Great Rites Controversy

This article is about the Ming dynasty political dispute. For the later Qing dynasty dispute involving Catholic missionaries, see Chinese Rites Controversy.

The Great Rites Controversy, which took place from 1521 to 1524 in Ming dynasty China, was a dispute between the Jiajing Emperor and his grand secretaries, who were supported by most officials. The disagreement centered around the status of the Emperor's parents. In 1521, the Jiajing Emperor succeeded his cousin the Zhengde Emperor, who died without children. The grand secretaries, led by Yang Tinghe, and most officials advocated for the new emperor's posthumous adoption by his uncle and the Zhengde Emperor's father, the late Hongzhi Emperor. This would have made the Jiajing Emperor the younger brother of his predecessor. The Jiajing Emperor refused the adoption and instead demanded that his parents be posthumously granted imperial rank. This disagreement dragged on for some time until the Emperor ultimately resolved it by forcing Yang Tinghe to resign and imprisoning, beating, or exiling other opponents to the outskirts of the empire.

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