Aisin Gioro沛 (濟齋)

TÊ-p'ei 德沛 (T. 濟齋, 1688–1752, Aug. 15?), official, scholar, and Christian convert, was a member of the Imperial family and a descendant of Šurhaci. The latter's eighth son was Tê-p'ei's great-grandfather. The grandfather of Tê-p'ei, named Fulata 傅拉塔 (1622–1676, posthumous name 惠獻), was a cousin of Jidu. As holder of the hereditary rank of beise 貝子 (prince of the fourth degree), Fulata, with the title of Ning-hai chiang-chün 寧海將軍, assisted Giyešu [q.v.] in suppressing the rebellion of Kêng Ching-chung in Chekiang and Fukien (1674–76). Fulata's fifth son, Fu-ts'un 福存 (1665–1700), was at first made a Chêng-kuo-kung 鎭國公 (prince of the fifth degree), but in 1691 succeeded to his father's rank of beise. Fu-ts'un had ten sons, of whom the second, Tê-p'u 德普 (1683–1729), inherited the reduced rank of Chên-kuo-kung. The eighth son was Tê-p'ei.

Brought up in an environment of wealth and ease, Tê-p'ei learned to ride horses and became an expert marksman with the bow and arrow. But being afflicted, about the age of twenty (sui), with tuberculosis, he left his home and went to lead a secluded life in the hills west of Peking where he meditated on and studied the Classics and the writings of the Sung philosophers. About the year 1718 he embraced the Christian faith and was baptized by Father Ignace Kögler (see under Ho Kuo-tsung). He was intimate with the family of his distant cousin, Sunu, whose sons became Christians. It was probably in 1729 (when his brother, Tê-p'u, died) that he declined the offer to inherit the family rank. Preferring to continue his studies, he relinquished it in favor of his nephew.

In time Tê-p'ei became known as a learned, dependable, and upright man. In 1735 his name was presented to Emperor Shih-tsung by Prince Kuo (Yin-li, see under Hsüan-yeh) and he was summoned for an audience. In June or July of that year he was made a noble of imperial lineage of the ninth rank; and on October 4, four days before the Emperor died, he was given the high post of senior vice-president of the Board of War. Under the new Emperor, Kao-tsung, he continued to enjoy special favors and was entrusted with various important posts. In 1736 he was made provincial commander-in-chief of Chihli with headquarters at Ku-pei-k'ou. Early in 1737 he was sent to Kansu as governor, and later in the same year was made governor-general of Hupeh and Hunan. In 1739 he was transferred to Foochow as governor of Fukien and Chekiang, and three years later was transferred to Nanking to serve as governor-general of Kiangsu, Anhwei, and Kiangsi. He was recalled to the capital in 1743, made a vice-president of the Board of Civil Office and concurrently libationer of the Imperial Academy. In January 1748 he was raised to be president of his Board but seven months later he resigned because of illness.

Three months after his resignation Tê-p'ei was named by Emperor Kao-tsung to succeed to the hereditary rank which had been originally awarded to his great-granduncle, Jirgalang. This rank, a princedom of the first degree (designated first as Chêng Ch'in-wang 鄭親王 and later as Chien 簡 Ch'in-wang), had remained in Jidu's family from 1657 to 1748. The holder in Tê-p'ei's time was a grandson of Jidu and a fourth cousin of Tê-p'ei, named Shên-pao-chu 神保住, who in his later years became blind. Shên-pao-chu was deprived of his status on November 11, 1748 because he had been accused by the Imperial Clan Court of ordering the flogging of his niece by a eunuch. It was reported also that he had shown parsimony in the support of his fellow-clansmen. When Tê-p'ei was named the eighth inheritor of Jirgalang's rank (or the seventh Prince Chien), he was enjoined to show kindness to his poorer relations. He held the rank, however, for only four years, for he died in 1752. He was canonized as I 儀. Because he left no male heir the rank reverted to Jirgalang's branch of the family (see under Ulgungga).

Chinese records seem not to record the fact that Tê-p'ei became a Christian; only in the writings or correspondence of the missionaries are there references to a cousin of Sunu, a governor of Chekiang and governor-general of Hunan and Hupeh, who embraced the Christian faith and was baptized under the name Joseph. Ch'ên Yüan (see under Sunu) has lately shown that these indications point unequivocably to Tê-p'ei whose Christian ideas and knowledge of Western science are, moreover, revealed in his writings—particularly in his 實踐錄 Shih-chien lu, printed in 1736; and in his 鰲峯書院講學錄 Ao-fêng shu-yüan chiang-hsüeh lu, printed in 1741. Tê-p'ei left two works on the Classic of Changes, entitled 易圖解 I t'u-chieh and 周易補注 Chou-I pu-chu.

[Ch'%C3%AAn Yüan's studies appear in Fu-jên hsüeh-chih (see bibl. under Liu Pao-nan) vol. 3, no. 2 (1932); Pfister, Notices, p. 644; Shêng-yü [q.v.], Pa-ch'i wên-ching, chüan 11, 14; 宗室王公功績表傳 Tsung-shih Wang-kung kung-chi piao-chuan, 6/22a; Fang Pao [q.v.], Wang-hsi chi-wai-wên pu-i, 1/6a, 15a; idem, Wang-hai wên-chi tsai-hsü pu-i, 2/9a.]

Fang Chao-ying

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德沛字濟齋，貝子福存子。雍正十三年，授鎮國將軍。以果親王允禮薦，世宗召見，問所欲，對曰：「願廁孔廡分特豚之饋。」上大重之。授兵部侍郎。乾隆元年，改古北口提督。二年，授甘肅巡撫，奏言：「甘肅州縣多在萬山中，遇災，民入城領賑，路窵遠。宜於鄉鎮設廠散糧，並許州縣吏具詳即施賑。」旋擢湖廣總督，奏言：「治苗疆宜勸墾田，置學校，並諭令植樹。」四年，調閩浙總督。御史朱續晫劾福建巡撫王士任贓私，上疑不實，命續晫會鞫。德沛自承失察，直續晫而奪士任官，時服其公。福州將軍隆昇貪縱，劾去之。奏言；「海濱居民恆械鬥，宜酌移鎮將營汛，預弭爭端。」五年十二月，諭曰：「德沛屢任封疆，操守廉潔，一介不取，逋負日積，致蠲舊產。賜福建藩庫銀一萬，以風有位。」六年，兼署浙江巡撫。七年，調兩江總督。淮、揚大水，令府縣發倉庫，奏撥地丁、關稅、鹽課銀十萬兩治賑。尋議河事與高斌不合。八年，轉吏部侍郎。十二年五月，署山西巡撫。十二月，擢吏部尚書。十三年七月，以疾解任。神保住既黜，上以德沛操履厚重，特命襲爵，曾祖貝勒費揚武、祖貝子傅喇塔、父福存，並追封簡親王。十七年，薨，諡曰儀。以濟爾哈朗曾孫奇通阿襲。