Wu Erhuda

Overview

Wu Erhuda was a member of the Hada Nara clan of the Bordered Yellow Banner in the early Qing Dynasty. He was the eldest son of Menggebulu, the leader of Hada, and his family had lived in Hada for generations. Volume 23 of the official Qing Dynasty clan genealogy, *The Comprehensive Genealogy of the Manchu Clans of the Eight Banners*, records that he led his people to surrender at the beginning of the dynasty. Nurhaci married a princess to him and another princess to his son, Esendeli. His people were divided into the Eight Banners, and the rest were organized into zuoling (military units), led by his grandson, Keshene. Wu Erhuda was awarded the rank of Third-Class Baron and served as a First-Class Imperial Guard, but was later dismissed and did not continue the title. The marriages of princesses and princesses were arranged by the imperial family, the title of Baron was a hereditary title for meritorious officials, and the First-Class Imperial Guard was an actual military officer; these three should be understood separately. The fact that his people were divided into different banners after surrendering, rather than all remaining under the same zuoling, is an important piece of information regarding banner organization in this entry. In the original genealogy, Hada was the name of a tribal regime and its territory before entering the Central Plains, not another banner name within the Eight Banners. The text continues to detail the hereditary titles and descendants of Menggebulu's second son, Niekese, who was a branch of Wuerhuda's brothers. Therefore, it is incorrect to attribute his additional appointment as a Qingche duwei and other achievements to Wuerhuda himself.