Empress Dowager Cixi

by Jung Chang

A woman, an Empress of immense wealth who was largely a prisoner within the compound walls of her palaces, a mother, a ruthless enemy, and a brilliant strategist: Chang makes a compelling case that Cixi was one of the most formidable and enlightened rulers of any nation. Cixi led an intense and singular life. Chosen at the age of 12 to be a concubine by the Emperor Xianfeng, she gave birth to his only male heir who at four was designated Emperor when his father died in 1861. In a brilliant move, the young woman enlisted the help of the Emperor's widow and the two women orchestrated a coup that ousted the regents and made Cixi sole Regent. Untrained and untaught, the two studied history and politics together, ruling the huge nation from behind a curtain. When her boy died, Cixi designated a young nephew as Emperor, continuing her reign till her death in 1908. Chang gives us a complex, riveting portrait of Cixi through a reign as long as that of her fellow Empress, Victoria, whom she longed to meet: her ruthlessness in fighting off rivals; her curiosity to learn; her reliance on Westerners who she placed in key positions; and her sensitivity and desire to preserve the distinctiveness of China's past while overturning traditions (she, as Chang reveals--not Mao, as he claimed--banned footbinding) and exposing its culture to western ideas and technology.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Biography, China, Asia, Historical, Biography Memoir

436 pages, Paperback

First published September 26, 2013

About the author

Jung Chang (Chinese: 張戎) is a Chinese-British writer now living in London, best known for her family autobiography Wild Swans, selling over 10 million copies worldwide but banned in the People's Republic of China.
Her 832-page biography of Mao Zedong, Mao: The Unknown Story, written with her husband, the Irish historian Jon Halliday, was published in June 2005.

Reviews

[Sean Barrs · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m planning on visiting China this summer (provided my university accept my application) because I find Chinese culture so fascinating. The history is so intriguing. My dissertation for my master’s degree will directly address how English writers (namely Ezra Pound) appropriated Chinese literature and created a new form of English Poetry. There’s so much I want to learn, and one day I’d even like to learn the language; Mandarin is, after all, the most commonly spoken language on Earth.

This is a biography of one of the most influential woman in Chinese history, so it was certainly good to revisit it. The book provides a complete life story of the woman who modernised China. We see her growth as a ruler; she begins to see the ruthlessness of court and understands that she must become equally as ruthless in order to be an effective leader. She was not a woman to be crossed. The fact that she managed to manoeuvre herself into such a position of power considering her origins is a ridiculously impressive feat. Cixi began a concubine and died as the Empress of China. How many could say the same?

She ruled from the shadows for many years. First, dictating from behind the throne of her son then eventually her adopted son’s. Although she did not wear the title for many years, she was the real ruler of China. She was rumoured to have poisoned political rivals, possibly even her own adopted son in order to position herself further. Her reign was full of scandal; she fell in love with a eunuch which ended in disaster. Although the ruler of her country, and herself breaking through the gender based limitations placed on her, she was still dictated by the misogyny of her people.

This biography is undeniably biased. The author attempts to be impartial; she presents the facts in a careful way, though a powerful admiration for the Empress shines through the writing. Is this necessarily a bad thing? We all have our own opinions, and it is up to us to make our own minds up regarding historical figures. Cixi was not perfect, far from it, but name me a ruler who was. I took the author's opinions for what they were, and considered the facts in order to form my own opinion.

[Montzalee Wittmann · Rating 5 out of 5]

Empress Dowager Cixi: The Concubine Who Launched Modern China by Jung Chang reads so smoothly like a novel but is strictly historical. I haven't read a history book so well done in a long time. Well done that keeps to the facts, not adding speculation, but adding what the what the surroundings/clothing/jewelry/etc would look like. So well done I felt like I knew the society of the times, dress, politics, dress, etc. Very different culture but interesting. I got this from the library and it was the audio book.

[Louise · Rating 2 out of 5]

In total contravention to informed opinion, this author holds The Dowager Empress Cixi in awe and considers her a reformer. I was looking forward to what the author of Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China might have to say about Cixi. I was disappointed that not much of her premise holds up. The Dowager's actions, as cited in this very text, contradict the author's premise.

Women's roles in history are obscured and underrated. Cixi is not obscure and takes on her shoulders the centuries of tradition and resistance to change that put China in a weak position to deal with the modern world. Jung Chang gives no information to show that Cixi's leadership did anything to reverse this trend. What she does show is that Cixi is a consummate politician.

Cixi lucked out in producing the first male child for the Emperor Xianfeng and befriended his wife the empress. Upon the emperor's death, Cixi aligned with Empress Zhen and they plotted their way to power. Upon the death of her son, the Emperor Tongzhi, on whom her position depended, Cixi adopted her three year old nephew who became Emperor Guangxu. She controlled him and wheedled his power away from him. When he became an adult, discredited and imprisoned him. She later murdered him, for the good of China... of course. None of her power was used to reform China. It seems to have been used to appoint people who would perpetuate her own power and kill others who (may have) threatened it. As could easily be predicted, she was against the Boxer rebels until they were effective; then she supported them; and then when they were squelched by the westerners, she cozied up to the westerners. She promised China a constitutional monarchy... after her death, of course.

The text is often a paean that contradicts Cixi's life and actions. Page 344 tributes "Cixi's sense of fairness... penchant for consensus". This hardly fits the narrative to this point, the most dramatic example being Jade (the Emperor Guangxu's favorite concubine) for whom there was no room in the flight from the Boxers. Jade did not obey Cixi's orders to commit suicide, nor did Cixi notice the consensus of the eunuchs who did not step forward to push her into the well (p. 279) as she had ordered. Cixi had to order specific Eunuch to do this, who would surely not have done it had he thought he had a choice. On p. 354, after a whole book showing how Cixi excluded Han Chinese from the inner councils of running their own country, we learn that "she was not given to racial prejudice".

The last section, on the "Real Revolution of Modern China" is replete with examples of how the text, itself, discredits the thesis that Cixi is a reformer. In this "reform period" Cixi is enjoying her new western friends, to whose countries China is indebted; they shower her with gifts and attention. Cixi (p.326) issued an edict banning foot-binding and "approached the implementation ... with characteristic caution ... not her style to force drastic change" and it took a generation (i.e. regime change) because "Cixi was prepared to wait". Later, on p. 371 Jung Chung calls foot-binding a practice to which Cixi "put an end." It took a boycott (p. 349) of a reception by her British friends for her to issue an edit banning "bastinado" - the beating of prisoners to death. Future eliminations use various other methods and were covered up.

The book is good for its easy to follow chronology. The descriptions of the pageantry; crimson ink, seals and boxes; eunuch life; the education of young emperors; the culture of outbursts (weeping, banging heads on the floor, prostration for apology); and the mundane (what pipe attendants do and how they are trained) are excellent. The photographs, like the cover are great.

Are Cixi's mistakes, for which she apologized, greater than Mao's, for which he didn't? (p.373) Jung Chang, who was on the receiving end of Mao's "mistakes" considers Cixi's minimal compared with her achievements. From this volume, I appreciate Cixi's political achievements for herself, but find achievements for China lacking.

[Anthony · Rating 3 out of 5]

Too Little Too Late

I was first drawn to Empress Dowager Cixi after reading author Jung Chang’s book Mao: The Unknown Story, which depicts the nightmare of his rule. She has an easy way about her writing and in this book she again brings her narrative flair to bring to life the controversial and enigmatic figure of Empress Dowager Cixi. Long vilified in both Western and Chinese historiography as a despotic reactionary who resisted modernisation and brought the Qing Dynasty to ruin, Cixi has often been portrayed as the archetype of corrupt imperial excess. Chang’s mission is clear: to radically revise this view and restore Cixi as a progressive and visionary reformer who laid the foundations for modern China.

The book charts Cixi’s dramatic rise from low-ranking concubine to de facto ruler of China for nearly half a century, following the death of her husband, the Xianfeng Emperor. Chang argues that Cixi, far from being a power-hungry conservative, was a political pragmatist who pursued modernisation in the face of deep-seated institutional resistance. She supported the introduction of railways, telegraphy, modern education, and a constitutional monarchy, among other reforms. It looks to me as some of this was too little too late. For example, the introduction of the constitutional monarchy was planned nine years in the future from 1908. Cixi was already aging at this time.

Chang’s writing is vivid, and she succeeds in breathing life into the palace intrigues, foreign diplomacy, and internal rebellions that shaped late Qing China. Her portrait of Cixi is nuanced and empathetic, though at times bordering on hagiography and as such lacks balance. I have been informed that Chang glosses over or reinterprets events such as the Boxer Rebellion and Cixi’s brutal suppression of reformers to fit her revisionist thesis. Therefore other scholars of the period strongly disagree with some of what she says. Ultimately she has set out to write a revisionist history, it just depends on whether she has the material to back herself up. On the other hand, one of the book’s strengths is its accessibility. Chang writes for a general audience, making complex historical events readable without oversimplifying them too much. However, the book has been denounced for lacking in critical engagement with primary Chinese sources and too reliant on secondary sources and conjecture.

In the end, Empress Dowager Cixi is both compelling and provocative. Chang attempts to challenges received wisdom and invites readers to reconsider a pivotal figure in Chinese history. While it may not satisfy academic rigor in all respects, it succeeds as a powerful narrative and a bold reinterpretation. In the end Cixi was the cause of the downfall of the monarchy as she was either a reactionary clinging onto an outdated system or did too little too late to change it. Chang states it was Cixi who murdered the Guangxu Emperor by arsenic poisoning to prevent him from reversing her reforms after her death. Either way it spelled the end of the regime, as the Han Chinese rejected the exclusive Manchu monarchy. I did enjoy this book as it opened up a world I know nothing about. You will too if you are interested in Chinese history, gender and power, or revisionist biographies and you will find much to consider and debate about.

[Stratos · Rating 5 out of 5]

Αριστούργημα! Η Ιστορία της Κίνας από το 1850 έως το 1908 με έναν μοναδικό, γοητευτικό τρόπο. Αν έτσι γραφόταν τα βιβλία της ιστορίας σίγουρα θα μαθαίναμε πολλά περισσότερα. Οσοι αγαπάτε την ιστορία αγοράστε το αξίζει...

[Joely Black · Rating 3 out of 5]

I grew up loving Wild Swans, and I was excited to start reading this. I kept seeing it in the window of book stores, enticing me. Yet the actual read of the book was often a terrible slog. The prose often felt rushed, and without any real life to it.

The notation system is terrible. Chang never uses clearly marked footnotes or endnotes. They are there, but you never know where there is a reference to a source because there's never any indication in the text. For a book making a lot of assertions that contradict received history, this is a frustrating failing.

Although it's clear that Cixi has been the victim of a long and pronounced character assassination, this felt rather biased the other way. Shocking acts, like the murder of the Emperor's favourite concubine, Pearl, by flinging her down a well, deserves something more than a paragraph, as does the eventual murder of Guangxu himself.

It's very difficult to know, without being an expert on Chinese history, how to judge the accuracy of the book. Cixi's life and work needs revision and an accurate accounting, but while the book presents some fascinating insight on the working of Chinese society at the time, it still feels quite flawed.

[Pedro Pacifico Book.ster · Rating 4 out of 5]

Considerada como uma das mulheres mais importantes da história da China, a imperatriz viúva Cixi governou o país por décadas. E é sobre a vida dessa polêmica governante, que morreu com mais de 70 anos, que a autora se debruça para apresentar ao leitor uma biografia completa e cheia de curiosidades.

Aos 16 anos, Cixi foi escolhida como uma das concubinas do imperador chinês. E é já nesse momento inicial que a história narrada chama a atenção do leitor, sobretudo pelas diferenças que marcavam a cultura e sociedade daquele país, no início do séc. XIX. Um verdadeiro choque de cultura, que muitas vezes me deixou bem incomodado com os costumes daquela época.

Com a morte do imperador, quem assume o trono é o filho que o governante teve com Cixi. Mas é a partir de um golpe político que a viúva consegue chegar ao poder, mesmo em um período em que o papel da mulher na sociedade era muito limitado.

E os próximos capítulos da história da imperatriz são bem conturbados, tendo Cixi se envolvido em sérias polêmicas que a deixaram com a fama de uma governante sanguinária. No entanto, a autora tenta desmistificar muito essa imagem criada sobre Cixi, a fim de garantir o seu papel merecido na História - que muitas vezes foram roubados das mulheres. O papel da mulher responsável por levar a China da Idade Média para a Idade Moderna.

Confesso que as partes da obra que descrevem os detalhes da rotina da imperatriz e dos demais que vivem a sua volta me deixaram muito mais interessado quando comparado com as partes dedicadas aos fatos políticos. De toda forma, fica clara a densidade da pesquisa da autora e a relevância de Cixi para a história da China. A edição também possui várias imagens sobre a vida da imperatriz e do país ao longo do século XIX. Para quem gosta de biografias mais extensas, essa é uma excelente escolha!

Nota 8/10

Leia mais resenhas em https://www.instagram.com/book.ster/

[Dmitri · Rating 2 out of 5]

I haven't been motivated to write a book review before, however in this case I must make an exception. I try to research books as well as I can prior to buying them to determine if they are worth the time to read. Unfortunately, things did not work out as well as I had hoped based on earlier reviews.

This book is a biography of an important historical person who lived around a century ago. Jung Chang claims had access to and did research with primary sources related to these relatively recent events. There could be a valid thesis that Cixi played a role in the late 19th C. modernization of China.

But an unrelenting messaging occurs throughout the book which discourages introspection. The portrayal of Cixi as reformer is advanced with little discussion of prior interpretations. Claims are made without supporting evidence. A revisionist text should make an argument grounded in facts.

For example, Cixi's coup during the 100 Days Reform set back progress. Historians see the emperor's arrest and death as opposition to reforms. Chang states "history books credit reforms to Guangxu and condemn Cixi as a conservative". Little is said to refute this other than to state the ideas were hers as well.

A scarcity of footnotes doesn't help make the case. The work is reminiscent of grade school history texts that try to shape understanding without encouraging critical thinking. It seems that the priority was to come up with a new angle to sell books. Poorly written, it does not deserve the accolades it enjoys.

[Lyn Elliott · Rating 4 out of 5]

In telling the story of Ci Xi, who effectively ruled China for the best part of 50 years as Dowager Empress, Jung Chang has the great advantage of being able to access primary and secondary sources in Chinese as well as English. She has referenced a wide range of archival materials in European and Chinese collections, diaries, letters, books and articles.

Jung Chang argues that Ci Xi recognised early that China would need to modernise to just to survive against the invasions of the western powers, especially after the second Opium Wars in the 1850s. Although Ci Xi had little formal education, she was highly intelligent and usually fair and politically astute and drove many of the changes towards modernisation in China through the second half o the nineteenth century up till 190, when she died.

Her ability to exercise the level of power that she did was extraordinary, particularly given that, as a woman, she could have only restricted contact with men and seems to have left the imperial palaces in Beijing only in times of war or revolution. Despite this she was intensely interested in the outside world, sent ambassadors to Europe and the United States and keenly read their reports. She introduced the beginnings of an accessible education system, encouraged opening of China to foreign trade, and eventually accepted the introduction of railways - resisted for many years because of the damage they would do to family graves along the train routes.

In the early years of the twentieth century she sent out a mission to research electoral systems in democratic countries and took first steps to introduce democracy to China, though she didn't live long enough to steer it into any meaningful existence.

For as long as she held power, she was opposed by conservative members of the governing elites in China, including members of the Manchu ruling families. And through all this time, foreign powers (mostly European, but also Japan and America) were pushing hard for concessions for trade, for territory and for special concessions for their residents. War was inflicted on China several times during this period, weakening the Chinese state further each time. One of the things that appalled me was that after having invaded China, the western powers and Japan all demanded that the invaded country - the victim, if you like, had to pay massive 'reparations' to the invaders. Here you can see the ugliness of nineteenth century imperialism well and truly on display.

Anger against the foreign invaders was what drove the Boxer Rebellion (1899-1900), and Ci Xi's anger at the foreigners ruthless behaviour led her to support the Boxers until she realised they were too destructive that they were a threat to general order, not just to the foreigners. The poorly organised and armed Chinese were inevitably defeated, the foreign allied forces occupied Beijing, from which Ci Xi and court fled to Xian, where she stayed until the court returned to Beijing in early 1902.

She acknowledged quite soon that her initial support of the Boxers was possibly the greatest mistake of her rule.

I found this book easy to read, and could readily slot it into place in what I already know of Chinese history, culture and politics, where it helps to give another side to the mostly American or English histories of China that I have read up till now. It is based on wide-ranging research, and part of what makes the reading easy is that the author has a long notes section after the main text, in which sources are given for paragraphs and pages where they are needed, so that the reader is not confronted with continual referencing from within the text itself

I was the only one at the book club meeting for which I read this who has much of a background in history, and most of them found it hard going, with too much detail for their liking. I would have liked more of the wider social and political context within which Ci Xi operated. Another friend who has just read it thought it was far too easy on the ruthless imperialist behaviours of the western powers and Japan.

The main focus is on the woman herself, her lifestyle and her life as a female ruler cleverly manoeuvring her way through a male dominated, mostly conservative society, and with pressures for change building up before the revolutionary explosions of the twentieth century.

[Rebecca · Rating 2 out of 5]

How can such an incredible life story be...just...so...boring?! Chinese empress Cixi led a fascinating life: she wielded behind-the-scenes power over a third of the world’s population for nearly the whole length of Queen Victoria’s reign; she fell in love with a eunuch, survived multiple assassination plots, and was rumored to have poisoned several rivals, including her adopted son.

And yet this biography renders her life story utterly dull; like Kirsten Ellis did in Star of the Morning : The Life and Times of Lady Hester Stanhope, Chang takes an absurdly adventurous life and spoils it with dry, tedious prose. I had hoped for so much better from the celebrated author of Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China.

The best parts are where Chang uses her personal knowledge of China to add depth to natural descriptions, such as “Autumn is Beijing’s best season, when the sun is no longer scorching, the biting cold has yet to descend, and no sandstorms from the northwestern desert are whipping the city, as they do habitually in spring.” Unfortunately, most of the language is not nearly so memorable.

As a result of her ruthless methods, Cixi is often remembered as a tyrant, but Chang clearly finds her inspirational: “She was a giant, but not a saint.” Or, “As Pearl Buck observed, those who hated her were simply ‘more articulate than those who loved her.’”

Her life certainly makes for a tale worth reading, but with so many biographies to choose from (including Dragon Lady: The Life and Legend of the Last Empress of China and Marina Warner’s The Dragon Empress: Life and Times of Tz'u-Hsi, Empress Dowager of China, 1835-1908), you’ll surely find a better teller.

[Victorian Spirit · Rating 4 out of 5]

CiXi fue una concubina de bajo rango del emperador de China que, gracias a su inteligencia, tenacidad y aptitudes político-estratégicas, llegó a ser emperatriz viuda y regente de China, ejerciendo su poder sobre un tercio de la población mundial a lo largo de 47 años.
La figura de CiXi ha sido siempre muy controvertida, se ha llegado a decir incluso que es la Cersei Lannister china. Hay quien la considera una dirigente tiránica, viciosa y que no tuvo piedad con sus adversarios; otros una terrible incompetente, y otros ambas cosas. Lo interesante de esta biografía es que no hace un perfil tan extremista, aplica una perspectiva de género y, aunque reconoce todos los errores que cometió, también sus virtudes y aciertos.
Con este libro he aprendido muchísimo sobre China y su cultura milenaria antes de la llegada de la revolución. El libro te introduce en la Ciudad Prohibida de Pekín y en las dinámicas que tenían lugar en el palacio entre las únicas personas que tenían acceso: los miembros de la dinastía Qing, los asesores, las concubinas y los eunucos. Es por lo tanto un mundo muy prohibido, lleno de ritos y secretos, de traiciones y algunas escenas se han quedado ya grabadas en mi memoria por su extrema crudeza. Otras, también, por su exotismo o belleza.
La biografía se centra mucho en el aspecto histórico y político, más que en los detalles de la vida privada de la emperatriz, pero está escrito de manera que su lectura es en general ágil. Muy recomendable para iniciarse en la China del siglo XIX.

RESEÑA COMPLETA: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YF7In...

[Josh Brett · Rating 2 out of 5]

Where to begin with Cixi? Undoubtedly, Cixi has been unfairly maligned by the historical record, always (especially in Chinese historiography?) biased against women wielding political power, and she has too often appeared as the archetypal "Dragon Lady" (actually the title of an earlier biography). Her opponents have certainly had a better talent for cultivating a public image, both in defaming her and promoting themselves (but do we really need to call him "Wild Fox" Kang EVERY time??). As I see it, there are two main problems in Chang's interpretation of events. First is her uncritical adoption of modernization theory, discussing events in starkly diametrical opposition between "Medieval China" and the modern world. Her allegiance to this vision of historical diffusion trumps even her Chinese patriotism, such as when she praises the post-Boxer occupying forces for bringing modern hygiene and policing (see Ruth Rogaski's hygienic modernity for a very different take on this!) to Tianjin. The second is her devotion to Cixi. Chang's book is very much in the great (wo)man approach to history, with every positive (i.e. moving along the road to modernity) development in China from 1861 to 1908 attributed directly to Cixi, while every misstep is due to the incompetence or opposition of the dithering idiots surrounding her. This can lead Chang into some narrative contortions to maintain her overwhelmingly positive view of Cixi, such as praising both Cixi's unbiased welcoming of foreigners and her patriotic sponsoring of the xenophobic Boxer movement. In my opinion the worst instance of this is the long set up of posing Kang Youwei as a Bond villainesque figure, in the pay of the Japanese and bent on killing Cixi and ruling through the Guangxu emperor. The end result of which is to portray her deathbed assassination of her nephew as not a last spiteful lashing out, but almost euthanasia, a last effort to "set right the affairs of the Empire." Which worked out so well, given that the Qing dynasty lasted a full three more years. Nevertheless, it was an interesting and entertaining listen (though the narrators voice for Cixi was cringe inducing "I will considah this vewy impohtant mattah"), I feel like I need to examine the sources that Chang is using to get a better picture that lies somewhere between the demonization and the hagiography.

[Christine PNW · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was way outside of my usual reading fare - I don't read a lot of non-fiction and I read very few books set in China. I am involved in a GR group, and we selected the Dowager Empress Cixi as an area of focus for the first part of the year, so I ended up reading this. It was, unfortunately, the only book I managed to read on the topic, but it was fascinating.

Dowager Empress Cixi was the last ruler from the Qing dynasty in China, and had been a concubine. Imperial China seemed very strange to me, with its rigorous and occasionally nonsensical rules for everyone based upon their birth, sex and status. The conflict with Japan is illuminated, and the scramble of the colonial powers for China was also handled through this very interesting biography.

I'd also heard of the Boxer Rebellion, but knew very little about it, so reading the sections about Cixi's ill-advised and ultimately devastating efforts to use the rebellion against western attempts to seize control of China was really interesting. The most interesting part of the book, however, was Cixi herself.

Mostly uneducated and excluded from power by her sex, Cixi managed to consolidate authority and rule China for decades from behind the throne. As a woman, she wasn't even allowed to meet directly with men. The fact that she was able to gain and retain power, and in so doing begin to modernize China much against its will is a testament to her determination and fortitude. She was utterly ruthless.

If you are interested in biographies, interested in imperial China, or if you just like to read non-fiction this is a fascinating choice.

[Kay · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading this book though I had strong reservations about the author's impartiality. What I came to think of as "women's boosterism" seemed to motivate much of her commentary on Cixi, whom she hails as a modernizer who has never been given her due. Since I'm not well versed in the history of China during this period, I can't say how valid Chang's views are, but there's little doubt that she got carried away in her role of chief Cixi apologist and defender.

The book also suffered from swings from the elevated (e.g., discussions of world geopolitics and political philosophy) to the prosaic (long passages describing what the empress ate, how she dressed, what pastimes she enjoyed, and so on). While these descriptions may have been intended to make the empress seem more real and sympathetic, sometimes they simply trivialized the subject.

But, on the whole, the book did succeed holding my attention, as it is far from dry and is written with some verve. Most importantly, it motivated me to read more about the subject -- at which point, no doubt, I'll be better able to assess the book's faults and merits.

[Amanda B · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5 rounded up to 4!

[Abbie Toria · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

[BAM doesn’t answer to her real name · Rating 4 out of 5]

For close to forty years the Dowager Empress Cixi ruled the empire of China beginning in 1860. She is alternatively described as either pragmatic, shrewd, sensible, just and gracious or meddlesome, cunning, underhanded and selfish. She is documented throughout Chinese history as a scapegoat for the turmoil inflicted from the beginning of her rule to the beginning of the Republic. Research by Jung Chang has proven that is not the case. Throughout her reign in the name of her adopted son, the emperor, there was constant internal upheaval and rioting as well as wars with various western powers and Japan, earning China the world's contempt for a country once highly respected for its size and kindheartedness.
Cixi was known for both her decisive action and sagacious moves in governing as well as her ability to wait years to strike vengeance. Western society viewed her as " a Catherine of Russia, an Elizabeth of England, and a Cleopatra, as one of the great woman rulers in history." She had no problems battling the misogynistic society in which she dwelled, where most of her decisions were ignored by incompetent men on her council. She was a champion of women's rights as early as 1903.
This review could be many paragraphs long detailing all of her accomplishments and risk taking behavior, but that would spoil most of the book. Cixi deserves the admiration of her country. History should be rewritten.

[Oisín · Rating 5 out of 5]

I started this book, carrying with me all standard anecdotal baggage one hears about the cruel old crone who loomed behind the imperial throne in the final decades of Qing dynasty China. Very quickly, the author thoroughly dispelled each and every one of these clichéd images. Rather than acting as a bulwark against modernisation and progress, Cixi actually spent nearly every waking day in her role as Empress Dowager drawing the Chinese state into a new age whilst still maintaining its independence from European dominance. The fact that this truth has for so long been obscured from the general public is owed as much to the inherent sexism of her times as to the modern Chinese Communist Party’s eagerness to denigrate everything associated with the old empire in order to increase their own historical standing.

As I find myself reading more and more biographies as the years go by, I have begun to grow more capable of noticing when a writer is being too kind to their subject matter. Fawning over figures from the past serves about as much good as damning them for all eternity, in my opinion. That is why I was more than happy at Chang’s willingness to highlight Cixi’s flaws, both on a political and personal level, as it served to help me understand just why the Qing Empire struggled to adapt to an ever-changing world it was so woefully unprepared to face.

In addition to the titular star of the book, the author took time to showcase the many other figures who served under the “Old Buddha” (as the Dowager Empress was affectionately known in the provinces), working diligently to reform China’s administration. Many of these figures were not even native Chinese, as it turns out! One of the most prominent individuals Chang brought up was one Sir Robert Hart, born in County Armagh, Ireland, who served as Inspector General for the Imperial Customs Service for over five decades, helping to reform an antiquated and thoroughly-corrupt system of trade. I appreciated the time spent giving due credit to people such as these because it helped to enhance Cixi’s stature as a leader of talented individuals, rather than as some mythic heroine who saved a nation all by herself.

I would absolutely recommend this book to anyone with even a passing interest in Chinese history. The author’s style of writing is easily accessible to anyone who is curious as to how China entered the twentieth century, a century that it would later come to dominate when men and women followed from Cixi’s example of slow but inevitable progress concerned with the benefit of all.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received an Advanced Copy of “Empress Dowager Cixi” through goodreads.
It’s always a good thing to inspired by real women from history. Unfortunately our history books hold few accounts of women who have impacted history or politics. If you ask me, Empress Dowager Cixi ranks up there along with Queen Elizabeth I. Jung Chang makes Cixi’s story accessible through her no nonsense prose and seemingly thorough research. One cannot help but be truly impressed with Cixi’s intellect and brilliant usage of her “station” in life a secure leverage for securing political success. I will be recommending “Empress Dowager Cixi” as a read for my book club because it offers a plethora of issues for discussion.

[Gareth Russell · Rating 5 out of 5]

I listened to the audiobook version narrated by Pik-sen Lim, who is brilliant. "Empress Dowager Cixi" was my listening on walks and at a shamefully infrequent number of trips to the gym. This is a wonderful biography, as well as an aperture into the final decades of the Chinese monarchy. I was especially interested by Cixi's industry, her tenacity, her path to power, and her partnership with the Dowager Empress Ci'an. The author, Jung Chang, also uses Cixi's story to educate on how the Manchu aristocracy functioned, China's tense relationship with European imperialists, how elites like Cixi expressed their religious faith at the time, and how the Boxer Rebellion occurred.

A superb life and times of China's penultimate empress dowager.

[Veronika Pizano · Rating 5 out of 5]

Výborne napísaná biografia o osobe, ktorá významne ovplyvnila dejiny Číny. Hoci sú to fakty na faktoch, autorka ich dokázala napísať výborným štýlom (nie je sa čo čudovať, je to autorka Divokých labutí). Naozaj fascinujúce čítať nie tak vzdialenú históriu obrovskej krajiny, o ktorej sme sa nikdy neučili. Keď si človek uvedomí následný vývoj Číny, je to vskutku dôležitá súčasť, na ktorú mala táto žena Cixi obrovský vplyv.

[Óscar Moreno (OscarBooker) · Rating 5 out of 5]

¡¡El mejor libro de no ficción del 2021!!

Acabé el libro y no sé que fue lo que me gustó más: la historia de Cixí o la forma en que está todo escrito. Y no puedo dejar atrás la edición con fotografías. Da un valor extra a la lectura

Cixí fue una de las mujeres más importantes de la historia, comparada con Catalina la Grande Rusia o incluso Isabel I de Inglaterra, y este libro lo constata.

Toda su vida es una enorme intriga y manipulación al estilo de House of Cards/Juego de Tronos. Aunque no sabía cómo iba a terminar la historia, pues es una biografía que conocía brevemente, me sentía como si estuviera leyendo una súper novela de intrigas.

Hay guerras, traiciones, espionaje, asesinato, lujo, revoluciones y muerte. La vida de Cixí en conjunto a la forma de escribir de la autora es una bomba estrella. Lo mejor de todo: esta fuertemente investigado y muestran las fuentes de toda la investigación.

[Kit · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an incredible book about an incredible woman.

[Steven Z. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Last week the Peabody Essex Museum located in Salem, MA concluded its wonderful exhibit, Empresses of China’s Forbidden City. It was “the first major international exhibition to explore the role of empresses in China’s grand imperial era — the Qing dynasty, from 1644 to 1912. Nearly 200 works, including imperial portraits, jewelry, garments, Buddhist sculptures and decorative art objects from the Palace Museum, Beijing (known as the Forbidden City), tell the little-known stories of how these women influenced art, religion, court politics and international diplomacy.” (https://www.pem.org/blog/stories-of-o...) The exhibit peaked my interest in Cixi (Tzu His), the last Empress of China who was a concubine to the Emperor Xianfeng, and produced a son in 1856. In doing so Cixi guaranteed a place for herself at court and would pave the way for her to obtain power in the 1850s when the Emperor died . The Empress Dowager Cixi lived a remarkable life that is fully captured in Jung Chang’s 2013 biography EMPRESS DOWAGER CIXI: THE CONCUBINE WHO LAUNCHED MODERN CHINA.

Formally, Cixi had no power, but she succeeded in mounting a coup against the regents with Empress Zhen, the late emperor's principal wife, before he was buried. Cixi falsely accused the regents of forging the emperor's will, and in the first of what would be a substantial list of Cixi ordered murders, she ordered the suicide of the two most important regents. Her son was crowned Emperor Tongzhi, and Cixi's extraordinary political career was launched. (The Guardian, 25 October 2013)

Chang has done an exceptional job unearthing new Chinese sources and fills in the gap in the historiography that lacks major studies of Cixi in English. In her absorbing new book, Chang laments that Cixi has for so long been “deemed either tyrannical and vicious, or hopelessly incompetent — or both.” I agree with Chinese historian Orville Schell that “far from depicting her subject as a sinister conservative who obstructed reforms, Chang portrays Cixi as smart, patriotic and open-minded. In her view, the empress was a proto-feminist who, despite the narrow-minded, misogynistic male elite that made up the imperial bureaucracy, “brought medieval China into the modern age.” Chang concludes that Cixi was an “amazing stateswoman,” a “towering” figure to whom “the last hundred years have been most unfair.” (New York Times, October 25, 2013)

One of the strengths of Chang’s narrative is her blend of major historical events in China during Cixi’s lifetime (1835-1908), how it affected her elevation to a powerful position, and how she wielded that power. Events such as the First and Second Opium Wars are discussed in this context resulting in the first treaty ports in 1842 with the Treaty of Nanking that effectively opened China to further English and European trade and Catholic missionaries that struck at the heart of the Middle Kingdom’s insularization. The Taiping Rebellion that lasted from 1850 to 1864 was in effect a Chinese Civil War that in the end produced further western encroachment on China and the death of over 20 million people. For Cixi, the events surrounding her taught her many lessons that would influence her own use of power.

In discussing Cixi’s rise and attempts to modernize China through industrialization several watershed dates emerge. In 1861 Emperor Xianfeng died resulting in her five-year-old son being elevated to replace him, with eight regents overseeing the decision-making process. These eight men had proven to be a disaster with their anti-foreign, xenophobic policies that resulted in increasing western encroachment. Cixi and the Empress Zhen became allies and were able launch a successful coup against the traditional Confucian regents and Cixi was able to become the defacto ruler of China through the cooperation of the Empress. Chang provides intimate details how Cixi was able to maneuver against the regents, reflecting her deviousness and developing realpolitik that would serve her well in the future. The second watershed focuses on 1875 with the death of her son, Emperor Tongzhi who had reached the throne two years earlier. Since the Emperor left no written will, Cixi once again could manipulate the situation to her benefit as she and Empress Zhen chose the next emperor. Under the new Emperor Tongzhi China stood still as reform and industrialization were neglected. Once in full control, Cixi resumed her policy of modernization through copying certain aspects of western industry, calling her policies one of “self-strengthening.” She appointed ambassadors and sent study groups abroad. Further, she pushed for factories, road building, opening trade, a naval fleet, and introducing certain aspects of western education that would benefit China. Railroad building was a priority, but as Chang describes in all subject matter, Chinese culture and tradition were always paramount and railroad building had to wait until the late 1880s to begin construction.

Chang introduces several historical characters that Cixi relied upon to institute her policies. Prince Gong, a reformer was a key player, as was Li Hongzhang who was respected by western nations, and was a very able and successful trade negotiator. Viceroy Zhidong Zhang, a proponent of modernization, in the end he would stand by Cixi after the disastrous Boxer Rebellion. Of course, there was conservative opposition who looked down upon Cixi led by Prince Chun, her brother-in-law who sought revenge against her pro-western policies. Grand Tutor Weng despised westernization and his views rubbed off on the new Emperor whom he tutored resulting in a downward spiral for China in the 1890s. In the end, Cixi was able to defeat Prince Chun and turn him into an ally. Chang also describes several westerners that Cixi appointed to important positions. W.A.P. Martin became a force in developing Chinese education. US Minister to Beijing, Anson Burlingame was appointed China’s ambassador extraordinaire to represent the Middle Kingdom throughout Europe. Lastly, Robert Hart would create an efficient customs service that as trade increased dramatically, import and export revenues rose to help finance many of Cixi’s projects.

Chang’s Cixi is a very pragmatic woman who employed a blend of thoughtful contemplation in evaluating the course China should take, but also used violence and threats to achieve her goals if the situation called for it. Cixi reached the height of her power in by 1889 when her adopted son, assumed power as the Emperor Guangxu. To that point her legacy was secure. The American Minister to Beijing, Charles Denby praised her accomplishments from the creation of a “fine” navy, building an electric telegraph system, shipyards, railroads, steamers, factories, and a strong army. He praised her religious tolerance and her diplomacy that resulted in treaties with France, England, Russia, and the United States. Even her former enemy, Prince Chun, now an ally marveled at her prowess in standing up to the French and the resulting treaty in 1885 that protected Chinese borders from western encroachment. One wonders, had Cixi’s reign ended in 1889 perhaps history would view her differently as her “Make China Strong” campaign appeared to be a success.

China’s domestic political problems would emerge after Cixi’s retirement, as the new Emperor Guangxu resented Cixi, her reform ministers, and the fact she had forced him to marry someone he detested. Educated in the Classics and Confucian texts, Guangxu turned the clock back under the influence of his arch-conservative Grand Tutor Weng whereby all forms of reform and modernization came to a halt. This would have grave implications as at the same time Japan, following the restoration of the Meji Emperor in 1867 began a period of westernization and modernization. It would build a large and powerful navy, while the Chinese did not continue their own program. By 1894, Japan’s expansionist policy against China’s vassal states, Taiwan and Korea led to a war that China could not win. The result was a disaster due in large part to Chinese incompetence and lack of preparation as the navy deteriorated once Cixi was out of power. The Emperor was soon convinced to bring about Cixi return to the kingdom after four months of fighting, but by this time it was too late, and China’s defeat was inevitable. The Treaty of Shimonoseki that ended the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-95 included the cession of Taiwan, the Pescadores, the eastern tip of the bay of the Liaodong peninsula (which would be returned) , autonomy for Korea, most favored nation trading status, opened a series of Chinese cities to Japanese trade, and an indemnity of 200 million taels (roughly $148,400,000).*

Chang has gone a long way in trying to resurrect Cixi’s historical reputation by exposing many of the myths associated with her. An interesting example involves the supposed reformer Kang Youwei, whose nickname was the Wild Fox. When I was in graduate school in the 1970s, I was taught that Kang was the leading force for reform in China. According to Chang, who basis her interpretation on the discovery made by Chinese historians in the 1980s, Kang was a plotter who sought to assassinate Cixi, and eventually seize the throne. He even co-opted the Emperor into his plot couching everything in terms of reform and spreading lies about the Empress Dowager. Chang points out after the plot was discovered Kang escaped to Japan and continued to spread his version of events blaming Cixi for China’s defeat against Japan, and many other false claims. Kang would continue to organize assassination attempts against Cixi from Japan after the Boxer Rebellion and sought to bring back the Emperor to replace the Dowager Empress. Cixi would cancel trials against Kang’s co-conspirators and have them executed because she did not want it known that her adopted son, the Emperor was involved in the assassination plot, information had it been made public would have split China in half due to Kang’s popularity, and would have created a situation for Japan and others to take advantage.

Cixi’s greatest mistake during her reign was how she treated events leading up to the Boxer Rebellion in 1900, and decisions she made while the fighting and slaughter unfolded. Cixi grew tired of years of foreign encroachment and disrespect and Chang is correct as she describes how she faced down Italy’s demands for treaty ports. The Dowager Empress developed a false confidence that she could stand up to foreigners as she had with Italy and when the western nations began to make demands after the xenophobic Boxers killed a German diplomat and numerous missionaries, Cixi decided, going against the advice of several counselors, to try and take advantage of the Boxers who were deemed to be, by like-minded princes and aristocrats as “loyal, fearless, and disciplined.” The Boxers would be organized into military units, but their beliefs which included being impervious to bullets would not stand them in good stead against western technology resulting in extreme violence and slaughter throughout northern China, and the surrounding of the Foreign Legation in Beijing. Cixi’s decisions were questionable as she went back and forth from withdrawing support for the Boxers to reaffirming it throughout the rebellion. Cixi was forced to escape the Forbidden City and move westward as the western invasion proved successful. As a result, Cixi’s leadership was demeaned, even though she maintained a degree of support. The western powers realized that the removal of Cixi could only be brought about through military action that would evolve into a civil war. Thus, they decided to allow her to return to Beijing to prevent fighting that would result in the loss of trade, default of loans, and the reemergence of the Boxers. However, what is clear is that the (Qing) Manchu Dynasty under Cixi, would begin its last chapter as the western countries imposed an indemnity of over 450 million taels (roughly $333,900,000)* thus punishing the entire population of China.

According to Chang, after imposing the peace the Western powers recognized Cixi as the undisputed leader of China allowing her to embark on a massive program to change her country that can be considered the “real revolution in modern China.” Cixi would spend her last few years pushing to make China a constitutional monarchy, and at the same time surviving numerous assassinations attempts against her, most of which were planned by Japan.

Chang has written a superb biography that encompasses her life as well as the traditions and culture of China’s ruling and peasant classes while in and out of power. As China’s current “President for Life,” Xi Jinping deals with the problems of reform and change today, he like Cixi must achieve a balance between fostering change too slowly, and bringing about change too quickly, as each approach has its own pitfalls. Perhaps he should study Cixi’s role in Chinese history and learn to deal with similar issues that confronted her.

*One tael is calculated at 3 English Shillings or 0.742 American dollars. ( See footnote p. 297)

[Tim Pendry · Rating 4 out of 5]

A largely entertaining and informative account of the Manchu Empress Dowager Cixi who was the guiding force in China during the era in which it was most under direct pressure from the West to modernise.

Part of Jung Chan's mission is to rehabilitate Cixi from historical criticism and to a great extent she succeeds in restoring some balance.

However, she goes too far, almost certainly because Jung Chang is something of a liberal-conservative and wants to think the best of a fellow woman - you have to see the book through this gender prejudice.

A more considered opinion is that Cixi was a highly intelligent woman who knew how to play the peculiar anthropology of imperial political rule for traditionalist ends - but those ends were absurd.

She was a naturally gifted ruler amongst traditionalist fools, largely male by the nature of things, in an inherently corrupt and feudal system that had ceased to be able to protect its own people.

The insights into the international politics of the era are useful in understanding modern tensions and there are no surprises.

The British had matured into patronising assistants to the local ruler much as they did in India, the French were opportunists, the Germans were little more than global thugs and the Japanese had a plan ...

The role of the Japanese in destabilising China is well articulated here and it is clear both that they had many allies within China, traditionalist and revolutionary, and were extremely clever.

The Japanese aim might simply be summarised as to rule China by replacing the Manchus on the basis that the Han Chinese and tributaries would not care if one set of foreigners replaced another.

Much that drives the fierce Chinese nationalist response today to Japan can be traced back to the politics of the 1890s onwards. This reached its natural end with the invasion of China in the 1930s.

America comes out well as a non-patronising friend of China and as a sensitive moderniser. It is no accident that non-Communist Chinese nationalism eventually orientated itself towards the US.

The more one reads of history, the more the US appears to be the best of nations except when it becomes obsessed by ideological bugaboos - whether communist or 'terrorist'.

Cixi herself has a story of three parts - influential in opening up China to the West, then making serious mistakes in trying to challenge it and, finally, too late, being a force for constitutional monarchy.

Jung Chang occasionally errs in trying 'clean' Cixi's reputation beyond credibility - the constraints of Imperial practice may have obligated cruelties but cruelties there were.

If we think that there was a possibility of a foreign imperial and obscurantist dictatorship based on humiliation being transformed from within to make China strong, then Cixi might be regarded as 'heroic'.

Regrettably the whole imperial project was absurd once greedy forces with superior technology emerged. Cixi's constant ducking and diving to preserve a political corpse strikes me as often just self interest.

Stories of women in power before the modern age are always fascinating, precisely because they tell us so much not about 'patriarchy' but about how the clever can always work a system.

We should get out of the malign modern habit of being impressed with such women without any serious analysis of the system they command - whether Byzantium or China.

What we have here is not a world dominated by men as such but one ruled by small cliques with a history whose mentality is that of thieves who will hang together lest they hang separately.

The bottom line is that China was trapped in a weak economy surrounded by technologically superior enemies and arriving at that situation was precisely down to traditionalism and magical thinking.

Empress Dowager Cixi did little more than permit a jaded system to survive for long enough that its degeneracy had become clear to everyone but the most ignorant peasant.

Perhaps that was a major achievement of sorts.

[Orinoco Womble (tidy bag and all) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanks to Mike Chen of Youtube's "Chen Dynasty" for waking me up to the obvious fact that I knew nothing about China's rulers except for Mao and thereafter. He talks rather quickly to keep his videos short, but if you want a good overview of the lives of rulers, concubines, gods and heroes, it's an excellent place to start.

An amazing book. I'm so glad I picked it up. Chang writes very well, making what could be hard-slog history lessons accesible to the average reader. She grabbed me by the lapel and drew me in. Like many modern history writers, Chapter 2 was a bit full of necessary data, but after that it got fascinating again. I learned a great deal without feeling like I was "studying", and spent a lot of time saying things like, "Oh! Now I see", as many past references in my reading from about age 12 on clicked into place in a wider context that actually made sense! Back in the 60s I remember those around me speaking of Sun Yat Sen as some kind of progressive saint. Well, it depends which side of the debate you were on, I guess. She doesn't slate him, but does find her facts from contemporary, trustworthy Chinese sources. I finally got a handle on who the Boxers were and what that particular movement was about. I discovered that China's "most favoured nation" status vis a vis the US dates from about 1865. I had had no idea that thousands of Chinese were basically sold as slaves to Cuba and Peru in the 19th century, and I finally found out that it was Kaiser Wilhelm who coined the term "Yellow Peril." I was a bit surprised at how often members of the court lose consciousness and/or go into convulsions, even bleeding from the mouth and nose "from anguish."

Chang manages to avoid the more obvious feminist tropes; not once does she use the word "patriarchy", and yet she gets her meaning across as well or better without it. Just in passing: yesterday I read a newspaper article that purported to be about the Japanese princess stepping down from her royal status in order to marry a commoner; curiously enough--or perhaps not--the article gave her only the lead paragraph; the rest (and it was not short) was all about her father, uncles, brothers and male ancestors.)

Her proofreaders did let her down slightly, which is an unfortunate and growing trend in serious nonfiction. Far too many sentences were fragments beginning with the word "And", which would have made more sense if attached to the preceding sentence. Many prepositions are misused, as when Cixi "quietly extracts a treaty out of the regents" as if it were a tooth! At another point she speaks of some minister wearing a "manicured" goatee, and the text is plagued with misspellings that can't be blamed on the US/UK divide, such as "shrewed" for shrewd. A shrew is a tiny animal, so if she were "shrewed" she'd be covered with shrews!
Be not afraid, there aren't 400 plus pages of actual text; about a quarter of the book is bibliography etc. I look forward to reading more of her books if I can find them.

[Paola · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book has a remarkable flow - it took me a while to read it for the simple reason that these days I have very little time.

The other side of the "readability coin" is that this book lacks proper probing of the issues: Chang seems too much in love with her project (offering a portrait of Cixi which is very different from conventional wisdom - at least as far as China's assessment of her goes) to remember to educate her readers on so many other aspects of that long reign that just a modest amount of curiosity makes any reader wonder about. In this sense, then, it is a lost opportunity: we get a lot of the facts, and this is remarkable given that the official Chinese position on Cixi is very different - but a lot is left unexplained. We know that there are the Manchu minority and the Han minority, but beside different dress codes, what else is there to distinguish these two cultures? How did this environment affect Cixi? How did the Manchu manage to achieve and retain power? What was the general situation of China at the time? On these themes it seems that Pearl Buck is more instructive than Jung Chan, which is a pity. Sure, this is not intended to be scholarly work, which is fine of course, but I felt shortchanged nonetheless.

All the narration points towards showing how great a ruler Cixi was - with some flaws, for which however plenty of justifications. Yet there are some sudden changes, both of Cixi's attitude and in the attitudes towards her, that are left unexplained and which are difficult to make sense of: for instance, after the Boxer troubles, first she flees Bejing to escape not just the invaders but the resentful population, then all of a sudden it seems that her people love her again: what happened to bring this change about?

Jung glosses over what are very obviously serious shortcomings in Cixi's personality: in places the facts we are presented with show a woman of many contradictions, and great passions (from allowing almost any licence to her son, to some chilling displays of callousness, e.g. Pearl's murder). But in other places she mellows down (e.g. after returning to Bejing: why?).

It is a real pity that there is no real exploration of Cixi's character - this is a good book, but it could have been much better.

EDIT: I found this review by Patricia Crossley in the London Review of Books illuminating, HT to SteveEisenberg on MobileRead.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an absolutely fascinating biography. Subtitled, “the Concubine who launched modern China” it takes you from 1835 to 1908 and tells the story of a young woman who first entered the Forbidden City at the age of 16. Chosen as a concubine to the Emperor Xianfeng, she was entered in the court register as, “the woman of the Nala family” – too lowly to even be given a name of her own. However, she had already helped her family raise funds, when her grandfather was imprisoned and her help in the crisis had become a family legend. Her father said, “this daughter of mine is really more like a son!” which was praise indeed, and she was certainly intelligent and capable. However, her willingness to voice her opinion was not appreciation by the Emperor; who resented her suggestions and she was not favoured. Luckily, the Empress Zhen, head of the harem, protected her and, even more in her favour was the fact that she gave birth to the Emperor’s only living son, Zaichun. When the Emperor died, Cixi and Zhen organised a coup to control power through Cixi’s son.

This then is the story of how a woman effectively ruled China. Cixi was eager to create amicable relations with the West and asked whether foreign trade and an open door policy was a bad thing for her country, as her husband has always asserted? She took the first steps towards modernisation and was eager to find out about other ways of life and methods of government. However, things were never easy. Cixi was to face opposition, tragedy, wars, and the loss of power when her son (and later adopted son) came of age. She was never able to fully rule, certainly not in her own name, or even to receive men without a screen between her and them and resented these restrictions. This biography takes us all the way through her life; with its amazing ups and downs, successes and tragedies, her ambitions and desire to push China from medieval times into the modern age. I have to admit that I know nothing about this period of history, so, if there are mistakes I would be unable to spot them. However, simply as a fascinating biography, it is an informative and enjoyable read.

[Liam Ostermann · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fascinating biography of the dowager empress Cixi who ruled China, though usually from the shadows from the Opium wars in 1860s past the Boxer rebellion and into the early 20th century. That she, like most female monarch's, has been hideously maligned and misrepresented goes without saying. Jung Chang author of Wild Swans and a biography of Mao has written the first biography/history of Cixi's period that makes use of a vast wealth of original documents, records and research done in China since Mao's death. If for that alone this biography must be welcomed but I am not completely convinced of Chang's portrait of Cixi as wise all seeing elder statesman and profeminist. That the portrait previously accepted in the West was wildly inaccurate (though I can't help having a tiny nostalgic memory for the Cixi in Edmund Backhouse's wonderfully fabricated histories of life in the Forbidden City) is something no one would against, but I am not convinced that the very positive spin that Change gives to Cixi's actions is truly deserved.

Well worth nonetheless for anyone interested in China and the events that helped forge the nation we know. I am sure there will be further biographies of Cixi now that these new archival sources are available and then we can judge how far Chang's interpretation is.

[Christopher · Rating 5 out of 5]

The economic and political rise of China since the late 1970s has been one of the key historic trends of the last several decades. What is interesting though about China’s rise is that this is not the first time China has recovered from disastrous economic and political management to become a powerhouse in international affairs. In the middle of the 19th century, China had been humiliated in a war with foreign powers, but new leadership arose to lead China out of the middle ages and into the modern era. This wonderful biography is about the most important figure responsible for China’s first move towards modernity, the Empress Dowager Cixi, and why she should be considered in the same league as other great women world leaders like Elizabeth I of England or Catherine the Great of Russia.

For my full review, check out my book blog here.