Seniu

Overview

Seniu was a member of the Ujara clan of the Plain Red Banner during the early Qing Dynasty. Volume 30 of the official Qing Dynasty genealogy, *The Comprehensive Genealogy of the Manchu Clans of the Eight Banners*, records that his family originally lived in the Hurha region. He submitted to the Qing Dynasty at the beginning of the dynasty and was granted the title of Beiyu, with a Zuoling (military officer) under his command. Zuoling managed the basic household registration and military records of the Eight Banners; Beiyu was an official title in the early Qing Dynasty and should be understood according to the system at that time, not directly applied to a certain rank in the late Qing Dynasty.

His eldest son, Heyene, inherited the title of Qiduwei and Zuoling. Later, he was dismissed from his post but retained the Zuoling position, which was transferred to his younger brother, Selebu. This clearly shows that Qiduwei and Zuoling were two different statuses: the former was a hereditary title awarded for merit, while the latter was an actual banner position; losing one did not necessarily mean losing the other.

Selebu later died in battle, and his son, Ese, achieved military merit, after which the hereditary title was inherited by different branches of the family. Heyene also obtained the title of Yunqiwei for personal military merit, forming rewards from different sources. The original genealogy also mentions that his grandson, Altai, received rewards for fighting against Galdan, which cannot be transferred back to Seniu's name. The exact dates of the Huerhadiwang and Beiyu system, as well as the relationships between the various branches of succession, need to be verified. Succession will not be changed to multiple people sharing the same official position.