She entered the court as a low-ranking consort, or wife, of the Xianfeng emperor and bore his heir, the Tongzhi emperor. When Tongzhi ascended the throne as a child, Cixi became an empress dowager and ...

In the Qing Dynasty , only Emperor Guangxu, Tongzhi and the already deposed Emperor Puyi held grand weddings. Although the Qing Dynasty was already overthrown by the Republic of China 11 years ...

Emperor Tongzhi died. Although he took power at the age of 16, it was Cixi who exerted total control over the court and the country. Tension mounted between the two as Guangxu tried to act ...

Those of the eight great families of the early Qing and four mansions built in the post- Emperor Tongzhi period (reigned 1862-1874) is described briefly. The mansions of Prince Chun and Prince ...