User blogs
Tag Search
Wan Rong: The last queen of China.
In some countries, people mark their history for generations and are shocked or surprised by their way of life and the actions they have taken. This is the case with Wan Rong, who is today called the last queen of China. She is a rare woman and has a very strange story to tell, although her life is relatively short compared with the average life of the Chinese monarch.To get more news about gobulo wanrong, you can visit shine news official website.
She was born on November 13, 1906 and died on June 20, 1946 at the age of 40. She is also known as Queen Xuantong. She belongs to the Goblous family and is the wife and queen of Chinese Emperor Puyi Xuantong. From 1922 to 1924, the monarchy was abolished. She was the official empress of the Qing Dynasty. Then from 1934 to 1945, she became the empress of Manchukuo, Japan, again. At that time, the monarchy was also abolished. Because of his work as a spouse, he received the title of Queen Xiaokemin after his death.
Wanrong's life before becoming a queen.
From the moment she was born, the life of the queen was very difficult, because her mother died of puerperal fever shortly after giving birth to the girl. Fortunately, she was brought up by her stepmother, who thanked Wan Rong very much because she loved her as her own daughter and gave her brothers and sisters. The girl and her family live near a hat making place in Beijing. His father Rongyuan is the Minister of Home Economics. He believes in gender equality, so he is worried that Wanrong's education level is the same as his brothers'. He attended an American missionary school, where he studied English and piano.
The Qing Dynasty was overthrown in 1911 and replaced by the Republic of China, marking the end of thousands of years of imperial rule in China. The former royal family enjoyed special privileges within the republican government, enabling them to retain their noble titles and receive respect and special treatment. This is how the last abdicated Pu Yi was authorized to hold a wedding in the Forbidden City. The widows of the Qing Dynasty were still alive. They showed Puyi a series of beautiful young female candidates and asked him to choose the person he wanted to marry.
The emperor chose Wenxiu, but soon they found that she was a 12 year old girl, so they suggested that she choose Wanrong because she was similar to her age and her family background was also accepted. So Wanrong was elected the future wife of the emperor. Once elected, a group of eunuchs were sent to Wanrong's house to prepare for the royal wedding. According to one of the young woman's brothers, they taught her how to bow and behave in front of the emperor, but she revealed that she did not want to marry a person she did not know, but finally they persuaded her and agreed.
On the wedding day, the young woman was taken to a purple brocade armchair, called the Phoenix Chair. She did this through fire and other more traditional Manchu behaviors. The procession went to an entrance of the Forbidden City, and one entrance of the Forbidden City would go to the throne hall where the emperor was. There was a Wanrong girl in the carriage. She trembled with fear and tension. The door was closed, and the girl became the queen. According to Chinese royal tradition, the princess wore a mask throughout the wedding ceremony, and she didn't find her face until after the ceremony.
Marriage and unhappy life.
Wanrong's marriage to Puyi was unhappy because the emperor's love was another person's heart, but the convenience of his family made him marry a young woman. Fortunately, Wan Rong has been sheltered in his studies. Although as the queen of China, she has everything she wants, including a number of eunuchs and maids. He has his own kitchen and a tailor. He makes clothes for him almost every day, treats his servants well, and warns those who do not respect him to eat with them and live with them, because he always has no emperor.
At the age of 18, Vang Rong was still like a girl. She liked to play for hours with her eunuch or maid until she was tired. Once, she proposed to a eunuch for the sole purpose of playing with her. This is the way for a girl to become a queen. She will become the last person to ascend the throne under various controversial circumstances in history, which makes her the focus of the whole China and the world.
Empress Dowager Cixi
Cixi stands out as infamous in Qing Dynasty history (ruling 1861–1908). Past the smoke and screens, she lived as a powerful ruler behind two of the last emperors, and had a hand in imperial court policy in the last several decades of the Qing Dynasty.To get more news about last empress of china, you can visit shine news official website.
People say that she ruled behind the screens somehow, and people around her died mysteriously. A lot of mystery surrounds her life. What is true or false about the myths and legends about her is perhaps impossible to determine.
Her life was hidden behind the screens, and she never really came out. Many people in the early 20th century after she was dead painted her as a monster responsible for the fall of the empire.
But some modern historians portray her as maybe ruling better than others in the royal court, and as a woman caught between rival factions.
Cixi was born to a Manchu family on November 29, 1835 in Beijing, at a time when the Qing empire (1644–1912) still seemed to have a lot of strength.
When she was 16, she was sent to be a concubine. This means that she had sex with the emperor at his request. She was one of dozens or hundreds of concubines for Emperor Xianfeng early in the 19th century.This was considered an honor for girls at that time. It meant she would live in the royal courts and have sex with the emperor along with maybe hundreds of other women. It also meant that her life was in Emperor Xianfeng's hands, and she might die at any time if he was displeased.
She quickly became one of the favorites of the Emperor. He had an Empress, his official "wife," but Cixi had a son by him.
In 1860, British and French troops attacked Beijing with a comparatively small force. Emperor Xianfeng fled with Cixi, and the army destroyed the Imperial Summer Palace.It is said that when the Emperor Xianfeng heard of this, he fell into a depression, turned heavily to alcohol and drugs, and became seriously ill.
When he was dying in 1861, he named eight regents for his five year old son who was to be the emperor when he died. He also wanted Cixi (his son's mother) and his Empress to help his son. Being the boy emperor's mother gave her some real power in the court. She was about 26 years old then.
Cixi was an honorific name meaning 'Kind Joy' given to her when Emperor Xianfeng died and she became the regent with her young son as emperor. It is said that at birth, she was called Yu Lan or 'Little Orchid', however her true name remains unconfirmed.
She had come to power in a world where poisonings and assassinations were common. It was either kill or be killed. Somehow, for some reason, the Empress made Cixi a co-Empress. So she gained even more power. What followed after this were various plots and assassinations. Somehow, she ruled the empire from behind the screens during the reigns of two emperors.
Wan Rong
Gobulo Wan Rong ("Beautiful Countenance") was the daughter of Rong Yuan, the Minister of Domestic Affairs of the Qing Government and head of one of Manchuria's most prominent, richest families. She was highly educated at an American missionary school in Tianjin by the American tutor Isabel Ingram, where she had been given the Christian name of "Elizabeth". To get more news about gobulo wanrong, you can visit shine news official website.
At the age of 17, Wan Rong was selected from a series of photographs presented to the Xuan Tong Emperor (a.k.a. Puyi), who resided in the Forbidden City as a non-sovereign monarch of China, as potential candidates for the post of Imperial consort. The wedding took place when Puyi reached the age of 16, and many expensive gifts were given to the bride and her family, although Puyi never showed much interest (sexual or otherwise) in either Wan Rong or his concubine Wen Xiu
The union between Puyi and Wan Rong never produced any heirs, and some historian state that they might never have been sexually intimate. Some believed Puyi was infertile, but this could have been a delicate way to avoid discussion of his sexuality Fact|date=January 2008. It is widely believed that Puyi was homosexual, and while living in Changchun as the puppet Emperor of Manchukuo, there were rumors of his sexual involvement with various pageboys. His sister-in-law Hiro Saga wrote of Puyi's relationship with young boys in her memoirs. [Edward Behr, "The Last Emperor", 1987, p. 248-250]
Empress Wan Rong started using opium when she was a teenager. According to Puyi's memoirs [Puyi, The Last Manchu, ] , it was fashionable for educated girls to smoke cigarettes at that time, and a small amount of opium was often added by the Chinese as an analgesic.
After Puyi was forced out of the Forbidden City by the Chinese warlord Feng Yuxiang in 1924, he fled with Empress Wan Rong and moved to the foreign concession in Tianjin. There, they resided in the "Quiet Garden Villa" in the Japanese Concession in Tianjin. [Rogaski, R: Hygienic Modernity, page 262. University of California Press, 2004] . In Tianjin, Wan Rong grew to despise Puyi and they led increasingly separate lives.
Manchukuo
With hope of restoring the Manchu Empire, Puyi accepted Japanese offers to head the new state of Manchukuo, and relocated to Changchun, Jilin Province, which had been renamed Hsinking, in March 1932. He lived in the Russian-built Salt Rates Palace, a tax office that had been converted into a temporary place while a new structure was being built. [Edward Behr, "ibid", p. 247] Relations between Wan Rong and Puyi remained strained, and she lived in a separate room, rarely coming out or eating meals with Puyi. Even after the move into the new and luxurious Wei Huang Gong, Wang Rong continued to sleep in separate quarters. Realizing her husband was only a puppet ruler with no real political power, and having all the burdens of an Empress but none of the advantages, Wan Rong's addiction to opium started to become serious. She was taking about two ounces of opium a day, a huge quantity, between July 1938 and July 1939. [Edward Behr, "ibid", p. 247]
Rumours has it that in 1940, Empress Wan Rong became pregnant by one of her servants, her driver Li Tieh-yu. Instead of having him executed, as he could have, Puyi paid him off and told him to leave the town. When Wan Rong gave birth, the doctors killed the baby girl with a lethal injection. It is also speculated that in his memoir, Puyi wrote that he had thrown Wan Rong's baby into a fire, but records such as this were deleted upon inspection before his memoirs were published. It can only be speculated how this may have affected Wan Rong's mental health, and indeed from that moment she lived in a near-constant opium haze. [Edward Behr, "ibid", p. 256]
During the Evacuation of Manchukuo during the Soviet invasion (Operation August Storm) in 1945, Puyi attempted to flee Manchukuo, leaving behind his empress (Wan Rong), his concubine (Li Yuqin) and some other imperial family members, ostensibly because his immediate entourage was at risk of arrest and the women would be safe. [Edward Behr, "ibid", p. 264]
Empress Wan Rong, her sister-in-law Hiro Saga and the other members of her group attempted to flee overland to Korea, but were arrested by the Chinese communist army in Talitzou, Manchukuo, in January 1946. In April, they were moved to a police station in Changchun, eventually released only to be rounded up again and locked up at a police station in Jilin. Wan Rong's opium supply had long since dried up and she was suffering the effects of withdrawal. When Chiang Kai-shek's army bombed Kirin, Wan Rong and Hiro Saga were both moved to Yanji Prison in Jilin Province (吉林省延吉监狱). [Edward Behr, "ibid", p. 268-9] Empress Wan Rong died in Yanji Prison in June 1946 from the effects of malnutrition and opium withdrawal, aged thirty-nine. However, Puyi did not receive the news until three years later.
It’s a colossal fortune, but it pales in comparison to the wealth available to China’s Empress Wu Zetian (AD624-705), who ruled the country when the economy of China accounted for around 23 per cent of global GDP. Such an individual today would control an estimated more than US$16 trillion of assets. Of course, comparisons across centuries and different eras are tricky, but given China’s wealth at the time, it’s possible to argue that Empress Wu is the richest woman to have ever lived.
Her debatable wealth aside, Wu remains one of the most fascinating individuals in Chinese history. If you believe the most critical accounts of her reign, she murdered one of her own children, deposed her sons who were emperors before her and ruled with the help of a secret police force.
Given her dramatic life story, it’s no surprise she has been portrayed in countless films and TV series. The most notable recent account was 2015’s Empress of China starring Fan Bingbing, whose racy costumes and frequent displays of cleavage had to be censored.
Wu’s origins remain shrouded in mystery. Conflicting reports suggest she might have been born in modern Shanxi Province, Sichuan or Shaanxi. What is known is that her father was a wealthy timber merchant who developed close ties to the official Li Yuan, who would eventually become Emperor Gaozong of Tang.
Unusually for the time period, Wu’s father made sure his daughter was well educated. She read widely and, at 14, was made an imperial concubine of Emperor Taizong of Tang. In the palace she worked as a secretary, which allowed her to continue reading and furthering her education.
Emperor Taizong died in 649. Since Wu had not fathered any children with the emperor, by custom she was to be permanently confined to a Buddhist monastery following Taizong’s death. Supposedly, Wu had started a relationship with Taizong’s son, the new Emperor Gaozong, while the former was still alive. Whether true or not, he removed her from monastic life and made her his own concubine within a year.
Back at the palace, consort Wu set about consolidating her position. A fierce rivalry rapidly developed with Empress Wang as the two ladies attempted to do away with one another. In 654, Wu gave birth to a daughter who died soon after. Evidence suggested Empress Wang may have been behind the death, but such was their rivalry that some historians believe Wu killed her own daughter to frame Empress Wang, although no firm proof for this exists. A year later, Wu accused Wang and her mother of using witchcraft – an event that precipitated the empress’ fall.
In her place, Wu was made empress in 655. Within five years, Emperor Gaozong began to suffer from debilitating headaches and a loss of vision, generally thought to be related to high blood pressure. Incapacitated, he began to hand duties and responsibilities over to his educated wife and looked to her for constant advice. In a sign of the controversy surrounding Empress Wu, historian Bo Yang has suggested that Gaozong’s illnesses resulted from sustained poisoning by Empress Wu. Whatever the truth, Wu wielded considerable power. “Promotion or demotion, life or death, were settled by her word,” recorded the Song dynasty historian Sima Guang several centuries later.
Given the dubious rumours that surrounded her and her fragile position as a woman at court, Wu continually fought to maintain her influence. In many ways, she was ruthless. In 675, her and Emperor Gaozong’s eldest son, Li Hong, passed away. Once again, historians have speculated about whether Empress Wu was to blame for this death, with some saying she felt threatened by her son’s attempt to curb her power.
Another deadly power struggle occurred several years later with the death of Ming Chongyan, a shaman trusted by the emperor and empress. Wu blamed the new heir to the throne – her second son, Li Xian – for the murder and accused him of treason. Under pressure from the empress, Gaozong demoted his son to commoner status and appointed Li Zhe (also known as Li Xian) as the new crown prince.
Despite the alleged murders and family feuds, Empress Wu is credited with running the empire with tremendous efficiency and competency. She often selected the right individuals for the right tasks and her decisive character earned her respect, if not love.
When Emperor Gaozong passed away in 683, and Li Zhe became Emperor Zhongzong, Wu maintained her authority as empress dowager. Gaozong’s will went so far as to state that although Li Zhe should ascend the throne immediately, he was still to consult his mother on all matters of state and to get her approval.
However, Emperor Zhongzong’s wife had ambitions of her own and almost immediately clashed with her mother-in-law. The predictable result was that within months the emperor was deposed on the orders of Wu, demoted to prince and sent into exile.