fight you? Some westerners in China don't preach, but build their own temples. We'll catch up with Dole and go back together. If it's too late, we'll give it to the governor with a lock and take it to Guangdong and Macao. I admire that.
This dialogue is vivid, reflecting that the Qing court was very strict with missionaries at that time. Because of the influence of this incident, "on the eighth day of April, He Jiong and Italian Stiren of the Franciscans in the West were ordered to be handed over to the Governor of Jiangning, and they left for Macau in May to go back with Doro. If Iraq and others pass the deadline, the governor will lock them up and send them to Guangdong and Macao. " Not only that, foreign missionaries were also questioned by the court, and missionaries were expelled to Macao successively:
On the eighth day of this month (March, forty-six), an order was issued: Monny and Dong Mojue, western Franciscans, meaning Banyan Balumao, Wan Duomo, Franciscans Lai Mingyuan, Rosenthal, Shan, Ai and Shan Ruogu. These ten people were expelled to the same door, meaning that Banyan Guoduolu lived in the Catholic Church in Guangdong. May 13: The Italian Lauhona will be deported to Macau in May, but westerners have never given tickets.
Those missionaries who expressed their willingness to accept Matteo Ricci's rule soon received tickets from Peking-this became an amulet for missionaries to continue to preach in China.
After Nanjing refused to get tickets, Kangxi first met with missionaries who were willing to get tickets in Hangzhou and Yangzhou on his way back, and Zhijun sent a message for this. Qin Ming's Missionary Covenant wrote:
In the forty-sixth year of Kangxi's southern tour, I submitted a letter of commendation and prepared my resume. Hangzhou missionaries Ai Qian, Ningbo Guo Zhongchuan and Shaoxing Gong Dangxin made a pilgrimage to Hangzhou Palace on the fourth day of April. On 26th, twenty-two missionary monks from all provinces met in Yangzhou Palace, and all of them were given a feast of yarn and satin, enjoying the honor of giving lectures in all provinces of China forever, without going back to the west. He said to the cloud, "After the reception, you are like a family with others." His life was paid for by the county king himself. I, ministers and others listened to the Oracle, being gentle and considerate to people far away, and respecting God, for Tao Shu is above ten thousand people.
On the way back to Beijing from the north, Francis of Linqing, who didn't get the ticket, also accepted the license granted by Zhiwang on May 13th, the 46th year of Kangxi (1707.6. 12).
Tickets granted by the Qing court to Franciscans of Italy
Kangxi's southern tour was actually an excellent opportunity to observe the operation of politics and power at that time. We saw that Wang Zhijun, the eldest son of the emperor, drove with him during the sixth southern tour, which played an extremely important role. He had face-to-face contact with the missionary, and it was up to him to decide whether to issue the ticket. Of course, wise kings dare to treat missionaries so harshly, and certainly dare not make their own decisions. He must have got the acquiescence of the emperor and the behind-the-scenes support of Kangxi. In the Qing Dynasty, the succession to the throne in the Kangxi Dynasty was the most thrilling, but it also showed from a certain aspect that all the princes in the Kangxi Dynasty were quite talented, and none of them could take an absolute advantage. Emperor Kangxi devoted himself to training and educating vassals. When he was young, he was strict with them. When he was an adult, he let them go their own way, which pushed the vassals to an important position and constituted an important part of imperial power. From the southern tour, we know the monarch diplomacy.
At the same time, we can see that the role of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, which is generally only responsible for court affairs, is also very eye-catching. Its officials were responsible for the communication between the emperor and missionaries, and at that time it had become a foreign-related institution. These officials, such as Zhao Chang, Wang Daohua, Zhang Changchang, and others, were all close ministers of the emperor. They not only asked different missionaries and Christians, but also mastered the words and deeds of Dorothy and the missionaries, and reported to the emperor at any time, which provided a basis for Kangxi to deal with the etiquette dispute.
The contact between the emperor and missionaries was also an important part of the southern tour, especially the last southern tour, which can be said to be a diplomatic trip involving religion. It can be clearly seen from the records of several southern tours that the missionaries finally lost the preferential treatment of Kangxi and fell into a dilemma between the Vatican and the Qing court. On the one hand, at the request of the magistrate's king or emperor, they entered into a contract, abided by Matteo Ricci's rules and never returned to the West. On the other hand, the envoys of the Holy See have been strictly forbidden by the Pope to obey Matteo Ricci's rules. It is a difficult decision whether to follow Chinese etiquette or leave China. That is, the spread of Catholicism in China gradually turned into a semi-underground state, which eventually led to the banning of religion in Yong Zhengdi.
Kangxi's southern tour was of great significance to the politics of the Qing Dynasty, and played an important role in consolidating the rule and strengthening the imperial power. However, the current research obviously rarely touches the diplomatic level. With the intensification of the debate on Chinese etiquette in Kangxi dynasty, the emperor's attitude towards missionaries gradually changed from being gentle and tolerant with skill to being wary of doubting his theory and restricting his missionary work, and finally rose to the direct opposition between the Qing court and the Vatican, and its contradictions and conflicts were fully demonstrated in the last southern tour. We use the Chinese and Western archives and documents collected in China and Europe to reveal some neglected aspects in the southern tour, hoping to restore a richer historical scene in the Kangxi era.
(The author is a professor at the School of Humanities, China Academy of Sciences)
Cover picture: From the13rd century, Jewish art dominated by illustrated manuscripts ushered in a golden age. The picture is selected from Golden Haggarda (1330), which is now in the British Library.