Yin De'an

Overview

Yin De'an is a member of the Bordered Blue Banner bondservant family, listed in the Yin Clan entry of Volume 78 of the *Comprehensive Genealogy of the Manchu Clans of the Eight Banners*. His family had lived in Shenyang for generations, but the year of their submission is unknown. The original text states that his grandson, Yin Guodong, served as a First-Class Guard, and Yin Guoliang served as a Ceremonial Attendant. Both were grandsons, so these positions cannot be attributed to Yin De'an himself.

"First-Class" means first-rank. Guards were officials responsible for guarding and accompanying the princes in the official system of princely residences, divided into first, second, and third ranks. This is not the same title as the First-Class Guard of the Palace Guard; even if both were responsible for guarding, their affiliated institutions and personnel systems differed. The original text does not specify which princely residence Yin Guodong served in.

"Ceremony Attendant" involved guiding the princely family in etiquette, which differed from the guard's duties of accompanying the princes. The *Draft History of the Qing Dynasty* records that princely residences already had officials such as Ceremonial Attendant during the Shunzhi reign, with subsequent adjustments to their ranks, and were renamed Guards during the Xuantong reign. When introducing Yin Guoliang, the original title "Dianyi" should be used. The later name change should not be written as him having served as Dianwei, nor should his unrecorded rank be added.