Rank-Badge Overcoats of the Zhenguo Jiangjun

Dress category and emblem

A *zhenguo jiangjun* was a member of the Qing imperial clan holding a title within the military-sounding noble hierarchy below the ducal grades. The title did not itself establish command over troops. The corresponding rank-badge overcoat (*bufu*) made the wearer's social and official position visible through emblematic panels at the front and back.

In juan 5 of the *Illustrated Regulations for the Ceremonial Paraphernalia of the Imperial Court*, the provision for first-rank military officials' *bufu* prescribes dark-blue (*shiqing*) cloth and a *qilin* embroidered on the front and back. It expressly extends the same provision to the *zhenguo jiangjun* and certain other entitled persons. The *qilin*, a composite auspicious creature, therefore appears here as a prescribed dress insignia; it is not evidence that every wearer of a *qilin* badge belonged to the imperial clan.

Attribution and overlapping statuses

The *bufu* was an outer garment and should be distinguished from the *mangpao*, court robe, hat, and belts that completed other aspects of formal attire. An individual could hold both an imperial-clan title and an administrative or military office. Identifying the correct badge in a portrait consequently requires examining the person's contemporaneous standing and any documented exceptional privilege, rather than combining insignia associated with separate appointments.

Related encyclopedia entry: Auspicious Dress of the Zhenguo Jiangjun.

Related Wiki entries