 The Hongwu Emperor specified his grandson Zhu Yunwen as his successor , and he assumed the throne as the Jianwen Emperor ( 1398 – 1402 ) after Hongwu 's death in 1398 . The most powerful of Hongwu 's sons , Zhu Di , then the militarily mighty disagreed with this , and soon a political showdown erupted between him and his nephew Jianwen . After Jianwen arrested many of Zhu Di 's associates , Zhu Di plotted a rebellion that sparked a three @-@ year civil war . Under the pretext of rescuing the young Jianwen from corrupting officials , Zhu Di personally led forces in the revolt ; the palace in Nanjing was burned to the ground , along with Jianwen himself , his wife , mother , and courtiers . Zhu Di assumed the throne as the Yongle Emperor ( 1402 – 1424 ) ; his reign is universally viewed by scholars as a " second founding " of the Ming dynasty since he reversed many of his father 's policies . 
