26. China’s Teenage Emperor
Zhu Houzhao (1491 – 1521) ascended the Ming Dynasty’s throne and was crowned as the Zhengde Emperor in 1505 when he was fourteen years old. Unsurprisingly, the teenager had little interest in the boring work of government and disregarded state affairs. Also unsurprisingly for a teenager suddenly thrust in a position of absolute power, and given access to untold wealth, he went nuts. He left the business of running China to his courtiers and officials, and lived it up like only a teenager who could suddenly do whatever he wanted could live it up. The young emperor led an extravagant and profligate lifestyle, marked by lavish spending, bizarre behavior, and poor choices.
Such conduct set the stage for the Ming Dynasty’s eventual downfall. The new emperor was in the habit of wholly ignoring his imperial duties. As soon as he ascended the throne, he turned governance over to trusted eunuchs, and devoted himself to pleasure-seeking. With the levers of power left entirely in their hands, palace eunuchs became China’s most powerful class. Without checks or oversight, corruption became endemic and public offices were openly bought and sold. Taxes soared to pay for the emperor’s pleasures and to feather the nests of courtiers and officials.