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VENERABLE ANCESTOR by Harry Hussey

VENERABLE ANCESTOR

By

Pub Date: Oct. 6th, 1949
Publisher: Doubleday

An authentic, probably definitive biography of the private life and controversial reign of dowager empress Tz'u Hsi of China (1835-1908), the last great ruler of the Ch'ing dynasty. Based on monumental research of diaries, letters, to which Hussey- who lived in China for nearly forty years-had access, this is the story of Green Jade's ominous birth; the childhood of genteel poverty and constant moving as the daughter of a Manchu official; her entry into court as a concubine; the early methodical creation of her spy system among the eunuchs; her ascension to power as co-regent when her son became emperor; and her long, nefarious, cruel stranglehold on her power which survived three regencies. Here too is the history of the entire Oh'ing dynasty, the status of the Manchu families, the Opium War, the missionary movement, the Boxer Rebellion, and detailed descriptions of the magnificent palaces, temples and jewels. A full-scale, well written biography-and a must for all interested in the Orient.