Empress Dowager Cixi

Empress Dowager Cixi (November 29, 1835 - November 15, 1908), posthumous title Empress Xiaoqinxian (Manchu: ᡥᡳᠶᠣ ᠣᡧᡠᠩᡤᠠᡤᡳᠩᡤᡠᠵᡳᠯᡝᡨᡠ᠋ᡥᡡᠸᠠᠩᡥᡝᠣ, transcribed by Mu Linder: hiyoošungga gingguji iletu hūwangheo;), also known as the Queen Mother of the West, Yehenala clan, a native of the Xilan Banner in Manchuria, a female royal member and political figure in the late Qing Dynasty of China, the concubine of Emperor Xianfeng of the Qing Dynasty (Yi Guifei) and the biological mother of Emperor Tongzhi of the Qing Dynasty. She was also the de facto supreme ruler of the Qing Empire during the Tongzhi and Guangxu years of the Qing Dynasty (1861-1908). After his son Emperor Tongzhi ascended the throne, he was given the title "Cixi". She was the last person in Chinese history to hold the title of Empress Dowager (but she died after reigning for only one day). Empress Dowager Cixi was in power during the reigns of Tongzhi and Guangxu, and was the most powerful ruler in China at that time. Including the previous two palaces with Empress Dowager Ci'an, she was in power for forty-seven years. During this period, he launched two coups, established a prince twice, and promoted reforms three times. The posthumous title is "Xiaoqin Cixi Duanyou Kang Yi Zhao Yuzhuang Chengshou Gongxian Chongxi Pei Tianxing Shengxian Empress". The length is the longest among the empresses and concubines of the Qing Dynasty, surpassing the founding empress of the Qing Dynasty and surpassing Xiaode and Xiaozhen (Empress Dowager Ci'an), the two wives of Emperor Xianfeng. As the most powerful female ruler in China, her 47-year reign was second only to Wu Zetian. Just three years after the death of Empress Dowager Cixi, the Revolution of 1911 broke out. Empress Dowager Cixi's niece and the last empress dowager Empress Dowager Longyu issued the "Edict on the Abdication of the Qing Emperor", ending the rule of the Qing Dynasty.