Emperor Kangxi was enthroned at the age of seven (or eight by East Asian age reckoning), on 7 February 1661, 12 days after his father's death, although his reign formally began on 18 February 1662, the first day of the following lunar year.
He defeated Ao Bai with his wits, suppressed the Revolt of the Three Feudal Lords, blocked Tsarist Russia on the Amur River and reoccupied Taiwan. He also cancelled taxes and levies, and strengthened the foundation for the long-term stability and prosperity of the Qing Dynasty.
When Kangxi first became emperor, he was assisted by four regents including Ao Bai, who formed cliques for his own selfish interests. Ao Bai abrogated powers and official posts, posing a great challenge to Kangxi’s authority as emperor. When Kangxi turned 14, he devised plans to eliminate Ao Bai and his allies. He thus began training a group of young guards. Two years later, he invited Ao Bai and other officials to a game of chess. When the officials were gathered, Kangxi listed the crimes that Ao Bai had committed. The young guards who were hiding in ambush then launched a surprise attack on Ao Bai and managed to capture him. As a result, Ao Bai was removed from office and jailed. His henchmen were also killed. Kangxi, at the age of 16, thus demonstrated his political talent and began to take over control of political affairs.
During his reign, Kangxi fought hard to maintain a unified China. From AD 1673, Wu Sangui, Geng Jingzhong and Shang Zhixin, who had been generals under the Ming Dynasty, revolted against the Qing Dynasty. This is commonly referred to as the Revolt of the Three Feudal Lords. Kangxi took eight years to suppress this revolt. In AD 1683, Kangxi launched an attack on Taiwan, forcing Zheng Keshuang, the grandson of Zheng Chenggong, to surrender. Taiwan was annexed by the Qing Dynasty and used as a defensive front against attacks from the western colonial powers. After the Qing army arrived in China, the Russians invaded the northern frontier. They carried out acts of killing, burning, robbing and rape on a massive scale.
In AD 1685, Kangxi engaged in battle with the Russian army, which was forced to surrender. However, when the Qing army retreated, the Russians invaded the northern frontier again. The second year, Kangxi sent his army on another campaign against Russian troops. After a series of battles and negotiations, the Treaty of Nerchinsk was signed in AD 1689. The border was fixed and the Amur River valley was given to the Qing Empire. The Mongolian aristocrat Gaerdan then joined forces with the Russians and started a rebellion against the Qing Empire. Kangxi personally led the army to suppress the rebellion three times, and eventually emerged as the victor. Later, the nephew of Gaerdan colluded with the minorities in Tibet and revolted against Kangxi. Kangxi again eradicated these military threats. He strengthened the unification of a multi-ethnic China. After the Qing army invaded China, revolts against the Qing government took place successively at different places in China. The suppression of rebellions took a toll on national productivity and stability. To strengthen his rule, Kangxi initiated a series of measures to restore and develop the economy.
Kangxi put a stop to the enclosing of land and later ordered that no farmland belonging to the peasants should be taken. He also reformed the tax and forced labour system. He ordered that there should be no taxes on births, and later based taxes on land ownership. Taxes were calculated according to the amount of land owned, which to a certain extent minimised inequality in taxation. Kangxi also encouraged the cultivation of barren land, reduced the land tax, provided assistance to people stricken by disaster, and launched irrigation projects. These measures helped to restore economic production and development. Under his rule, there was an increase in the area of farmland, population size and income from taxation.
Beyond his economic achievements, Kangxi was also interested in traditional culture. Kangxi was knowledgeable himself: Confucian education, western science, culture, astronomy, calendars, mathematics, geography, medicine, music, painting, and other subjects. Kangxi ruled China for 61 years.
Empress Xiaokangzhang (1640–1663). Her family was of Jurchen origin but had lived among the Chinese for generations. It had a Chinese family name, Tong, but converted to the Manchu clan name Tongiya later. She was instated as the Empress Dowager Cihe in 1661 when Kangxi became emperor. She is known posthumously as Empress Xiaokangzhang.
