The Jianwen Emperor (1377–1402), with the personal name Zhu Yunwen, reigned as the second Emperor of the Ming dynasty. His reign Jianwen name meant "Establishment of the civil virtue".

His father, Crown Prince Zhu Biao, was the son and designated heir of the Hongwu Emperor. When Zhu Biao died in 1392 before ascending to the throne, the Hongwu emperor made Zhu Biao's son Zhu Yunwen his successor, rather than Zhu Biao's younger brother Zhu Di.

The Jianwen reign was short (1398–1402). After he assumed the throne, Jianwen Emperor began to suppress feudal lords, which included his uncle Zhu Di. Feeling threatened, in 1399 Zhu Di raised an army and began to march toward Nanjing from his northern base in Beijing under the banner of the Jingnan campaign. In 1402, Zhu Di's army finally reached Nanjing and, after a brief fight, Zhu Di usurped Jianwen Emperor's throne and was crowned as Yongle Emperor.

To avoid capture, Jianwen and his concubines were said to have died in a fire at the palace during the coup. Jianwen was advised by a group of scholars, later known as the Four Martyrs that were killed by Yongle.

Some rumors state that Jianwen escaped and became a monk who actively organized anti-Zhu Di rebellions. There was a story also to be said that Jianwen disappeared mysteriously. A year after Yongle became the emperor of China, Yongle sent two agents to find the whereabout of Jianwen. Rumor has it that one of the agents discovered Jianwen and even had a chat with him. Since records of Yongle's search of Jianwen were mostly destroyed, the truthfulness of this chat has yet to be proven. The record of Jianwen's rule was systematically erased by Yongle and no temple name was given to Jianwen.