Hushba

Overview

Hushiba was a member of the Majia clan in the early Qing Dynasty, belonging to the Bordered Blue Banner's bondservant class. His family had lived in Majia for generations, and he submitted to the Qing Dynasty at the beginning of the dynasty, serving as a Zuo Ling (military officer). The official clan genealogy of the Qianlong era, *The General Genealogy of the Manchu Clans of the Eight Banners*, Volume 7, records that his son, Muhada, also served as a Zuo Ling, and his grandson, Wengguodai, participated in battles in places like Taiping Mountain in Zhejiang Province, earning merit and being awarded the title of Yunqiwei (a military rank). He later served as a Canling (a military rank), a position inherited by Wengguodai's son, Malai. Bondservants were a specific affiliation within the banner system. Zuo Ling were responsible for the organization and management of corresponding grassroots soldiers and households, while Canling were camp management officers; Yunqiwei was a hereditary military rank. The fact that father and son both served as Zuo Ling does not necessarily mean that the position was legally hereditary, and Malai's inheritance of Yunqiwei did not automatically mean he became a Canling. Taiping Mountain was a battlefield for his descendants, not another name for the Majia clan's location. His great-grandson, Heise, served as a Xiaoqixiao (a military rank), and Zhaoyilin served as a First-Class Guard. His great-great-grandson, Eluohezhuoli, served as a Hujunxiao (a military officer), and his fourth-generation descendant, Ma Xiong, also served as a Hujunxiao. The guards belonged to the prefectural guard system and should not be confused with the palace's first-class guards. The original text's annotation states that this person was of the same clan as Wohede, a bondservant of the same banner; the entry for Qiba separately records his younger brother Hushiba, but whether they are the same person still requires genealogical evidence and cannot be combined solely based on the same name. The modern location of Ma Jia, the prefectural office to which the bondservant belonged, and his position as a Zuo Ling await verification.