Taizu was the founder and first emperor of the Ming dynasty. Born Zhu Chongba, he renamed himself Zhu Yuanzhang after participating in the peasant revolts, with the courtesy name Guorui. He came from a poor family and lost his parents when very young. He grew up to become a monk in a local Buddhist monastery. In 1352, he led some people to join the Red Turban Army and participated in the peasant revolts sweeping across China near the end of the Yuan dynasty. After seizing Nanjing, he worked to reinforce his power under the strategy of “building high walls, stocking up rations, and refraining from hastily proclaiming himself king.” After crushing the kingdoms ruled by Chen Youliang and Zhang Shicheng, Zhu founded the Ming dynasty in 1368, taking Nanjing as his capital and titling his reign Hongwu. Half a year later, he led a northern expedition and captured the Yuan capital Dadu, bringing the Yuan dynasty to an end. After unifying the country, he took a series of measures to cement his feudal autocratic monarchy, such as restructuring the central and local administrative systems, abolishing the chancellorship, having the six ministries submit to his immediate control, readjusting the military establishments, popularizing of the imperial examination system, and accelerating the pace in governance by law, all designed to strengthen his imperial power. After assuming the throne, however, he massacred his meritorious generals and ministers. He also indulged himself in literary inquisition, which strangled cultural and ideological growth under his reign.
