The Cultural Aspects of Eunuchism, part 6

[JesusA (imported)]

The Buddhist influence has apparently militated against either the operation of castration or the institutionalized use of eunuchs. The strongly Buddhist countries of Burma and Siam are said to lack eunuchs. [As did Japan. Vietnam, which resisted Buddhism employed many eunuchs and also sent them to China as part of regular tribute relations. In the endemic warfare between Chinese and Vietnamese along their border regions, those captured by either side were frequently castrated.] While the introduction of Buddhism into China may have had some effect in hindering the practice, the institution of eunuchism in association with the non-Buddhist imperial court was already too well established. That the Chinese were aware of castration as a punishment is shown from the codes of law which date back to Chou times (1122-221 B.C.). The use of eunuchs as keepers of the imperial concubines probably dates to the time of Confucius (500 B.C.). In China, as in Byzantium, eunuchs are found to be associated with the more intimate aspects of the life of the court. The castrated criminal never found employment at the royal house; on the contrary, the court eunuchs were men of better than middle class position who entered their duties voluntarily, often after marriage and fatherhood. [I have no idea where Spencer got this. I have never seen anything like it elsewhere in the literature.] There is, in fact, a suggestion that the position of Grand Eunuch became, at least in the Manchu Dynasty (1644-1912), the prerogative of a certain [extended] family. The majority of royal eunuchs were drawn from a specified district in the northeastern province of Chihli. [An especially poor district, where castration was an escape from poverty and potential starvation.] The maintenance of eunuchs during the many centuries of the Chinese empire was confined by law to the royal family. [Not true according to other scholars.] Certain mandarins, that is to say, provincial governors or officials, might have eunuchs in charge of their concubines, but such a situation was quite extra-legal. Law permitted the emperor to employ 3000 eunuchs to discharge the various function of the palace. Scions of the royal family, princes and princesses of the blood, were entitled to 30 eunuchs for the maintenance of their respective establishments, while the various relatives of the royal house were also assigned a certain number. The nephews of the emperor were entitles to 20, their sons and the grandsons of the emperor were allowed 10, and so on. In the Manchu period certain of the Manchurian chiefs were also permitted to employ 20 eunuchs. It is of interest to note that not only were the members of the royal family entitled to possess this number of eunuchs; it was essential to their prestige and rank for them to do so. [This paragraph relates ONLY to the Manchus, who seriously limited the presence and use of eunuchs in China. They were much more widespread in earlier periods and, according to many sources, widely used by wealthy landlords in the south until the Manchus restricted their use.]<p>Stent (1877) gives the fullest description of the emasculation operation among the Chinese. He mentions the fact that submission to surgery is always voluntary, there being no compulsion exerted upon those who sought the office. [Other writers contradict this. The preferred court eunuch had been castrated before the age of 10 and many were pushed into the position by their families.] In China, high public office could be obtained theoretically in two ways: distinction in passing the state civil service examination, or by voluntary submission to castration. In the latter case, the candidate was free to withdraw up to the last moment without stigma. The surgeons were themselves eunuchs attached to the service of the throne and were called tao tzu chiang, "knifers."<p>The operation was apparently developed in the T'ang Dynasty (618-907 A.D.), the period in which Chinese medicine reached its peak. It is said that the mortality was very low, Stent estimating 2 per cent. But considering the mortality figures cited for the Near East, this figure may well be laid open to doubt. [Stent's figures are well attested by others. It is the Near Eastern figures which are open to question.]<p>Once the eunuch had entered the royal service he was never permitted to leave it. In this respect he did become a slave, albeit a paid and honored one. Many of the eunuchs of China became important political figures, embroilment in palace intrigue and plot being well nigh inevitable. Some eunuch had brief periods of ascendance as heads of the state, but more often they could accomplish as much as and enjoy fully as much power in the roles of prime ministers or as state secretaries. As elsewhere, there were a class apart; a eunuch leader could never gain a following among other men. Being deprived of sexual enjoyment, it is said of the eunuchs of China that they became gourmands par excellence, many exotic forms of Chinese viands being attributed to their invention.<p>No survey of eunuchism would be complete without some attention to the appearance of the custom in modern Europe. Until rather recently, small boys were castrated to keep them as sopranos in some choirs in Italy. The soprani sang in choirs despite the open disapproval expressed by a number of Popes. The custom was finally terminated at the request of Leo XIII.<p>[The bibliography to the article is quite long, but most of the items are in either German or French, with only a few in English. And all are fiendishly difficult to find in U.S. libraries. Spencer was a graduate student at Berkeley when he wrote the article, but few of his references are in the Berkeley library. I will be happy to supply the references in any of the three languages for anyone who requests them. JA]

[JesusA (imported)]

The Buddhist influence has apparently militated against either the operation of castration or the institutionalized use of eunuchs. The strongly Buddhist countries of Burma and Siam are said to lack eunuchs. [As did Japan. Vietnam, which resisted Buddhism employed many eunuchs and also sent them to China as part of regular tribute relations. In the endemic warfare between Chinese and Vietnamese along their border regions, those captured by either side were frequently castrated.] While the introduction of Buddhism into China may have had some effect in hindering the practice, the institution of eunuchism in association with the non-Buddhist imperial court was already too well established. That the Chinese were aware of castration as a punishment is shown from the codes of law which date back to Chou times (1122-221 B.C.). The use of eunuchs as keepers of the imperial concubines probably dates to the time of Confucius (500 B.C.). In China, as in Byzantium, eunuchs are found to be associated with the more intimate aspects of the life of the court. The castrated criminal never found employment at the royal house; on the contrary, the court eunuchs were men of better than middle class position who entered their duties voluntarily, often after marriage and fatherhood. [I have no idea where Spencer got this. I have never seen anything like it elsewhere in the literature.] There is, in fact, a suggestion that the position of Grand Eunuch became, at least in the Manchu Dynasty (1644-1912), the prerogative of a certain [extended] family. The majority of royal eunuchs were drawn from a specified district in the northeastern province of Chihli. [An especially poor district, where castration was an escape from poverty and potential starvation.] The maintenance of eunuchs during the many centuries of the Chinese empire was confined by law to the royal family. [Not true according to other scholars.] Certain mandarins, that is to say, provincial governors or officials, might have eunuchs in charge of their concubines, but such a situation was quite extra-legal. Law permitted the emperor to employ 3000 eunuchs to discharge the various function of the palace. Scions of the royal family, princes and princesses of the blood, were entitled to 30 eunuchs for the maintenance of their respective establishments, while the various relatives of the royal house were also assigned a certain number. The nephews of the emperor were entitles to 20, their sons and the grandsons of the emperor were allowed 10, and so on. In the Manchu period certain of the Manchurian chiefs were also permitted to employ 20 eunuchs. It is of interest to note that not only were the members of the royal family entitled to possess this number of eunuchs; it was essential to their prestige and rank for them to do so. [This paragraph relates ONLY to the Manchus, who seriously limited the presence and use of eunuchs in China. They were much more widespread in earlier periods and, according to many sources, widely used by wealthy landlords in the south until the Manchus restricted their use.]<p>Stent (1877) gives the fullest description of the emasculation operation among the Chinese. He mentions the fact that submission to surgery is always voluntary, there being no compulsion exerted upon those who sought the office. [Other writers contradict this. The preferred court eunuch had been castrated before the age of 10 and many were pushed into the position by their families.] In China, high public office could be obtained theoretically in two ways: distinction in passing the state civil service examination, or by voluntary submission to castration. In the latter case, the candidate was free to withdraw up to the last moment without stigma. The surgeons were themselves eunuchs attached to the service of the throne and were called tao tzu chiang, "knifers."<p>The operation was apparently developed in the T'ang Dynasty (618-907 A.D.), the period in which Chinese medicine reached its peak. It is said that the mortality was very low, Stent estimating 2 per cent. But considering the mortality figures cited for the Near East, this figure may well be laid open to doubt. [Stent's figures are well attested by others. It is the Near Eastern figures which are open to question.]<p>Once the eunuch had entered the royal service he was never permitted to leave it. In this respect he did become a slave, albeit a paid and honored one. Many of the eunuchs of China became important political figures, embroilment in palace intrigue and plot being well nigh inevitable. Some eunuch had brief periods of ascendance as heads of the state, but more often they could accomplish as much as and enjoy fully as much power in the roles of prime ministers or as state secretaries. As elsewhere, there were a class apart; a eunuch leader could never gain a following among other men. Being deprived of sexual enjoyment, it is said of the eunuchs of China that they became gourmands par excellence, many exotic forms of Chinese viands being attributed to their invention.<p>No survey of eunuchism would be complete without some attention to the appearance of the custom in modern Europe. Until rather recently, small boys were castrated to keep them as sopranos in some choirs in Italy. The soprani sang in choirs despite the open disapproval expressed by a number of Popes. The custom was finally terminated at the request of Leo XIII.<p>[The bibliography to the article is quite long, but most of the items are in either German or French, with only a few in English. And all are fiendishly difficult to find in U.S. libraries. Spencer was a graduate student at Berkeley when he wrote the article, but few of his references are in the Berkeley library. I will be happy to supply the references in any of the three languages for anyone who requests them. JA]

[JesusA (imported)]

The Buddhist influence has apparently militated against either the operation of castration or the institutionalized use of eunuchs. The strongly Buddhist countries of Burma and Siam are said to lack eunuchs. [As did Japan. Vietnam, which resisted Buddhism employed many eunuchs and also sent them to China as part of regular tribute relations. In the endemic warfare between Chinese and Vietnamese along their border regions, those captured by either side were frequently castrated.] While the introduction of Buddhism into China may have had some effect in hindering the practice, the institution of eunuchism in association with the non-Buddhist imperial court was already too well established. That the Chinese were aware of castration as a punishment is shown from the codes of law which date back to Chou times (1122-221 B.C.). The use of eunuchs as keepers of the imperial concubines probably dates to the time of Confucius (500 B.C.). In China, as in Byzantium, eunuchs are found to be associated with the more intimate aspects of the life of the court. The castrated criminal never found employment at the royal house; on the contrary, the court eunuchs were men of better than middle class position who entered their duties voluntarily, often after marriage and fatherhood. [I have no idea where Spencer got this. I have never seen anything like it elsewhere in the literature.] There is, in fact, a suggestion that the position of Grand Eunuch became, at least in the Manchu Dynasty (1644-1912), the prerogative of a certain [extended] family. The majority of royal eunuchs were drawn from a specified district in the northeastern province of Chihli. [An especially poor district, where castration was an escape from poverty and potential starvation.] The maintenance of eunuchs during the many centuries of the Chinese empire was confined by law to the royal family. [Not true according to other scholars.] Certain mandarins, that is to say, provincial governors or officials, might have eunuchs in charge of their concubines, but such a situation was quite extra-legal. Law permitted the emperor to employ 3000 eunuchs to discharge the various function of the palace. Scions of the royal family, princes and princesses of the blood, were entitled to 30 eunuchs for the maintenance of their respective establishments, while the various relatives of the royal house were also assigned a certain number. The nephews of the emperor were entitles to 20, their sons and the grandsons of the emperor were allowed 10, and so on. In the Manchu period certain of the Manchurian chiefs were also permitted to employ 20 eunuchs. It is of interest to note that not only were the members of the royal family entitled to possess this number of eunuchs; it was essential to their prestige and rank for them to do so. [This paragraph relates ONLY to the Manchus, who seriously limited the presence and use of eunuchs in China. They were much more widespread in earlier periods and, according to many sources, widely used by wealthy landlords in the south until the Manchus restricted their use.]<p>Stent (1877) gives the fullest description of the emasculation operation among the Chinese. He mentions the fact that submission to surgery is always voluntary, there being no compulsion exerted upon those who sought the office. [Other writers contradict this. The preferred court eunuch had been castrated before the age of 10 and many were pushed into the position by their families.] In China, high public office could be obtained theoretically in two ways: distinction in passing the state civil service examination, or by voluntary submission to castration. In the latter case, the candidate was free to withdraw up to the last moment without stigma. The surgeons were themselves eunuchs attached to the service of the throne and were called tao tzu chiang, "knifers."<p>The operation was apparently developed in the T'ang Dynasty (618-907 A.D.), the period in which Chinese medicine reached its peak. It is said that the mortality was very low, Stent estimating 2 per cent. But considering the mortality figures cited for the Near East, this figure may well be laid open to doubt. [Stent's figures are well attested by others. It is the Near Eastern figures which are open to question.]<p>Once the eunuch had entered the royal service he was never permitted to leave it. In this respect he did become a slave, albeit a paid and honored one. Many of the eunuchs of China became important political figures, embroilment in palace intrigue and plot being well nigh inevitable. Some eunuch had brief periods of ascendance as heads of the state, but more often they could accomplish as much as and enjoy fully as much power in the roles of prime ministers or as state secretaries. As elsewhere, there were a class apart; a eunuch leader could never gain a following among other men. Being deprived of sexual enjoyment, it is said of the eunuchs of China that they became gourmands par excellence, many exotic forms of Chinese viands being attributed to their invention.<p>No survey of eunuchism would be complete without some attention to the appearance of the custom in modern Europe. Until rather recently, small boys were castrated to keep them as sopranos in some choirs in Italy. The soprani sang in choirs despite the open disapproval expressed by a number of Popes. The custom was finally terminated at the request of Leo XIII.<p>[The bibliography to the article is quite long, but most of the items are in either German or French, with only a few in English. And all are fiendishly difficult to find in U.S. libraries. Spencer was a graduate student at Berkeley when he wrote the article, but few of his references are in the Berkeley library. I will be happy to supply the references in any of the three languages for anyone who requests them. JA]

[JesusA (imported)]

The Buddhist influence has apparently militated against either the operation of castration or the institutionalized use of eunuchs. The strongly Buddhist countries of Burma and Siam are said to lack eunuchs. [As did Japan. Vietnam, which resisted Buddhism employed many eunuchs and also sent them to China as part of regular tribute relations. In the endemic warfare between Chinese and Vietnamese along their border regions, those captured by either side were frequently castrated.] While the introduction of Buddhism into China may have had some effect in hindering the practice, the institution of eunuchism in association with the non-Buddhist imperial court was already too well established. That the Chinese were aware of castration as a punishment is shown from the codes of law which date back to Chou times (1122-221 B.C.). The use of eunuchs as keepers of the imperial concubines probably dates to the time of Confucius (500 B.C.). In China, as in Byzantium, eunuchs are found to be associated with the more intimate aspects of the life of the court. The castrated criminal never found employment at the royal house; on the contrary, the court eunuchs were men of better than middle class position who entered their duties voluntarily, often after marriage and fatherhood. [I have no idea where Spencer got this. I have never seen anything like it elsewhere in the literature.] There is, in fact, a suggestion that the position of Grand Eunuch became, at least in the Manchu Dynasty (1644-1912), the prerogative of a certain [extended] family. The majority of royal eunuchs were drawn from a specified district in the northeastern province of Chihli. [An especially poor district, where castration was an escape from poverty and potential starvation.] The maintenance of eunuchs during the many centuries of the Chinese empire was confined by law to the royal family. [Not true according to other scholars.] Certain mandarins, that is to say, provincial governors or officials, might have eunuchs in charge of their concubines, but such a situation was quite extra-legal. Law permitted the emperor to employ 3000 eunuchs to discharge the various function of the palace. Scions of the royal family, princes and princesses of the blood, were entitled to 30 eunuchs for the maintenance of their respective establishments, while the various relatives of the royal house were also assigned a certain number. The nephews of the emperor were entitles to 20, their sons and the grandsons of the emperor were allowed 10, and so on. In the Manchu period certain of the Manchurian chiefs were also permitted to employ 20 eunuchs. It is of interest to note that not only were the members of the royal family entitled to possess this number of eunuchs; it was essential to their prestige and rank for them to do so. [This paragraph relates ONLY to the Manchus, who seriously limited the presence and use of eunuchs in China. They were much more widespread in earlier periods and, according to many sources, widely used by wealthy landlords in the south until the Manchus restricted their use.]<p>Stent (1877) gives the fullest description of the emasculation operation among the Chinese. He mentions the fact that submission to surgery is always voluntary, there being no compulsion exerted upon those who sought the office. [Other writers contradict this. The preferred court eunuch had been castrated before the age of 10 and many were pushed into the position by their families.] In China, high public office could be obtained theoretically in two ways: distinction in passing the state civil service examination, or by voluntary submission to castration. In the latter case, the candidate was free to withdraw up to the last moment without stigma. The surgeons were themselves eunuchs attached to the service of the throne and were called tao tzu chiang, "knifers."<p>The operation was apparently developed in the T'ang Dynasty (618-907 A.D.), the period in which Chinese medicine reached its peak. It is said that the mortality was very low, Stent estimating 2 per cent. But considering the mortality figures cited for the Near East, this figure may well be laid open to doubt. [Stent's figures are well attested by others. It is the Near Eastern figures which are open to question.]<p>Once the eunuch had entered the royal service he was never permitted to leave it. In this respect he did become a slave, albeit a paid and honored one. Many of the eunuchs of China became important political figures, embroilment in palace intrigue and plot being well nigh inevitable. Some eunuch had brief periods of ascendance as heads of the state, but more often they could accomplish as much as and enjoy fully as much power in the roles of prime ministers or as state secretaries. As elsewhere, there were a class apart; a eunuch leader could never gain a following among other men. Being deprived of sexual enjoyment, it is said of the eunuchs of China that they became gourmands par excellence, many exotic forms of Chinese viands being attributed to their invention.<p>No survey of eunuchism would be complete without some attention to the appearance of the custom in modern Europe. Until rather recently, small boys were castrated to keep them as sopranos in some choirs in Italy. The soprani sang in choirs despite the open disapproval expressed by a number of Popes. The custom was finally terminated at the request of Leo XIII.<p>[The bibliography to the article is quite long, but most of the items are in either German or French, with only a few in English. And all are fiendishly difficult to find in U.S. libraries. Spencer was a graduate student at Berkeley when he wrote the article, but few of his references are in the Berkeley library. I will be happy to supply the references in any of the three languages for anyone who requests them. JA]

[JesusA (imported)]

The Buddhist influence has apparently militated against either the operation of castration or the institutionalized use of eunuchs. The strongly Buddhist countries of Burma and Siam are said to lack eunuchs. [As did Japan. Vietnam, which resisted Buddhism employed many eunuchs and also sent them to China as part of regular tribute relations. In the endemic warfare between Chinese and Vietnamese along their border regions, those captured by either side were frequently castrated.] While the introduction of Buddhism into China may have had some effect in hindering the practice, the institution of eunuchism in association with the non-Buddhist imperial court was already too well established. That the Chinese were aware of castration as a punishment is shown from the codes of law which date back to Chou times (1122-221 B.C.). The use of eunuchs as keepers of the imperial concubines probably dates to the time of Confucius (500 B.C.). In China, as in Byzantium, eunuchs are found to be associated with the more intimate aspects of the life of the court. The castrated criminal never found employment at the royal house; on the contrary, the court eunuchs were men of better than middle class position who entered their duties voluntarily, often after marriage and fatherhood. [I have no idea where Spencer got this. I have never seen anything like it elsewhere in the literature.] There is, in fact, a suggestion that the position of Grand Eunuch became, at least in the Manchu Dynasty (1644-1912), the prerogative of a certain [extended] family. The majority of royal eunuchs were drawn from a specified district in the northeastern province of Chihli. [An especially poor district, where castration was an escape from poverty and potential starvation.] The maintenance of eunuchs during the many centuries of the Chinese empire was confined by law to the royal family. [Not true according to other scholars.] Certain mandarins, that is to say, provincial governors or officials, might have eunuchs in charge of their concubines, but such a situation was quite extra-legal. Law permitted the emperor to employ 3000 eunuchs to discharge the various function of the palace. Scions of the royal family, princes and princesses of the blood, were entitled to 30 eunuchs for the maintenance of their respective establishments, while the various relatives of the royal house were also assigned a certain number. The nephews of the emperor were entitles to 20, their sons and the grandsons of the emperor were allowed 10, and so on. In the Manchu period certain of the Manchurian chiefs were also permitted to employ 20 eunuchs. It is of interest to note that not only were the members of the royal family entitled to possess this number of eunuchs; it was essential to their prestige and rank for them to do so. [This paragraph relates ONLY to the Manchus, who seriously limited the presence and use of eunuchs in China. They were much more widespread in earlier periods and, according to many sources, widely used by wealthy landlords in the south until the Manchus restricted their use.]<p>Stent (1877) gives the fullest description of the emasculation operation among the Chinese. He mentions the fact that submission to surgery is always voluntary, there being no compulsion exerted upon those who sought the office. [Other writers contradict this. The preferred court eunuch had been castrated before the age of 10 and many were pushed into the position by their families.] In China, high public office could be obtained theoretically in two ways: distinction in passing the state civil service examination, or by voluntary submission to castration. In the latter case, the candidate was free to withdraw up to the last moment without stigma. The surgeons were themselves eunuchs attached to the service of the throne and were called tao tzu chiang, "knifers."<p>The operation was apparently developed in the T'ang Dynasty (618-907 A.D.), the period in which Chinese medicine reached its peak. It is said that the mortality was very low, Stent estimating 2 per cent. But considering the mortality figures cited for the Near East, this figure may well be laid open to doubt. [Stent's figures are well attested by others. It is the Near Eastern figures which are open to question.]<p>Once the eunuch had entered the royal service he was never permitted to leave it. In this respect he did become a slave, albeit a paid and honored one. Many of the eunuchs of China became important political figures, embroilment in palace intrigue and plot being well nigh inevitable. Some eunuch had brief periods of ascendance as heads of the state, but more often they could accomplish as much as and enjoy fully as much power in the roles of prime ministers or as state secretaries. As elsewhere, there were a class apart; a eunuch leader could never gain a following among other men. Being deprived of sexual enjoyment, it is said of the eunuchs of China that they became gourmands par excellence, many exotic forms of Chinese viands being attributed to their invention.<p>No survey of eunuchism would be complete without some attention to the appearance of the custom in modern Europe. Until rather recently, small boys were castrated to keep them as sopranos in some choirs in Italy. The soprani sang in choirs despite the open disapproval expressed by a number of Popes. The custom was finally terminated at the request of Leo XIII.<p>[The bibliography to the article is quite long, but most of the items are in either German or French, with only a few in English. And all are fiendishly difficult to find in U.S. libraries. Spencer was a graduate student at Berkeley when he wrote the article, but few of his references are in the Berkeley library. I will be happy to supply the references in any of the three languages for anyone who requests them. JA]