Aiyin Gulu

Overview

Aiyingulu was a member of the Ulanara clan of the Plain White Banner in the early Qing Dynasty. He was the great-grandson of Taifeika, the eldest son of Guduizhuyan, and submitted to the Qing Dynasty at the beginning of the dynasty. Volume 23 of the official Qing Dynasty clan genealogy, *the Comprehensive Genealogy of the Manchu Clans of the Eight Banners*, records that his sons, Jiman and Niman, served as Langzhong (a type of official). Further records of their descendants are kept according to their respective branches. Jiman's eldest son, Bandi, participated in the campaign against Galdan as a military commander and was awarded the title of Yunqiwei (a military rank), later becoming a commander-in-chief. His second son, Arna, distinguished himself in battles in Zhejiang and Fujian, also receiving the title of Yunqiwei, and becoming a commander-in-chief and zuoling (a military rank). His fourth son, Fakejin, distinguished himself in battles in Guangdong, Guangxi, and Yunnan, receiving another Yunqiwei, and becoming a first-class bodyguard and chief secretary. Within the same family, different individuals could obtain multiple independent hereditary titles based on their military achievements; therefore, the three Yunqiwei titles cannot be considered a single reward for Aiyingulu himself. Langzhong handled departmental and administrative affairs, while chief secretaries were found in the systems of princes' mansions, and commanders-in-chief and military commanders were military and political officials of the banner camps, with distinct responsibilities. The text also details the branches of the uncles, which need to be separated from the direct line of Jiman and Niman. The mother's character "Kugu" corresponds to the electronic text "Gu". The characters for the name and the Manchu transliteration still need to be verified against the original inscription. The original entries will not be changed at present.