The Empress CiXi

Empress Dowager CiXi in a photo (above) and in a painting (below) began as a concubine and rose to control the Chinese government for almost 50 years, from 1861 until her death in 1908. CiXi was popularly known as the "West Empress Dowager" (西太后) because she lived inside the western Chuxiu Palace, while her rival until 1881, Ci'an, was popularly known as the "East Empress Dowager" because she lived in the eastern Zhongcui Palace.