Gaoda

Overview

Gao Da was a member of the Zhaojia clan of the Plain White Banner during the early Qing Dynasty. The official Qing Dynasty genealogy, *the Comprehensive Genealogy of the Manchu Clans of the Eight Banners*, Volume 31, states that he was of the same clan as Shusai, and the end of the entry explains that his family had lived in the Hupucha region for generations and submitted to the Qing Dynasty at the beginning of the dynasty. His great-grandson, Cunzhu, served as an infantry officer; Ganzhu was a fourth-rank official at the time of compilation; his great-great-grandson, Zhangliu, served as a cavalry officer; and Baise was a deputy military officer. The character "Gao" is retained according to the original genealogy and should not be altered.

Infantry officers participated in infantry defense, cavalry officers led their subordinate cavalry, and deputy military officers had an auxiliary role in the military system. The use of "battalion" and "deputy" in the official titles affects understanding. Fourth-rank officials are only recorded by rank; the original genealogy does not give Ganzhu a specific title, so it cannot be supplemented as a deputy commander based on the list of surrounding officers.

The genealogy lists his grandsons and great-grandsons as military officers, infantry officers, and cavalry officers, followed by captains and several scribes; all of these should be preserved according to the clan hierarchy. The term "bithesi (scribe)" (Bǐtiēshì) refers to a clerk, indicating that later generations also participated in written administration; it is not a synonym for military officer. The location, lineage, and fourth-rank official position of Hupucha are yet to be verified; this information is not used to determine specific kinship with Shusai within the same clan.