Oboi [Guwalgiya]

Oboi 鼇拜, d. 1669, a Manchu of the Bordered Yellow Banner, was the third son of Uici 偉齊 one of the members of the important Solgo family of the Gûwalgiya clan. In 1634, in return for his military services, he was granted an hereditary commission as niru i janggin (captain of a company) and appointed to the position of colonel. For bravery shown in the attack on the island fortresses of the Ming armies, he was in 1637 made a baron of the third class and given the honorary title, baturu. After further military service in 1641 and 1643 he was rewarded with the rank of viscount of the third class. In 1644 he followed Dorgon [q.v.] to Peking and continued to serve with distinction in the army. After being raised to a viscount of the first class (1645), he took part in several important campaigns during Dorgon's regency—fighting first against Li Tzû-ch'êng [q.v.], then against Chang Hsien-chung [q.v.], and finally against Chiang Hsiang [q.v.]. Apparently he was one of Dorgon's trusted men. However, in 1651, immediately after Dorgon's death (late in 1650), he and several courtiers assisted Emperor Shih-tsu (i.e., Fu-lin, q.v.) to get rid of Dorgon's faction and so have more power in government. Oboi was made a marquis and a year later (1652) was raised to a duke of the second class. He also held the highest military rank, namely chamberlain of the Imperial Bodyguard. In addition to other honors, he was given in 1656 the title of Junior Tutor.

Before his death, early in 1661, Emperor Shih-tsu designated his son, then eight sui, heir to the throne. He became Emperor Shêng-tsu (Hsüan-yeh, q.v.). During his minority affairs were directed by four joint regents, namely, Soni (see under Songgotu), Ebilun [q.v.], Suksaha 蘇克薩哈 (d. 1667), and Oboi. They had all been in Emperor Shih-tsu's confidence because they had helped him to overthrow Dorgon's clique. With the support of Ebilun, Oboi worked himself into a position of authority and ruled virtually supreme for the next eight years. He took advantage of his power to settle several personal feuds and put a number of important men to death.

Most bitterly condemned of all his policies was his plan to rearrange the settlement of some of the Banners. From the time of the organization of the Eight Banners by Nurhaci [q.v.], their relative positions in a traditional geometrical form had been fixed. This arrangement was followed in such matters as the deployment of forces for a siege, and was the order in which the Banner regiments were later settled in the Tartar City at Peking. The north side, being the position of honor, was occupied by the two Yellow Banners; the east, by the White Banners; the west, by the Red; and the south, by the Blue. In the allotment of estates and lands to the Banners, after the occupation of the province of Chihli in 1644, some attempt was made to follow the same arrangement geographically, although it was impossible to do this with precision. As an exception the regent, Dorgon, having selected Yung-p'ing in the extreme northeast as his own residence, allocated the surrounding territory to his own Banner, the Plain White. The Bordered Yellow Banner which would normally have occupied this section received territory in the central part of the province, east of Paotingfu. Although the situation had remained so for almost twenty years, Oboi began to agitate for an exchange of territory between the two groups in a manner which would be advantageous for the Bordered Yellow Banner, to which both he and Ebilun belonged. Early in the year 1667 he caused the execution of three officials who opposed him in his plan of exchanging the lands of the two Banners, and a few months later was preparing to go further when the young emperor took the rule into his own hands. Oboi was then raised to a duke of the first class and his second class dukedom was given to his son, Namfe 納穆福.

By this time one of the regents, Soni, had died (see under Songgotu). Oboi and Ebilun worked together while the third, Suksaha, alone and powerless, immediately petitioned for permission to retire. As a member of the Plain White Banner he had, since the establishment of the regency, been increasingly hostile to Oboi. Before he could retire, however, Oboi found means for bringing him to trial and, overruling opposition from Emperor Shêng-tsu, ordered his summary execution. Even his sons and relatives were executed. Left alone in power with Ebilun, Oboi attempted to maintain control over Emperor Shêng-tsu who was still under fourteen years of age. In 1669 the emperor, with the help of Songgotu [q.v.], had him arrested for insolence. Prince Giyesu [q.v.], then chief of the Council of Princes and High Officials, immediately prepared a list of thirty crimes charged against him. Many of the members of his clique were executed, including Grand Secretary Bamburšan 班布爾善, a grandson of Nurhaci. Oboi himself was thrown into prison where he soon died. Both of his dukedoms were abolished and his descendants became commoners.

In 1713 Emperor Shêng-tsu, in remembrance of Oboi's early exploits, gave him posthumously the hereditary rank of a baron, which, after being held for some time by a grandnephew of Oboi, was given to a grandson, Dafu 達福 (d. 1731). In 1727, when Dafu was appointed a deputy lieutenant general, he so impressed Emperor Shih-tsung (Yin-chên, q.v.) at an audience that the emperor restored his grandfather's dukedom in order that he might inherit it. Moreover, the designation, Ch'ao-wu (超武公), was specifically given to this dukedom. In 1729 Dafu was sent to assist Furdan [q.v.] in fighting against the Eleuths. Two years later, when the expeditionary forces were defeated west of Khobdo (see under Furdan), Dafu commanded the rear guard while the main army fell back. He was killed on the battlefield.

Late in 1780, Emperor Kao-tsung enumerated the crimes of Oboi and decreed that he and his descendants were not entitled to an hereditary dukedom. It was therefore ordered that the hereditary rank of Oboi's descendants should henceforth be reduced to that of baron.

[ 1/255/7a; 2/6/9b;9/2/12b; li/5/27a; 34/137/14b.]

GEORGE A. KENNEDY

《清史稿》卷249

鼇拜，瓜爾佳氏，滿州鑲黃旗人，衞齊第三子。初以巴牙喇壯達從征，屢有功。天聰八年，授牛彔章京世職，任甲喇額真。崇德二年，征明皮島，與甲喇額真準塔為前鋒，渡海搏戰，敵軍披靡，遂克之。命優敘，進三等梅勒章京，賜號「巴圖魯」。六年，從鄭親王濟爾哈朗圍錦州，明總督洪承疇赴援，鼇拜輒先陷陣，五戰皆捷，明兵大潰，追擊之，擒斬過半。功最，進一等，擢巴牙喇纛章京。八年，從貝勒阿巴泰等敗明守關將，進薄燕京，略地山東，多斬獲。凱旋，敗明總督范志完總兵吳三桂軍。敘功，進三等昂邦章京，賚賜甚厚。

順治元年，隨大兵定燕京。世祖考諸臣功績，以鼇拜忠勤勠力，進一等。二年，從英親王阿濟格征湖廣，至安陸，破流賊李自成。進征四川，斬張獻忠於陣。下遵義、夔州、茂州諸郡縣。五年，坐事，奪世職。又以貝子屯齊訐告謀立肅親王，私結盟誓，論死，詔宥之，罰鍰自贖。是年，率兵駐防大同，擊叛鎮姜瓖，迭敗之，克孝義。七年，復坐事，降一等阿思哈尼哈番。

世祖親政，授議政大臣。累進二等公，予世襲。擢領侍衛內大臣，累加少傅兼太子太傅。十八年，受顧命輔政。既受事，與內大臣費揚古有隙，又惡其子侍衛倭赫及侍衛西住、折克圖、覺羅塞爾弼同直御前，不加禮輔臣。遂論倭赫等擅乘御馬及取御用弓矢射鹿，並棄市。又坐費揚古怨望，亦論死，并殺其子尼侃、薩哈連，籍其家，以與弟都統穆里瑪。

初入關，八旗皆有分地。睿親王多爾袞領鑲黃旗，定分地在雄、大城、新安、河間、任丘、肅寧、容城諸縣。至是已二十年，旗、民相安久。鼇拜以地确，倡議八旗自有定序，鑲黃旗不當處右翼之末，當與正白旗薊、遵化、遷安諸州縣分地相易。正白旗地不足，別圈民地補之。中外皆言不便。蘇克薩哈為正白旗人，與相抗尤力。鼇拜怒，悉逮蘇納海等，棄市。事具蘇克薩哈傳。又追論故戶部尚書英俄爾岱當睿親王攝政時阿王意，授分地亂序，並及他專擅諸事，奪世職。時有竊其馬者，鼇拜捕斬之，並殺御馬群牧長。怒蒙古都統俄訥、喇哈達、宜理布於議政時不附己，即令蒙古都統不與會議。

鼇拜受顧命，名列遏必隆後，自索尼卒，班行章奏，鼇拜皆首列。日與弟穆里瑪、姪塞本特、訥莫及班布爾善、阿思哈、噶褚哈、瑪爾賽、泰必圖、濟世、吳格塞等黨比營私，凡事即家定議，然後施行。侍讀熊賜履應詔陳時政得失，鼇拜惡之，請禁言官不得陳奏。上親政，加一等公，其子納穆福襲二等公。世祖配天，加太師，納穆福加太子少師。鼇拜益專恣。戶部滿尚書缺員，欲以命瑪爾賽，上別授瑪希納，鼇拜援順治間故事，戶部置滿尚書二，強請除授。漢尚書王弘祚領部久，瑪爾賽不得自擅，乃因事齮而去之。卒，又擅予諡忠敏。工部滿尚書缺員，妄稱濟世才能，強請推補。

康熙八年，上以鼇拜結黨專擅，勿思悛改，下詔數其罪，命議政王等逮治。康親王傑書等會讞，列上鼇拜大罪三十，論大辟，并籍其家，納穆福亦論死，上親鞫俱實，詔謂︰「效力年久，不忍加誅，但褫職籍沒。」納穆福亦免死，俱予禁錮。鼇拜死禁所，乃釋納穆福。

五十二年，上念其舊勞，追賜一等阿思哈尼哈番，以其從孫蘇赫襲。蘇赫卒，仍以鼇拜孫達福襲。世宗立，賜祭葬，復一等公，予世襲，加封號曰超武。乾隆四十五年，高宗宣諭群臣，追覈鼇拜功罪，命停襲公爵，仍襲一等男；並命當時為鼇拜誣害諸臣有褫奪世職者，各旗察奏，錄其子孫。