FAMILY VALUES - A THREAT TO THE STATE?

In 1781 after a battle between Tories and Rebels in the Carolinas, two teens raced away into the wilderness when the insurgents lost. Eventually, home, but they were spotted by a Tory who informed the British. Soon several troops arrived at their home and began teaching these colonials what happens to rebels; they proceeded to break dishes, tear clothing, smash furniture. The mother could do nothing but watch while her small treasures were being destroyed before her eyes. Then, the captain demanded her 14-year-old kneel and clean his boots. The lad refused, the officer then raised his sword. It was coming down on the lad's head when the boy raised his hand to deflect the blade. His hand was cut to the bone, and he gained a scar on his forehead. The officer then used the bloodied blade on the 16-year-old brother of the young Andrew. Within a few days, the elder brother and the mother would die (the mother of disease), and Andrew Jackson would survive to haunt the British, especially when he defeated some of their proud veterans who had defeated Napoleon.  In 1815 these British veterans lostg to the ragtag army of volunteers, pirates, free people of color, and some regulars, all led by Andrew Jackson, who thus became the “Hero of New Orleans” and later President of the United States.

In 1381 the Ming Dynasty sought to expand into what had been Mongol territory in Yunan. An officer of the Ming encountered a lad of about 10 on the road; asked him a simple question, and received a “smart a**” answer from the kid, Zheng He. The kid was captures and between age 10 and 14 castrated. He was then sent to serve in the home of newly installed prince. In time, that prince became the new Ming Emperor, and was so impressed by the skills of Zheng, that the servant was made into an Admiral. But not just an admiral. His trips were world marvels. From China, they sailed into the South China Sea (probably the historical expedition for basing today's claims of that sea by the Peoples' Republic of China. Admiral Zheng He probably sailed on the longest wooden ships ever, the main one with 4 decks, and the fleet composed of about 30,000 men. They sailed to Indonesia, South East Asia, India, Arabia, and East Africa. They returned with exotic animals, like giraffes, herbs from the “spice islands,” and knowledge of another route west in addition to the Silk Road. Europe had nothing to compete with such a fleet at this time. By contrast, Vasco da Gama's Portuguese expedition (began 1497) had only 170 men. Columbus sailed in 1492 with 3 ships, but only 90 men. Even if the number of men on Zheng He's voyage is exaggerated, it would still dwarf those of the Europeans decades later.

The Chinese expeditions occurred from about 1400 to 1435. Soon after a new emperor rose to the throne; thought the project a waste, and decided it was more important to build defences against land enemies. He ordered the destruction of the Chinese ocean going fleet, AND the destruction of the blue prints for ths ships, so no such foolishness would occur again.  And eunuchs had considerable power in the Chinese dynasties until 1900.

There are other surprising points about these stories – on one of these major voyages, Admiral He left the command to travel to Mecca, because he was originally a good Muslim.  A major contrast – the Chinese official captured and later castrated the insolent boy. I suspect the British officer near Camden town may have willing to kill the insulant Andrew Jackson, but I doubt if he would ever think of castrating him. Why as castration used more often in one part of the civilized world, and not much at all in the other? Moreover, Zheng He, a eunuch could rise to be an Admiral, commanding 30,000 men.  That would have been unheard of in the West.

I will speculate. I see 2 major reasons for castration, 1, to have defenders of the harem who would be strong enough as fighters, but unable to impregnate the emperor's females. Harems existed not only in China but in the Arab world, and probably in most areas where there was enough wealth for an emperor to have many women. And depending on the inclinations of the emperor, there might also be a harem of men.

If a man is finally able to forge an army to topple an emperor, he become the new ruler, and his family and friends will proceed to take what they want. But there have to be people who take care of government, taxes, who can enter the border, the town, the forbidden city or the royal castle?  All kinds of issues even in early times. Family values are no good for this, because one thinks only of your family or at best, your extended family. The culmination of family values is the Mafia. An emperor may make deals with this or that powerful family, but he will also want some loyal to him. How can you get those who will be loyal to the state above the family? Get a civil service composed of those who have no family. The solution: castration. The civil service exam, and castration, and you will have a loyal civil service.

Why did the castration solution not develop in the West? Around 300 AD, Constantine defeated several traditional pagan Roman competitor emperors, and what was different, Constantine was sympathetic to  Christianity. He quickly issued a Edict of Toleration for the new religion, but in time his successors would go much further.  Many temples were converted into Christian churches, and Christians were granted various privileges. Over time, the old was changed. Without support, for example, the scribes who kept the ancient Egyptian language alive, had to find new professions, and the writings of thousands of years was lost as no one could decipher it until the 1900s. The well-to-do were discouraged from having a wooden male penis hanging near the front door, there was less support for the gladiators and the games, and animals in the coliseums.  Even the Olympic Games, so entrenched in pagan society that it determined a Greek calendar, the Olympics were banned by the Christians. After a century or 2, the new Christian Roman Empire collapsed, Rome itself fell to barbarians, and most of Europe entered the Dark Ages.

Civilization seemed to be ending in the West. Instead of an empire, there would be smaller states, but even these had certain requirement. Mere family values, Mafia values, are hardly just values. It is entirely a society of who you know, not justice.  Family was all.  Secular education and schools had come to an end. The only institution that might have books, and some of the knowledge of the past, of science, of medicine, of building, of weaponry, would be the priesthood of the Roman Catholic Church. So, in the new small states and towns, the duke, or prince, or count, or whatever title, would make a deal with the church. It would support the new state, and it would be privileged in the new state. And unlike families who might simply want to pillage the new state, steal everything they could get for their many relatives, the priests generally had no families of their own. In some ways, they were akin to eunuchs, but with balls. So Europe did not require the service of eunuchs as did China.  In the West, priests would serve the state in the role the eunuchs had in the East.

What about harems in Europe? In Christianity, even the king was allowed only one wife. And from that wife would come the heir. Now the duke might have many mistresses, but if anyone else was caught sleeping with them, he could throw them out of the castle, away from the royal court, into poverty. And even if she had a child by someone else, it would be a bastard with no claim to the thrown. Again, no need for special guards for the mistresses so no need for castration.

Ptolomy was a general of Alexander's army that changed the world. He eventually became ruler of Egypt, and he and his descendants generally adapted to traditional Egyptian customs. Not entirely for the Ptolemys did build one of the wonders of the Ancients, the lighthouse of Alexandria, and they began another wonder, the great library of Alexandria. But they wore the garb of Egyptians, and adopted many customs. Thus, brother-sister marriage occurred between the famous Cleopatra and her brother. But as rivals for the throne, it was surely worse than most bad marriages – Cleopatra with help succeeded in killing her brother before he could do the same to her. Later she had her sister murdered too. She was also a priestess of Isis.  In the Middle East for centuries, where rulers are allowed 4 legitimate wives, and can have many children, and there is no rule of first come first serve, no rule that the eldest become the heir, some of the history of that area is “survival of the fittest – or deadliest” to succeed to the throne.  Of course that can happen in the West too, but less so, with one wife, and the custom of the eldest male becoming the heir.. Prince Harry may complain about being a “spare,” but he is spared from more bloody methods of culling the royal heirs.

Both China and the West were able to create stable empires/states that depended on bureaucracies. Eunuchs and priests were initially needed to begin this building process, and sway people away from mere family values – to plunder everyone to build your family. The state has been, with good reasons, the enemy of family values. Now the question is: Has it gone too far?-------Hugh Murray

Chris, A Chinese friend, responded on 29 July 2024 to an earlier version of this in our correspondence.

This is very interesting comparative study. Some eunuchs were actually having an affair with the big man's women, in their own way. Some eunuchs only cut one ball, so they kept certain sexual functions, only lesser than an ordinary guy. Whatever the case, corruption was common among them, regardless of whether they have children. Powerful eunuchs often end up adopting a child who could carry on their family name. Even more powerful eunuchs get to decide who becomes the next emperor. So I guess greed is part of human nature. 

By the way, it's admiral Zheng. Zheng He was his full name. I didn't know he was a eunuch. Interesting. 

More from Hugh Murray.  I know of the castrati, the choir boys, who to retain their youthful voices, were castrated, but these were a small number.  There may have been a much larger number involved in the African slave trade - not to the West, but to the East, the Middle East and mainly Muslim areas, where they were castrated.  But I know little of this and suggest the reader check it out.