Name Consort Donggo Died September 23, 1660 | Children Prince Rong | |
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Issue Prince Rong of the First Rank (5 November 1657 – 25 February 1658) Similar People Shunzhi Emperor, Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang, Hong Taiji, Kangxi Emperor | ||
Consort Donggo (1639–1660) was a concubine of the Shunzhi Emperor of the Qing dynasty. She is sometimes confused with Dong Xiaowan (董小宛), a courtesan who lived in the late Ming dynasty and early Qing dynasty.
Life
Consort Donggo was born in the Manchu Donggo (董鄂) clan, which was under the Plain White Banner of the Eight Banners. Her father was Eshuo (鄂碩), who served as an Interior Minister in the Qing imperial court, while her mother was Han Chinese. Her ancestral home was in Liaoning.
Consort Donggo entered the Forbidden City at the age of 18 and was deeply loved and favored by the Shunzhi Emperor. She was granted the title "Consort Xian" (賢妃) in August 1656. She was further elevated to the status of "Imperial Noble Consort" (皇貴妃) in January 1657. The Shunzhi Emperor held a grand ceremony for the promotion of Consort Donggo and proclaimed an amnesty.
Consort Donggo gave birth to a son in 1657 but he died before reaching one year of age. The premature death of their son had a great impact on Consort Donggo and the Shunzhi Emperor. Consort Donggo fell ill and died in 1660 at the age of 21. The Shunzhi Emperor was so overwhelmed with grief that he stopped attending daily court meetings for five days to mourn Consort Donggo. It was also said that the Shunzhi Emperor was so depressed that he wanted to commit suicide, and his subjects had to watch over him every day for fear of his safety.
Two days after her death, Consort Donggo was posthumously granted the title of Empress, an uncommon gesture. She was interred in the Eastern Qing tombs.