Great Qing Imperial Consorts Legend (Text and Images)

Author: Shangguan Yunfei
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-10-01
Features: Exploring the secrets of the imperial palace through historical details. Do you want to learn more about the yellow consorts, empresses, and yellow empress dowagers in the Qing Dynasty's imperial harem? How were their lives different from ordinary people's? What were the differences in their individual lives? Why did the famous Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang, who served two reigns, marry her uncle Dorgon? Did the famous Xiangfei really exist? If she did, what kind of legendary woman was she? Many questions about the imperial harem await answers in this book. The twelve women selected in this book are noble imperial consorts of the Great Qing, yet their fates differ as much as heaven and hell. Life for women in the ancient imperial court was not as carefree and pleasant as people imagine. To be close to the emperor is like being close to a tiger—fame and disgrace can change in an instant, and disasters may strike at any time. Their beauty needs no description; it was not vastly different among them. They merely played out the joys and sorrows, favor and disgrace of women in the imperial city against different or similar historical backgrounds. Moreover, historical changes have shrouded their lives in layers of mystery, leaving their fates uncertain even after their deaths. Perhaps their fate, and even the fate of the nation, was determined by their "talents" and "virtues."