Wantasi

Overview

Wantasi was a member of the Shaji Fucha clan of the Bordered Yellow Banner during the early Qing Dynasty, and the second son of Wangjinu. Volume 25 of the official Qing Dynasty clan genealogy, *The Comprehensive Genealogy of the Manchu Clans of the Eight Banners*, records that he surrendered to the Qing Dynasty at the beginning of the dynasty with his father and was given a separate Zuo-ling (military command) under his command, also serving as the chief steward of the imperial mausoleums. The Zuo-ling managed the basic population, soldiers, and related military and political affairs of the Eight Banners, while the chief steward of the mausoleums was involved in the management and protection of the imperial mausoleums; neither position can be interpreted as that of an ordinary clerk. Shaji was his family's ancestral home. The Dalian Library's introduction to the Shaji Fucha clan genealogy provides a geographical clue that it was southwest of Xingjing (Beijing), but the specific village where Wantasi resided has not yet been determined based on this. The original genealogy also records that his uncle Yarbu's son, Fatha, participated in battles near Beijing and Shandong as a Zuo-ling, and was awarded the title of Yunqiwei (a military rank), which was later inherited by relatives such as Bage, Suobaozhu, Boxi, and Fukuan. Yunqiwei was a hereditary military rank, different in nature from the actual position of Zuo-ling. The same account also lists the vanguard and defensive positions held by Vantas's brother, Sose, and his descendants. These belong to the uncle and brother branches, and cannot all be listed as Vantas's direct descendants, nor can the military achievements of Fatha be attributed to Vantas.