Editing Hongwu Emperor (section)

==1390s: Succession crisis and death==
[[File:明太祖画像.jpg|thumb|The Hongwu Emperor in his old age, {{circa|1397}}{{sfnp|Goodrich|Fang|1976|pp=258–259}}]]
From 1390 onwards, the armies sent north of the Great Wall were commanded by the emperor's sons, particularly Zhu Di, but also Zhu Shuang, Zhu Gang, and Zhu Fu.{{sfnp|Dreyer|1982|p=149}} During this time, there was also a new wave of arrests that began in the early 1390s. In the autumn of 1391, Crown Prince Zhu Biao went on an inspection trip to Shaanxi, where he was supposed to assess the possibility of moving the capital to [[Xi'an]],{{sfnp|Goodrich|Fang|1976|pp=346–347}} but upon his return, he fell ill and died in 1392. This sudden death of the heir to the throne caused instability in the power system.{{sfnp|Dreyer|1982|p=148}} In response, the emperor appointed Zhu Biao's son, [[Zhu Yunwen]], as the new crown prince. In order to ensure a smooth transition of power to the young heir, the Hongwu Empetor initiated a massive new wave of purges in 1393, starting with the accusation and execution of General Lan Yu. These purges were aimed at dismantling the military nobility.{{sfnp|Dreyer|1982|p=147}}

During the thirty years of the Hongwu Emperor's rule, approximately 100,000 people were killed in political purges.{{sfnp|Ebrey|1999|pp=192–193}}{{sfnp|Fairbank|Goldman|2006|p=130}} The most notable of these purges occurred in 1390, when arrests and executions extended to the entire ruling class.{{sfnp|Dreyer|1982|p=147}} It seems that the emperor realized that the military hereditary elite was not a reliable source of support for the throne and made the decision to eliminate them.{{sfnp|Dreyer|1982|p=147}} In an attempt to address the issue of extreme wealth disparities, many landowners and merchants were unjustly executed under the false accusation of being associated with treacherous politicians.{{sfnp|Li|2010|p=29}}

However, the power vacuum that resulted was not filled by civil officials, but primarily by the emperor's sons.{{sfnp|Dreyer|1982|p=147}} Similar to the generals before them, they alternated between serving on the border with the army and holding audiences in the capital.{{sfnp|Dreyer|1982|p=149}} This helped to stabilize the empire during the Hongwu Emperor's lifetime,{{sfnp|Dreyer|1982|p=149}} but after his death, a crisis arose due to the loyalty of the generals and officials being directed towards the emperor as an individual rather than the office.{{sfnp|Dreyer|1982|p=107}}

The Hongwu Emperor fell seriously ill in December 1397 and again from 24 May 1398. On 22 June, his condition worsened and he died on 24 June 1398, after thirty years of reign.{{sfnp|Langlois|1988|p=181}} He was buried in the [[Xiao Mausoleum]], located on the southern side of Purple Mountain, east of Nanjing.