Empress Ma (Jianwen)


Empress Xiaominrang, of the Ma clan, was the empress consort to the Jianwen Emperor and the second empress consort of China's Ming dynasty.

Biography

Born in 1378, Ma was the daughter of an official from the town of Yingtian in modern Nanjing named Ma Quan. She married Zhu Yunwen, grandson of the Hongwu Emperor, and was proclaimed consort of the Imperial Grandson-heir in 1395.
Zhu Yunmen ascended the throne in 1398 and Ma was instated as the empress consort in the second month of his reign. She had two sons, Zhu Wenkui, Crown Prince Hejian and Zhu Wengui, Prince Huai of Run, both posthumously honored.
In 1402, Zhu Di sacked Nanjing and set fire to the palace, where Empress Ma died.

Titles

Issue

  • As consort of the Imperial Grandson-heir:
  • *Zhu Wenkui, Crown Prince Hejian , the Jianwen Emperor's first son
  • As empress:
  • *Zhu Wengui, Prince Huai of Run, the Jianwen Emperor's second son