Zhu Dong

King Yingjing Zhu Dong, the twenty-fourth son of Ming Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang, was born on June 21, 1388, and died on November 14, 1414. In the twenty-fourth year of Hongwu (1391), he was granted the title of King of Ying. During the sixth year of Yongle (1408), he was granted a fief in Changshou County, Anlu Prefecture, Hubei Province. He died in the twelfth year of Yongle (1414) at the age of twenty-six, after a six-year reign, and had no offspring. His wife was Lady Guo, the daughter of Duke Guo Ying of Wuding. She was enfeoffed as Princess of Ying in the third year of Yongle (1405). In the twelfth year of Yongle (1414), she committed suicide by hanging herself to accompany her husband in death, and was buried on Baoheshan Mountain. Additionally, six women who served as burial sacrifices were buried with them; their bodies were discovered upon excavation. Their daughters included Princess Guanghua, Princess Gucheng, Princess Nanzhang, and an infant casualty. The tomb of King Yingjing is located in Sanchahe Village, Jiuli Hui Ethnic Township, Zhongxiang City, Hubei Province. It has preserved the subterranean palace and part of the burial mound. In 2003, it was designated as a protected cultural relic of Hubei Province. In 2005, over 400 artifacts were unearthed through archaeological excavation, and the bodies of the sacrificial attendants were also discovered for the first time in a Ming Dynasty princely tomb.