Defection and the Revolt of the Three Feudatories

Wu Sangui was a pivotal late Ming military general who opened the strategic Shanhai Pass to the Manchus in 1644, enabling the Qing dynasty to seize Beijing and conquer China. Rewarded with the title Prince of Pingxi, he ruled Yunnan and Guizhou with vast autonomy. In 1673, resisting Qing centralization efforts, he initiated the Revolt of the Three Feudatories and declared himself Zhou emperor before his death in 1678.

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