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Cixi was born in the winter of 1835. According to the information listed on a red sheet (File No. 1247) within "Miscellaneous Pieces of the Palace" (a Qing dynasty documentation package retrieved from the First Historical Archives of China), Cixi was the daughter of Huizheng, an ordinary official from the Manchu Yehenara clan. Palace archives also show that Huizheng was a member of the Bordered Blue Banner of the Eight Banners, and was working in Beijing during the year of Cixi's birth, indicating that Cixi was born in Beijing. Also, the file recorded the location of Cixi's childhood home, which was Firewood Alley of West Sipailou, Beijing (Chinese: 西四牌楼劈柴胡同). In 1851, Cixi participated in the selection for consorts to the new Xianfeng Emperor alongside sixty other candidates. Cixi was one of the few candidates chosen to stay. She was placed in the 6th rank of consorts, and styled "Noble Lady Lan" (Chinese: 蘭贵人). Among the other chosen candidates were Noble Lady Li of Tatala clan (later Consort Li), Concubine Yun of Wugiya clan, and Concubine Zhen of Niuhuru clan (later Xianfeng's empress consort). In 1854, Cixi was elevated to the 5th rank of consorts and given a title, styled "Imperial Concubine Yi" (Chinese: 懿嫔). In 1855, Cixi became pregnant. On 27 April 1856, she gave birth to Zaichun, the Xianfeng Emperor's only surviving son. Soon afterward, she was elevated to the 4th rank of consorts, styled "Consort Yi" (Chinese: 懿妃).[2] In 1857, when her son reached his first birthday, Cixi was elevated to the 3rd rank consorts, and styled "Noble Consort Yi" (Chinese: 懿贵妃). This rank placed her second only to the Empress within Xianfeng's harem. Unlike many other women in the imperial harem, Cixi was known for her ability to read and write Chinese. This granted her ample opportunities to help the ailing emperor in daily state governing. On various occasions, the Xianfeng Emperor had Cixi read palace memorials for him, and leave instructions on the memorials according to his will. As a result, Cixi became well-informed about state affairs, and learned the art of state governing from the ailing emperor.[3] Death of the Xianfeng Emperor In September 1860, British and French troops attacked Peking (Beijing) during the closing stages of the Second Opium War, and by the following month had burned the Emperor's exquisite Old Summer Palace to the ground. The attack, under the command of Lord Elgin, was mounted in retaliation for the arrest on 18 September of British diplomatic envoy Harry Parkes and the torture and execution of a number of western hostages. The Xianfeng Emperor and his entourage, including Cixi, fled Beijing for the safety of Rehe in Manchuria.[4] On hearing the news of the destruction of the Old Summer Palace, the Xianfeng Emperor (who was already showing signs of dementia) fell into a depression, turned heavily to alcohol and drugs, and became seriously ill.[5] On 22 August 1861 the Xianfeng Emperor died at Rehe Palace in the city of Rehe (now Chengde, Hebei). Before his death, he summoned eight of his most prestigious ministers, headed by Sushun, Zaiyuan, and Duanhua, and named them the "Eight Regent Ministers" to direct and support the future Emperor. His heir, the son of Noble Consort Yi (future Empress Dowager Cixi), was only five years old. It is commonly assumed that on his deathbed, the Xianfeng Emperor summoned his Empress and Noble Consort Yi, and gave each of them a stamp. He hoped that when his son ascended the throne, his Empress and Noble Consort Yi would cooperate in harmony and, together, help the young emperor to grow and mature also meant as a check on the power of the eight regents however there is no evidence for this and it is unlikely he would ever have intended for the women to have any political power. It is possible that the seal allegedly given as a symbol for the child was really a present for noble consort yi (Cixi ) herself as informal seals numbered in the thousands and weren't political items but objects of art commissioned for pleasure by emperors to stamp on things like paintings or given as presents to the concubines.[6] Upon the death of the Xianfeng Emperor, his Empress Consort, aged 25, was elevated to the title Empress Dowager Ci'an (popularly known as the East Empress Dowager because she lived in the Eastern Zhong-Cui Palace), and Noble Consort Yi, aged 27, was elevated to the title Empress Dowager Cixi (popularly known as the West Empress Dowager because she lived inside the Western Chuxiu Palace). Xinyou Coup: Ousting Sushun By the time of the Xianfeng Emperor's death, Empress Dowager Cixi had become a shrewd strategist. In Jehol, while waiting for an astrologically favorable time to transport the coffin back to Beijing, Cixi conspired with powerful court officials and imperial relatives to seize power. Cixi's position as the lower-ranked Empress Dowager had no political power attached. In addition, her son the young emperor was not a political force himself. As a result, it became necessary for her to ally herself with other powerful figures including the late emperor's principal wife, the Empress Dowager Ci'an. Cixi suggested that they become co-reigning Empress Dowagers, with powers exceeding the Eight Regent Ministers, the two had long been close friends since Cixi first came to the harem .[7] Tensions grew among the Eight Regent Ministers, headed by Sushun, and the two Empresses Dowager. The ministers did not appreciate Cixi's interference in political affairs, and the frequent confrontations left the Empress Dowager Ci'an frustrated. Ci'an often refused to come to court audiences, leaving Empress Dowager Cixi to deal with the ministers alone. Secretly, Empress Dowager Cixi began gathering the support of talented ministers, soldiers, and others who were ostracized by the Eight Regent Ministers for personal or political reasons. Among them was Prince Gong, who had great ambitions and was at that time excluded from the power circle, and the Prince Chun, the sixth and seventh sons of the Daoguang Emperor, respectively. While she aligned herself with these Princes, a memorial came from Shandong asking for Cixi to "listen to politics behind the curtains", i.e., asking Cixi to become the ruler. The same petition also asked Prince Gong to enter the political arena as a principal "aide to the Emperor." When the Emperor's funeral procession left for Beijing, Cixi took advantage of her alliances with Princes Gong and Chun. She and the boy Emperor returned to the capital before the rest of the party, along with Zaiyuan and Duanhua, two of the principal regents, while Sushun was left to accompany the deceased Emperor's procession. Cixi's early return to Beijing meant that she had more time to plan with Prince Gong, and ensure that the power base of the Eight Regent Ministers was divided between Sushun and his allies, Zaiyuan and Duanhua. History was re-written and the Regents were dismissed for having carried out incompetent negotiations with the "barbarians" which had caused Xianfeng Emperor to flee to Jehol "greatly against his will," among other charges.[7] To display her high moral standards, Cixi executed only three of the eight regent ministers. Prince Gong had suggested that Sushun and others be executed by the most painful method, known as slow slicing, but Dowager Cixi declined the suggestion and ordered that Sushun be beheaded, while the other two also marked for execution, Zaiyuan and Duanhua, were given white silks to allow them to commit suicide. In addition, Cixi refused outright the idea of executing the family members of the ministers, as would be done in accordance with Imperial tradition of an alleged usurper. Ironically, Qing Imperial tradition also dictated that women and princes were never to engage in politics. In breaking with tradition, Cixi became the only Qing Dynasty Empress to rule from "behind the curtains" (垂簾聽政). This palace coup is known as the "Xinyou Palace Coup" (Chinese: 辛酉政變) in China after the name of the year 1861 in the Sexagenary cycle. Behind the curtains New era In November 1861, a few days following the coup, Cixi was quick to reward Yixin, the Prince Gong, for his help. He was made head of the General Affairs Office and the Internal Affairs Office, and his daughter was made a Gurun Princess, a title usually bestowed only on the Empress's first-born daughter. Yixin's allowance also increased twofold. However, Cixi avoided giving Yixin the absolute political power that princes such as Dorgon exercised during the Shunzhi Emperor's reign. As one of the first acts from behind the curtains, Cixi (nominally along with Ci'an) issued two important Imperial Edicts on behalf of the Emperor. The first stated that the two Empresses Dowager were to be the sole decision makers "without interference," and the second changed the boy Emperor's era name from Qixiang (祺祥; "Auspicious") to Tongzhi (同治; "collective stable"). However, despite being the sole decision makers, both Ci'an and Cixi were forced to rely on the Grand Council and a complex series of procedures in order to deal with affairs of state. When state documents came in, they were to be first forwarded to the dowager empresses, and then referred back to the prince adviser and the Grand Council. Having discussed the matters, the prince and his colleagues would seek the instruction of the dowager empresses at audiences and imperial orders would be drawn up accordingly, with drafts having to be approved by the dowagers before edicts were issued.[8] It also seems that their most important role during the regency was merely to apply their seals to edicts, a merely mechanical role in a complex bureaucracy.[9] Cleaning up the bureaucracy Cixi's entrance as the absolute power figure in China came at a time of internal chaos and foreign challenges. The effects of the Second Opium War were still hovering over the country, as the Taiping Rebellion continued its seemingly unstoppable advance through China's south, eating up the Qing Empire bit by bit. Internally, both the national bureaucracy and regional authorities were infested with corruption. 1861 happened to be the year of official examinations, whereby officials of all levels presented their political reports from the previous three years. Cixi decided that the time was ripe for a bureaucratic overhaul, where she personally sought audience with all officials above the level of provincial governor, who had to report to her personally. Cixi took on part of the role usually given to the Bureaucratic Affairs Department (吏部). Cixi also executed two prominent officials to serve as examples as a more immediate solution: Qingying, a military shilang who had tried to bribe his way out of demotion, and He Guiqing, then Viceroy of Liangjiang, who fled Changzhou in the wake of an incoming Taiping army as opposed to trying to defend the city. Another significant challenge Cixi faced was the increasingly decrepit state of the country's Manchu elite. Since the beginning of the dynasty most major positions at court had been held by Manchus, and Emperors had generally shown contempt for powerful Han Chinese. Cixi, again in a reversal of Imperial tradition, entrusted the country's most powerful military unit against the Taiping army into the hands of a Han Chinese, Zeng Guofan. Additionally, in the next three years, Cixi appointed Han Chinese officials to become governors of all southern Chinese provinces, raising alarm bells in an administration traditionally fond of Manchu dominance. Taiping victory and Prince Gong Photograph of Prince Gong, Cixi's crucial ally during the Xinyou Coup. He was generously rewarded by Cixi for his help during her most difficult times, but was eventually eliminated from office by Cixi for his overly strong ambitions. Photograph of Princess Rongshou (center seated), daughter of Prince Gong. As a way to show gratitude to the Prince, Cixi adopted his daughter, and elevated her to the rank of Kurun Princess (the highest rank for imperial princesses). The Princess remained a lifelong friend of Cixi, and earned Cixi's respect and reverence for her forthrightness and sincerity. She became one of the few people whose remarks were taken seriously into account by Cixi. Under the command of Gen. Zeng Guofan, the victorious Xiang Army defeated the Taiping army in a hard-fought battle at Tianjing (present-day Nanjing, historically known internationally as Nanking) in July 1864. Zeng Guofan was rewarded with the title of "Marquess Yiyong, First Class," and his brother Zeng Guoquan, along with Li Hongzhang and Zuo Zongtang, all Han Chinese generals from the war, were rewarded respectively with their decorations and titles. With the Taiping threat receding, Cixi was focused on new internal threats to her power. Of special concern was the position of Yixin, the Prince Gong, and the Chief Policy Advisor (议政王) at Court. Yixin, whose loyalties stretched at least half of the country, also had effectively gathered under his command the support of all outstanding Han Chinese armies. In addition, Yixin controlled daily court affairs as the first-in-charge at the Grand Council as well as the Zongli Yamen, the de facto ministry of foreign affairs. With his increasing stature, Yixin was considered a serious threat to Cixi and her power. Although the Prince was rewarded for his conduct and recommendation of Zeng Guofan before the Taiping defeat, Cixi was quick to move after Cai Shaoqi, a little-known official who was the recorder at court, filed a memorial asking for Yixin's resignation. Having built up a powerful base and a network of allies at court, Yixin considered the memorial insignificant. Cixi, however, took the memorial as a stepping stone to Yixin's removal. In April 1865, under the pretext that Yixin had "improper court conduct before the two Empresses," among a series of other charges, Yixin was dismissed from all his positions, but was allowed to keep his title.[10] The dismissal, however, surprised the nobility and court officials, and brought about numerous petitions for his return. Yicong, Prince Tun, as well as Yixuan, the Prince Chun, both sought their brother's reinstatement. Yixin himself, in an audience with the two Empresses, burst into tears.[11] Bowing to popular pressure, Cixi allowed Yixin to return to his position as the head of the foreign ministry, but rid Yixin of his title of Chief Policy Advisor. Yixin would never return to political prominence again, and neither would the liberal and pro-reform policies of his time. Yixin's demotion showed Cixi's iron grip on Qing politics, and her lack of willingness to give up absolute power to anyone, including her most important ally in the Xinyou coup, Prince Gong. Foreign influence China's loss in the Second Opium War was undoubtedly a wake-up call for its imperial rulers. Cixi presided over a country whose military strategies, both on land and sea, and in terms of weaponry, were vastly outdated. Sensing an immediate threat from foreigners and realizing that China's agricultural-based economy could not hope to compete with the industrial prowess of the West, Cixi made a decision that for the first time in Imperial Chinese history, China would learn from Western powers and import their knowledge and technology. At the time, three prominent Han Chinese officials, Zeng Guofan, Li Hongzhang and Zuo Zongtang, had all begun industrial programs in the country's southern regions. In supporting these programs, Cixi also decreed the opening of Tongwen Guan in 1862, a university-like institution in Beijing that hired foreigners as teachers and specialized in new-age topics such as astronomy and mathematics, as well as the English, French, and Russian languages. Groups of young boys were also sent abroad to the United States. China's "learn from foreigners" program quickly met with impediments. China's military institutions were in desperate need of reform, and Cixi's solution, under the advice of officials at court, was to purchase seven British warships. When the warships arrived in China, however, they carried with them boatloads of British sailors, all under British command. The Chinese were enraged at this "international joke", negotiations broke down between the two parties, and China returned the warships to Britain, where they were to be auctioned off. Scholars sometimes attribute the failure of China's foreign programs to Cixi's conservative attitude and old methods of thinking, and contend that Cixi would learn only so much from the foreigners, provided it did not infringe upon her own power. Under the pretext that a railway was too loud and would "disturb the Emperor's tombs", Cixi forbade its construction. When construction went ahead anyway in 1877 on Li Hongzhang's recommendation, Cixi asked that they be pulled by horse-drawn carts.[12] Cixi was especially alarmed at the liberal thinking of people who had studied abroad, and saw that it posed a new threat to her power. In 1881, Cixi put a halt to sending children abroad to study, and withdrew her formerly open attitude towards foreigners. Tongzhi's marriage Portrait of Empress Xiaozheyi also known as Empress Jiashun and also referred to as "Lady Alute" who had the approval of Empress Dowager Ci'an but never Cixi's. It is widely speculated that the Empress was pregnant with Tongzhi's child and that Cixi orchestrated the Lady's demise. Ceremonial headdress likely worn by Cixi. The small phoenixes emerging from the surface represent the empress.[13] The Walters Art Museum In 1872, the Emperor turned 17. Under the guidance of the Empress Dowager Ci'an, Tongzhi was married to Empress Jiashun. Empress Jiashun's grandfather, Prince Zheng, was one of the eight ministers selected by Xianfeng to guide Tongzhi. He had been Cixi's enemy during the Xinyou Coup, and was ordered to commit suicide after Cixi's victory. As a consequence, tension existed in the relationship between Cixi and Empress Jiashun ever since the beginning, and it was often a source of irritation for Cixi. Moreover, the Empress's zodiac symbol of tiger was perceived as life-threatening by the superstitious Cixi, whose own zodiac symbol was a goat. According to Cixi's belief, it was a warning from God that she would eventually fall prey to the Empress. As the principal consort of the Emperor, Empress Jiashun was well received by both Tongzhi and Empress Dowager Ci'an. Her personal consultants once warned her to be more agreeable and docile to Cixi, as Cixi was the figure who truly held the power. She replied: "I am a principal consort, having been carried through the front gate with pomp and circumstance, as mandated by our ancestors. Empress Dowager Cixi was a concubine, and entered our household through a side gate." Since the very beginning of his marriage, the Emperor proceeded to spend most of his time with his empress at the expense of his four concubines, including the Lady Fuca, Noble Consort Hui, who was the empress intended by Cixi. As hostility grew between Cixi and Empress Jiashun, Cixi suggested the couple spend more time on studies, and spied on Tongzhi using eunuchs. After her warning was ignored, Cixi ordered the couple to separate, and Tongzhi purportedly spent several months following Cixi's order in isolation at Qianqing Palace. The young emperor, who could no longer cope with his grief and loneliness, grew more and more ill-tempered. He began to treat his servants with cruelty, and punished them physically for minor offenses. Under the joined influence of court eunuchs and Zaicheng, eldest son of Prince Gong and Tongzhi's contemporary and best friend, Tongzhi managed to escape the palace in search of pleasure in the unrestricted parts of Beijing. For several evenings the Emperor disguised himself as a commoner and secretly spent the nights in the brothels of Beijing. The Emperor's sexual habits became common talk among court officials and commoners, and there are many records of Tongzhi's escapades.[citation needed] Tongzhi's deficiencies in ruling Portrait of the Tongzhi Emperor doing his coursework. Cixi's high expectations of him caused his strong distaste for learning. Tongzhi received a rigorous education from four famous teachers of Cixi's own choosing, in addition to making Mianyu his supervisor. Namely, Li Hongzao, Qi Junzao, Weng Xincun (later his son Weng Tonghe, and Woren) were all imperial teachers who instructed the Emperor in the classics and various old texts for which the Emperor displayed little or no interest. The pressure and stress put upon the young Emperor made him despise learning for the majority of his life. According to Weng Tonghe's diary, the Emperor could not read a memorandum in full sentences by age sixteen. Worried about her son's inability, Cixi only pressured Tongzhi more. When he was given personal rule at age 18, in November 1873 (four years behind the usual custom), Tongzhi proved to be an incompetent Emperor. Tongzhi made two important policy decisions during his short stint of rule, lasting from 1873 to 1875. First, he decreed that the Imperial Summer Palace, destroyed by the English and French in the Second Opium War, would be completely rebuilt under the pretext that it was a gift to Cixi and Ci'an. Historians also suggest that it was an attempt to drive Cixi from the Forbidden City so he could rule without interference in policy or his private affairs. The imperial treasury was almost depleted at the time from internal strife and foreign wars, and as a result Tongzhi asked the Board of Finance to forage for the necessary funds, as well as members of the nobility and high officials to donate their share. Once construction began, Tongzhi checked its progress on a monthly basis, and would often spend days away from court, indulging himself in pleasures outside of the Forbidden City. Uneasy about the Emperor's neglect of national affairs, Princes Yixin and Yixuan (Prince Chun), along with the Court's top officials, submitted a joint memorandum asking the Emperor to cease the construction of the Summer Palace, among other recommendations. Tongzhi, unwilling to submit to criticism, issued an Imperial Edict in August 1874 to rid Yixin of his Prince title and be demoted to become a commoner. Two days later, Yicong, Yixuan, Yihui, Jingshou, Yikuang, Wenxiang, Baoju, and Grand Councilors Shen Guifen and Li Hongzao were all to be stripped of their respective titles and jobs. Seeing the mayhem unfold from behind the scenes, Cixi and Ci'an made an unprecedented appearance at court directly criticizing the Emperor for his wrongful actions, and asked him to withdraw the Edict; Cixi said that "without Prince Gong, the situation today would not exist for you and me."[14] Feeling a grand sense of loss at court and unable to assert his authority, the Emperor returned to his former habits. It was rumored that the Emperor caught syphilis and became visibly ill. The doctors spread a rumor that the Emperor had caught smallpox, and proceeded to give medical treatment accordingly. Within a few weeks, on 13 January 1875, the Emperor died. The Jiashun Empress followed suit in March. Judging from a modern medical perspective the onset of syphilis comes in stages, thus the Emperor's quick death does not seem to reflect its symptoms. Therefore most historians maintain that Tongzhi did, in fact, die from smallpox. Regardless, by 1875, Cixi was back onto the helm of imperial power. Empress Dowager Cixi1 (Empress Dowager Tzu-hsi; Chinese: 慈禧太后; pinyin: Cíxǐ Tàihòu; Wade–Giles: Tz'u2-hsi3 T'ai4-hou4; Mandarin pronunciation: [tsʰǐɕì tʰâɪ̯ xɤ̂ʊ̯]; Manchu: Tsysi taiheo; 29 November 1835 – 15 November 1908), of the Manchu Yehenara clan, was a powerful and charismatic woman who unofficially but effectively controlled the Manchu Qing dynasty in China for 47 years, from 1861 to her death in 1908. Selected as an imperial concubine for the Xianfeng Emperor in her adolescence, she gave birth to a son, in 1856. With Xianfeng's death in 1861 the young boy became the Tongzhi Emperor and she became Empress Dowager. Cixi ousted a group of regents appointed by the late emperor and assumed regency, which she shared with the Empress Dowager Ci'an. Cixi then consolidated control over the dynasty when, at the death of the Tongzhi Emperor, contrary to the dynastic rules of succession, she installed her nephew as the Guangxu Emperor in 1875. Although she refused to adopt Western models of government, she supported technological and military reforms and the Self-Strengthening Movement. Cixi rejected the Hundred Days' Reforms of 1898 as impractical and detrimental to dynastic power and placed the Guangxu Emperor under house arrest for supporting reformers. After the Boxer Rebellion and the invasion of Allied armies, external and internal pressures led Cixi to effect institutional changes of just the sort she had resisted and to appoint reform-minded officials. The dynasty collapsed in late 1911, three years after her death, and the Republican Era was inaugurated 1 January 1912. Historians both in China and abroad have generally portrayed her as a despot and villain responsible for the fall of the dynasty, while others have suggested that her opponents among the reformers succeeded in making her a scapegoat for problems beyond her control, that she stepped in to prevent disorder, that she was no more ruthless than other rulers, and that she was even an effective if reluctant reformer in the last years of her life.[1] |
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