Chahan

Overview

Chahan was a member of the Wuzhala clan of the Plain Blue Banner during the early Qing Dynasty. Volume 30 of the official Qing Dynasty compilation, *The Comprehensive Genealogy of the Manchu Clans of the Eight Banners*, records that he was of the same clan as Nikan, and that they had lived in the Heilongjiang region for generations, submitting to the Qing during the Tiancong era. The Plain Blue Banner was one of the Eight Banners, and Heilongjiang was their historical ancestral home; Tiancong was the reign title of Huang Taiji during the Later Jin Dynasty, meaning their submission predates the Qing Dynasty's entry into China.

His great-grandson, Namaldai, served as a commissioned officer in the Fujian campaign, dying in battle against Zheng Chenggong's army in Xiamen. He was posthumously awarded the title of Qiduwei. The term "commissioned officer" indicates that he was entrusted with a posthumous duty. "Commissioned officer" was an official title with multiple institutional contexts in the Qing Dynasty; since the original text did not further specify the military unit, this scope should be retained. "Cavaller Captain" was a hereditary title awarded for merit, a posthumous reward.

Namardai had no heir; his younger brother Dengqi, Dengqi's son Baozhu, and grandson Liudasexiang inherited the title. The inheritance was a hereditary title, not an automatic transfer of the original commissioned position to his brother, son, or grandson. The family biography records the military achievements of later generations, starting with Chahan; however, deaths in battle cannot be attributed to Chahan. The details of the military administration, the dates of the battles, and the specific ancestral home in Heilongjiang are yet to be verified.