Jiaqing Emperor
Character Profile
| Name: | Yongyan (regnal title: Jiaqing Emperor) |
| Date of Birth: | 13 November 1760 |
| Service: | |
| Rank: | Emperor |
| Nationality: | Chinese |
| Billets: |
Biography
Yongyan, the 15th son of the Qialong Emperor, was the reigning Emperor at the time when Laurence and Temeraire traveled to China. On his accession to the throne, he chose "Jiaqing" as the era name for his reign.
Prince Mianning and Prince Miankai were two of his sons.
Deviations from history
In Temeraire's world, the Jiaqing Emperor was the companion to a male Celestial dragon (Either Lung Tien Ming or Lung Tien Zhi).
The Emperor's (fictional) brother, Prince Yongxing, was said to have lost his own chance to become Emperor by accepting the albino Lung Tien Lien for a companion, despite her inauspicious "mourning colors". It is unclear whether any conclusions can be drawn from this about the two brothers' relative birth orders, as age was not always a factor as to which of an Emperor's sons would become the next ruler of China; the Emperor would choose his successor, and usually leave a note to be opened upon his death detailing who would succeed him.
It should be noted, however, that the Jiaqing Emperor's eldest son Mianning was companion to a Celestial (Lung Tien Chuan) and heir to the throne by 1806, when historically the Jiaqing Emperor had not made his choice by this time. Presumably, when the youngest Celestial chooses a companion for itself, its consort becomes the next Emperor, with the exception of Lung Tien Lien, who was considered cursed.
Of the Emperor's three birth sons, only the eldest, Prince Miankai, is known to have had a Celestial companion as well. The much younger Prince Mianning did not have a Celestial. The third son's placement and companionship status were not stated; if the Emperor also had any daughters, nothing was said of them.
In order to technically satisfy the tradition that members of the Imperial family were the only worthy companions for Celestial dragons, the Emperor agreed to adopt William Laurence as a fourth son, since Temeraire refused to part with him. Since Laurence soon left China, this had little effect outside its borders until 1810, on reaching the Chinese/Larrakia trading post on the northern coast of Australia.
