Deku

Overview

Deku was a member of the Shumulu clan of the Plain Yellow Banner of the Manchus in the early Qing Dynasty. His family had lived in Hunchun for generations and submitted to the Qing during the Tiancong era. He once served as an Assistant Minister. The official clan genealogy of the Qianlong era, *The General Genealogy of the Manchu Clans of the Eight Banners*, Volume Six, lists his official position alongside that of his son, Fu Ning, who served as a Minister. This is a record of two generations of civil service service, not that one person held two positions consecutively.

Assistant Ministers and Ministers were officials at the ministerial level in central government ministries, responsible for the administrative affairs of their respective departments. Such positions were established in the Six Ministries and other government agencies of the Qing Dynasty, with Ministers usually ranking above Assistant Ministers. However, this entry does not specify the ministry to which he belonged; therefore, it is impossible to designate Deku as an Assistant Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, or to place Fu Ning in the same department. Both positions were substantive official posts, not hereditary military titles that could be automatically inherited according to father-son relationship.

Tiancong was the reign title used by Huang Taiji, generally corresponding to 1627-1636, indicating that this family's submission occurred during the period of the Later Jin's transition to the Qing Dynasty. In addition to its military organization, the Plain Yellow Banner also managed its subordinate households, identities, and corvée labor, allowing civil officials to hold positions and maintain banner affiliation simultaneously. Hunchun is related to the present-day Hunchun area of Jilin Province by place name, but the village cannot be identified solely based on this information. Information regarding the individual's term of office, Fu Ning's entry into officialdom, and whether father and son served in the same government office remains incomplete and should be awaited verification.