House of Zhu

This article is about the Ming and Southern Ming imperial family. For the imperial family of the 10th-century dynasty, see Later Liang (Five Dynasties).

House of Zhu
Country
Founded23 January 1368, 656 years ago
FounderHongwu Emperor (Ming dynasty)
Final ruler
Titles
Deposition
  • 4 February 1364 (Duke of Wu)
  • 23 January 1368 (King of Wu)
  • 25 April 1644 (Ming dynasty)
  • 1 June 1662 (Southern Ming)
  • 1929 (Marquis of Zhu)

The House of Zhu was a Chinese imperial ruling house of the Ming dynasty (1368–1644) and Southern Ming dynasty (1644–1662). They also held the title "Duke of Wu" and "King of Wu" from 1361 to 1368 as well as "Marquis of Zhu" from 1725 to 1929.

Its founder was Zhu Yuanzhang, the leader of a major rebellion against the Mongol Yuan dynasty. He and his descendants lifted China to long-term economic prosperity and political stability. Over time, thanks to the polygamy common among the upper classes of Chinese society, the number of male members of the house increased to one hundred thousand. However, except for the emperors and heirs to the throne, they were excluded from politics for the sake of government stability.

From the late 16th century onwards, economic difficulties and the resulting peasant uprisings brought about a weakening of Ming power, which was used by the Manchu Qing dynasty in 1644 to seize power in the Central Plains.