Hang Li Po
Encyclopedia
Hang Li Po was the fifth wife of Malaccan Sultan Mansur Shah (reigned 1456-1477). It is disputed whether Hang Li Po ever existed since she was never recorded in the Ming Chronicles of the ruling Chinese Ming Dynasty
Ming Dynasty
The Ming Dynasty, also Empire of the Great Ming, was the ruling dynasty of China from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan Dynasty. The Ming, "one of the greatest eras of orderly government and social stability in human history", was the last dynasty in China ruled by ethnic...

 nor in the genealogical record of the imperial house of Zhu, the royal family of the Ming dynasty. In addition, the Ming decorum of rites, governed by the Ministry of Rites
Ministry of Rites
The Ministry of Rites was one of the Chinese Three Departments and Six Ministries which existed from the time of the Tang Dynasty until the Xinhai Revolution of 1911 brought an end to Imperial China. Prior to its formation, the tasks given to the Ministry were assigned to officials such as the...

, in the matter of bestowing the title princess always used two characters followed by the title 公主 (Gong Zhu, a title denoting blood-relation to the Emperor) or 郡主 (Jun Zhu, indicating a relation to a Duke or a non-royal relation), such as was the case with Princess Changping
Princess Changping
Princess Changping , birth name Zhu Meicuo , was a princess of the Chinese Ming Dynasty.-Biography:Changping was born to the Chongzhen Emperor and Consort Wang Shun. As Consort Wang died from illness not long after Changping's birth, the princess was raised by Empress Zhou...

 長平公主 and Princess Dongyang 東陽郡主. The claim of a Ming princess converting to Islam is also disputed as the conversion of any aristocratic member of the Ming court to a foreign religion or belief was forbidden. A further dispute involves the time of arrival of the Sultan's envoy from Malacca. Some sources claim the reigning Ming Emperor was the Tianshun Emperor (reigned 1457-1464) whilst others state that Han Li Po was a princess in the court of the Yongle Emperor
Yongle Emperor
The Yongle Emperor , born Zhu Di , was the third emperor of the Ming Dynasty of China from 1402 to 1424. His Chinese era name Yongle means "Perpetual Happiness".He was the Prince of Yan , possessing a heavy military base in Beiping...

 (reigned 1402–1424). There is another speculation, the princess is just a very beautiful maid in the imperial house which was picked to assume the role of a princess. This type of princess usually are sent to far away kingdom that are not significant to the emperor and are not being declare in history book. This kind of practice was common throughout China history.

Admiral Zheng He's Seven Dragon Wells

Admiral Zheng He
Zheng He
Zheng He , also known as Ma Sanbao and Hajji Mahmud Shamsuddin was a Hui-Chinese mariner, explorer, diplomat and fleet admiral, who commanded voyages to Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, and East Africa, collectively referred to as the Voyages of Zheng He or Voyages of Cheng Ho from...

's Seven Wells lie at the foot of Chinese Hill
Bukit Cina
Bukit Cina is a hillside of historical significance in the capital of Malaysian state of Malacca, Malacca Town. It is located several kilometers to the north from the historical center of Malacca , but these days, it's surrounded by the modern city on all sides.-History:According to the local...

, Malacca, beside the Sam Poh Teng Temple. One of these is known today as the 'Hang Li Po Well'. These wells were dug by Admiral Zheng He's expeditionary naval force during their stopover in Malacca at the time of the Ming Dynasty. Chinese Hill was chosen by the Admiral as the base for his expeditionary force. The Seven Wells are also known as the Dragon's wells according to Feng Shui principles. The local government bulldozed some of these wells during the 1950-60s on the pretext of road building. To-date only three wells are left intact and they have never been dry even through the worst of drought.

Malacca-Ming diplomatic relations

According to the Malay Annals (Sejarah Melayu), the sultan dispatched Tun Perpatih Putih as his envoy to Ming China. He carried a letter to the Emperor in which it was mentioned that Hang Liu was sent to Malacca to be the bride of the Sultan. Hang Li Po came to Malacca along with 500 (sons of ministers) and other female attendants, many attendants later married officials serving Mansur Shah as Hang Li Po married the sultan after she accepted conversion to Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and .   : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...

. After their marriage, the sultan built a palace for Hang Li Po and her attendants were given a permanent home at Chinese Hill which serves as a cemetery for the local Chinese.

See also

  • Chinese Hill
    Bukit Cina
    Bukit Cina is a hillside of historical significance in the capital of Malaysian state of Malacca, Malacca Town. It is located several kilometers to the north from the historical center of Malacca , but these days, it's surrounded by the modern city on all sides.-History:According to the local...

  • Sultanate of Malacca
  • Nyonya
  • Malaysian Chinese
    Malaysian Chinese
    Malaysian Chinese is a Malaysian of Chinese origin. Most are descendants of Chinese who arrived between the fifteenth and the mid-twentieth centuries. Within Malaysia, they are usually simply referred to as "Chinese" in all languages. The term Chinese Malaysian is also sometimes used to refer to...


External links

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