Zhu Yuanzhang, better known as Hongdu, was born in October 1328 and died in June 1398. He was the Emperor of China and the founder of the Ming Dynasty. Zhu Yuanzhang came from a poor peasant family that he lost at the age of 16 to the flood. Shortly thereafter, he was admitted to a Buddhist monastery, but he did not stay there for long. At the age of 24, in 1352, he took part in one of the peasant revolts consuming China at that time, and thanks to considerable organizational skills and charisma, he became its leader. He quickly joined the so-called The Red Turban uprising, and when in the north (in 1363) it was suppressed by the Mongols, it was continued in southern China by Zhu Yuanzhang. In 1368, he overthrew the Mongolian Yuan dynasty and sat on the Chinese imperial throne himself. His 30-year rule (1368–1398) tried to ease the fiscal oppression of the poorest sections of society and strove to improve the living conditions of the peasants. He also reformed the central government of the state, overthrowing the office of chancellor and decisively marginalizing the position of eunuchs at the imperial court. He also issued a ruthless and effective fight against corruption in the Chinese administration. He also established a kind of "secret police", which provided the emperor with information about possible conspiracies in his life. He reformed the military by introducing a division based on a unit called the weisuo. He also contributed to the development of Chinese law and administration. Many historians consider him one of the greatest emperors in the history of China.
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