The emperor's words were considered sacred edicts (), and his written proclamations were called 'directives from above' (). In theory, the emperor's orders were to be obeyed immediately. He was elevated above all commoners, nobility and members of the Imperial family. Addresses to the emperor were always to be formal and self-deprecatory, even by the closest of family members. In practice, however, the power of the emperor varied between different emperors and different
dynasties. Generally, in the Chinese
dynastic cycle, emperors founding a dynasty usually consolidated the empire through comparative
autocracy—examples include Qin Shi Huang, emperors Gaozu and Guangwu of Han, Emperor Taizong of Tang,
Kublai Khan of the Yuan, and the
Kangxi Emperor of the Qing. The usual method for widespread geographic power consolidation was to involve the whole family. From generation to generation, the bonds weakened between the branches of family established as local rulers in different areas. After a sufficient period of time, their loyalty could no longer be assured, and the taxes they collected sapped the imperial coffers. This led to situations like the reign of
Emperor Wu of Han, who disenfranchised and annihilated the nobilities of virtually all imperial relatives whose forebears had been enfeoffed by his own ancestor, Gaozu. Apart from a few very energetic monarchs, the emperor usually delegated the majority of decision making to the civil bureaucracy (chiefly the
chancellery and the
Central Secretariat), the military, and in some periods the
censorate. Paranoid emperors, like Emperor Wu of Han and the Ming's
Hongwu Emperor, would cycle through high government officials rapidly, or simply leave top-ranking posts vacant, such that no one could threaten their power. During other reigns, certain officials in the civil bureaucracy wielded more power than the emperor himself. Unlike
Japanese emperors whom all belonged to a
single dynasty, which could not be deposed through a change in the Mandate of Heaven due to being traditionally descended from
Shinto goddess
Amaterasu, Chinese dynasties could be deposed. Though Chinese emperors often developed
imperial cults and fostered a
cult of personality around themselves, they seldom claimed divine descent, for example
Hongwu of Ming was born into a peasant family prior to seizing the throne. The emperor's position, unless deposed in a rebellion, was always hereditary, usually by
agnatic primogeniture. As a result, many emperors ascended the throne while still children. During
minority reigns, the
Empress Dowager, the emperor's mother, would usually possess significant political power, along with the
male members of her birth family. In fact, the vast majority of female rulers throughout Chinese Imperial history came to power by ruling as
regents on behalf of their sons; prominent examples include
Empress Lü Zhi of the Han, as well as the empress dowagers
Cixi and
Ci'an during the Qing, who for a time ruled jointly as co-regents. Where Empresses Dowager were too weak to assume power, or her family too strongly opposed, court officials often seized control. Court
eunuchs had a significant role in the power structure, as emperors often relied on a few of them as confidants, which gave them access to many court documents. In a few places, eunuchs wielded vast power; one of the most powerful eunuchs in Chinese history was
Wei Zhongxian during the Ming. Occasionally, other nobles seized power as regents. The actual area ruled by the emperor of China varied from dynasty to dynasty. In some cases, such as during the
Southern Song dynasty, political power in East Asia was effectively split among several governments; nonetheless, the
political fiction that there was but one ruler was maintained. == Heredity and succession ==