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Empress Dowager Cixi: A Life from Beginning to End

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Discover the remarkable life of Empress Dowager Cixi...
Empress Dowager Cixi, who first rose to prominence as a royal consort, connived and schemed her way to the very pinnacle of power in China. From the shadows of the Forbidden City's inner chambers, she emerged as the empire's de facto ruler, wielding authority few women in history had ever possessed. She ruthlessly crushed her opponents and at times subjected even close family members to abject cruelty all in pursuit of power. Yet outside forces and internal turmoil proved too much for even her guile and cunning to overcome.

Empress Dowager Cixi became the last noteworthy ruler of imperial China. During her reign, she sought to keep the imperial might of China alive, but traditional dynastic power was colliding head-on with the encroaching modern world. It was under her rule that the Boxer Rebellion erupted and a massive international backlash threatened to tear China apart. Her efforts to preserve the old order ultimately hastened its demise. Soon after her rule ended, the entire Qing dynasty came crashing down, closing the final chapter on thousands of years of imperial tradition in China. This is the life and legend of Empress Dowager Cixi in full.

Discover a plethora of topics such asThe Concubine's RiseBarbarians at the GateThe Taiping RebellionTongzhi's Death and the Succession CrisisChina's Decade of DisastersCixi Takes Back ControlAnd much more!
So if you want a concise and informative book on Empress Dowager Cixi, scroll up and click "Buy now" to start reading today.

106 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 16, 2026

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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
95 reviews
March 24, 2026
The Last Stand of Imperial China

This book provides a brief look into the last days of Imperial China and the woman who guided much of it. Empress Cixi was selected as a concubine for the Emperor. When the Emperor unexpectedly died Cixi was the only woman to bear a male heir. She was the regent but remained in power until 1908. She wavered between the desire to modernize China and retaining the traditional values and customs. On several occasions she prevented the enactment of reforms that would have strengthened China economically and militarily. Shortly after her death in 1908, China deposed the last Emperor and plummeted into decades of Civil War and World War I I before becoming a communist state,
5 reviews
March 28, 2026
A Kindle Unlimited Freebie Worth the Price

Really no more than a two-page summary padded out into what could hardly be called book length. Assumes the reader lacks even the most rudimentary knowledge of history.
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497 reviews10 followers
May 1, 2026
A person has to totally ruthless to rise from her position as royal concubine to Empress of the Qing dynasty.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews