Wanrong

Wanrong
Empress of the Qing (titular)
Empress of Manchukuo
Wanrong, c. 1929–1931
Empress consort of Manchukuo
Tenure1 March 1934 – 17 August 1945
PredecessorEmpress Xiaodingjing (in Qing)
SuccessorMonarchy abolished
Born(1906-11-13)13 November 1906
(光绪三十二年 二月 四日)
Beijing, Qing dynasty
Died20 June 1946(1946-06-20) (aged 39)
(丙戌五月 二十一日)
Yanji, Jilin, China
Spouse
(m. 1922)
Names
Gobulo Wanrong (郭布羅·婉容)
Posthumous name
Empress Xiaokemin (孝恪愍皇后)
HouseGobulo (郭布羅)
FatherRongyuan
MotherAisin-Gioro Hengxin
Wanrong
Chinese婉容
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinWǎnróng
Wade–GilesWan3-jung2
Yue: Cantonese
JyutpingWun2-jung4
Empress Xiaokemin
(posthumous name)
Traditional Chinese宣統皇后
Simplified Chinese宣统皇后
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinXiàokèmǐn Huánghòu
Wade–GilesHsiao4-k'o4-min3 Huang2-hou4
Yue: Cantonese
JyutpingHaau3kok3man5 Wong4hau6
Muhong
(courtesy name)
Traditional Chinese慕鴻
Simplified Chinese慕鸿
Literal meaningAdmirable Swan
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinMùhóng
Yue: Cantonese
JyutpingMo6hung4
Zhilian
(art name)
Traditional Chinese植蓮
Simplified Chinese植莲
Literal meaningLotus Plant
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinZhílián
Yue: Cantonese
JyutpingZik6lin4

Wanrong (Chinese: 婉容; 13 November 1906 – 20 June 1946), of the Manchu Plain White Banner Gobulo clan, was the wife and empress consort of Puyi, the last emperor of China. She is sometimes anachronistically called the Xuantong Empress, referring to Puyi's era name. She was the titular empress consort of the former Qing dynasty from their marriage in 1922 until the exile of the imperial family in November 1924.[1] She later became the empress consort of the Japanese puppet state of Manchukuo in northeastern China from 1934 until the abolition of the monarchy in August 1945, at the conclusion of the Second World War. She was posthumously honored with the title Empress Xiaokemin.

During the Soviet invasion of Manchuria at the end of the Second Sino-Japanese War in 1945, Wanrong was captured by Chinese Communist guerrillas and transferred to various locations before she was placed in a prison camp in Yanji, Jilin. She died in prison in June 1946 and her remains were never found. On 23 October 2006, Wanrong's younger brother, Runqi, conducted a ritual burial for her in the Western Qing tombs.

  1. ^ The Last Emperor and His Five Wives. pp. 14–15.