Eminent Chinese of the Ch'ing Period/Tuhai
TUHAI 圖海, d. Jan., 1682, first Duke Chung-ta (忠達公), was a Manchu of the Magiya 馬佳 clan and a member of the Plain Yellow Banner. His great-grandfather, Huši 瑚石, joined Nurhaci [q. v.] early in the latter's career. Tuhai at first served the government as a clerk and in 1645 was made a sub-reader. In 1651 he attracted the notice of Emperor Shih-tsu and was appointed a sub-chancellor shortly after the Emperor took over the government from Dorgon's [q. v.] clique. A year later he was given the minor hereditary rank of Ch'i tu-yü. In 1653 he was made a Grand Secretary and was appointed to serve on the Council of Princes and High Officials (議政大臣), holding concurrently the post of president of the Board of Punishments (1655–59). In 1656 he was given the title of Junior Guardian. However, in 1659, on account of a mistrial, and because he stubbornly argued with the Emperor, he was sentenced to be hanged. The sentence was commuted by the Emperor to deprivation of all his ranks and titles and to confiscation of all his property.
In 1661, after Emperor Shih-tsu died, Tuhai was recalled to service and was made lieutenant-general of his own Banner. In 1663 he was given the title of Ting-hsi Chiang-chün 定西將軍 to assist the commander, Murma 穆里瑪 (d. 1669, brother of Oboi, q. v.), in leading a Manchu army against some bandits in western Hupeh. The bandits were quickly suppressed. In 1667 he was again made a Grand Secretary and given the minor hereditary rank of Ch'ing-ch'ê tu-yü. In 1674, after Wu San-kuei and Kêng Ching-chung [qq. v.] had rebelled, Tuhai was ordered to supervise the Board of Revenue. In April 1675, after Burni (see under Empress Hsiao-tuan) rebelled and was leading the Chahar Mongols toward Mukden, Tuhai was made assistant commander of the army that was sent to meet Burni—the commander being Oja (see under Dodo). As the war in the south was engaging most of the trained soldiers, Tuhai's army was composed chiefly of servants, slaves, and such untrained Bannermen as could be spared. With this army he marched through Shanhaikuan and then north to meet Burni. He explained to his men that the Chahar Mongols under Burni were very rich, and encouraged all of them to exert themselves in order to defeat Burni and obtain the spoils. The ruse was successful; Burni was defeated, and was later killed by the Korcin Mongols. On his return to Peking Tuhai was rewarded with the rank of a first-class baron.
In 1676 Tuhai was given the title Fu-yüan Ta Chiang-chün 撫遠大將軍 and was placed in command of the armies that were fighting in Kansu against Wang Fu-ch'ên [q. v.]. After an important victory at P'ing-liang he forced Wang to surrender. The province of Kansu having thus been stabilized, Tuhai was given the rank of a third-class duke with rights of perpetual inheritance. With the famous soldiers, Chang Yung, Chao Liang-tung, and Sun Ssŭ-k'o [qq. v.] under him, Tuhai gradually recovered most of Shensi. In 1679 he led one of the four route armies into southern Shensi, and then sent other forces to recover Szechwan while he stayed at his headquarters in Han-chung, Shensi. Early in 1682 he returned to Peking where he died. He was canonized as Wên-hsiang 文襄. In 1724, in memory of his exploits, his dukedom was raised to the first class and was given the designation, Chung-ta.
Marsai (see under Furdan), grandson of Tuhai and inheritor of the dukedom, was executed early in 1733 for his failures in fighting the Eleuths in Mongolia (see under Tsereng).
[1/257/1a; 2/6/47b; 3/2/5a; 4/4/15b; P'ing-ting San-ni fang lüeh (see under Han T'an).]