Yuyan | |
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Pretender | |
Born | 1918 Beijing, China |
Died | 1997 (aged 78–79) Beijing, China |
Throne(s) claimed | China |
Pretend from | 17 October 1967 – 1997 |
Monarchy abolished | 1912 |
Last monarch | Xuantong Emperor |
Connection with | Cousin |
Royal House | Aisin Gioro |
Father | Pucheng |
Mother | Jinggui |
Spouse | Magiya Jinglan Zhang Yunfang |
Children | Hengzhen Hengkai Hengjun |
Predecessor | Xuantong Emperor |
Yuyan | |||||||
Chinese | 毓嵒 | ||||||
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Yanrui (courtesy name) |
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Traditional Chinese | 巖瑞 | ||||||
Simplified Chinese | 岩瑞 | ||||||
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Xiaoruizi (nickname) |
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Chinese | 小瑞子 | ||||||
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Transcriptions | |
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Standard Mandarin | |
Hanyu Pinyin | Yùyán |
Transcriptions | |
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Standard Mandarin | |
Hanyu Pinyin | Yánruì |
Transcriptions | |
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Standard Mandarin | |
Hanyu Pinyin | Xiǎoruìzǐ |
Yuyan (1918–1997), courtesy name Yanrui, nickname Xiaoruizi, was a Chinese calligrapher of Manchu descent. He was a member of the Aisin Gioro clan, the imperial clan of the Qing dynasty. He claimed that he was appointed by Puyi, the Last Emperor of China, as the heir to the throne. His claim is the subject of the travel adventure book The Empty Throne by British journalist Tony Scotland.
Born in Wangfujing, Beijing, Yuyan was the second son of Pucheng (溥偁) and Jinggui (敬貴), a lady of the Fuca (富察) clan. His grandfather was Zailian (載濂; 1854–1917), a son of Yicong (1831–1889), the fifth son of the Daoguang Emperor. He was a distant cousin of Puyi, the Last Emperor.
In 1936, Yuyan was summoned by Puyi, who had been enthroned as the ruler of the puppet state Manchukuo in 1934 by the Empire of Japan, to join his imperial court in Changchun, Jilin. Yuyan was very close to Puyi, who called him "Xiaoruizi" (小瑞子; or "Little Rui").
After the fall of Manchukuo, Yuyan was arrested by the Russians and imprisoned from 1945 to 1950 near Khabarovsk in the Soviet Union's Far East Region along with Puyi. He was later sent back to China, where he was incarcerated in the Fushun War Criminals Management Centre in Liaoning from 1950 to 1957.
Yuyan was a pretender to the Chinese throne. He claimed that Puyi appointed him as heir when they were both imprisoned in Russia in 1950. In his autobiography, Puyi wrote only that he considered selecting Yuyan as his heir, but there were no official documents to support Yuyan's claim. Under a succession law adopted in 1937, Puyi's younger brother, Pujie, became next in line in succession to the throne.