Zhengtong Emperor

• Reign: 1436-1449; 1456-1465
• Other Names: 英宗 (Yīngzōng)
• Chinese: 正統帝 (Zhèngtǒngdì), 天順帝 (Tiānshùn)

Ming Yingzong ruled as the sixth emperor of China's Ming Dynasty, as the Zhengtong Emperor, returning to the throne as the Tianshun Emperor after seven and a half years imprisonment.

The Ming fought the Mongols on and off throughout much of the first century or so of the dynasty; in the 1440s, the conflict became particularly severe, and in 1449 the Mongols managed to capture the Zhengtong Emperor, keeping him captive for roughly one year. In his absence, Yingzong's brother took the throne as the Jingtai Emperor (Ming Taizong), and after Yingzong managed to return to Beijing, Jingtai then placed him under confinement in the palace for six and a half years while he retained the throne.

Yingzong then returned to the throne in 1456, taking a new reign name, as the Tianshun Emperor.

Preceded by Xuande Emperor	Emperor of Ming 1436-1449	Succeeded by Jingtai Emperor
Preceded by Jingtai Emperor	Emperor of Ming 1456-1465	Succeeded by Chenghua Emperor

References

• Conrad Schirokauer, et al, A Brief History of Chinese and Japanese Civilizations, Fourth Edition, Cengage Learning (2012), 246.