Admiring Red Walls and Golden Tiles: The Ming and Qing Imperial Palace — Part Ten: The West Six Palaces (Part 1) (Revised)

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The tourist entrance to the West Six Palaces is the Inner Right Gate, next to the Grand Council Office west of the Qianqing Gate.

Like the Inner Left Gate mentioned earlier, the Inner Right Gate is also a glazed wall-attached gate. The door pillars have 'boxes,' but only upper and lower corner brackets. Inside the Inner Right Gate, a long street runs north to the Imperial Garden; this is the West First Long Street. Walking north to the end, you reach the Changkang Right Gate; turning east, you come to the Qiongyuan West Gate of the Imperial Garden.

Inside the Inner Right Gate, on the right are tourist restrooms; along the wall is a spot where visitors seek shade in the morning, also doubling as a waiting area for those who urgently need their companions to come out from the restroom.

When the East and West Six Palaces were first built in the early Ming Dynasty, they were symmetrically arranged. Upon entering the Inner Right Gate, on the tall palace wall to the east there is also a roofed gate, matching the Rijing Gate on the East Six Palaces side—this is the Yuehua Gate. Through these two gates one can see the essence of the sun and moon inside. Entering the Yuehua Gate brings you to the Qianqing Palace Square; standing outside the gate, you can see the ramp from the Qianqing Gate to the terrace of Qianqing Palace, and across you can spot the Rijing Gate opposite.

As on the East Six Palaces side, this spot on the West First Long Street is still not part of the consorts' West Six Palaces. Opposite the Rijing Gate to the east is the Renxiang Gate, and here opposite Yuehua Gate is the Zunyi Gate—together they embody benevolence and righteousness. Entering Renxiang Gate and walking east leads to the Zhai Palace and Yuqing Palace; entering Zunyi Gate here and walking west leads to the Hall of Mental Cultivation (Yangxin Hall) and the Imperial Kitchen. The Yangxin Hall is to the north of the lane, and the Imperial Kitchen to the south. This Imperial Kitchen was specially built to cook for the emperor in the Qing Dynasty; since the emperor ate alone, it was also called the Yangxin Hall Imperial Kitchen. Renovation of the Yangxin Hall began in 2015, billed as major repairs but likely equivalent to a rebuild. This was the first major restoration of the Yangxin Hall in New China; even for construction crews known as 'infrastructure maniacs,' a palace renovation could not be taken lightly, and as a result, by the end of 2021—six years later—it was still hard to predict when it would be completed.

The style of Zunyi Gate differs from the Renxiang Gate to the east; Renxiang Gate is a street gate, while Zunyi Gate is a courtyard gate. The pillar corners have brackets but no 'box' in the middle. Outside the gate stands a Forbidden City apology notice with a QR code below, saying scanning it gives a VR experience. I have no VR equipment, only a phone that can scan, so VR is useless to me—scanning would be in vain, and why scan in vain? Alright, I'll come back after the renovation is done; for today, I'll let it go.

On the East First Long Street, you enter the East Six Palaces only after passing through the Jinguang Left Gate; similarly on the west side, it's after passing through the Jinguang Right Gate that you reach the West Six Palaces. In the harem, the numerous imperial consorts shine brightly, so these two gates are called Jinguang ('Approaching Light') Gates.

The layout of the West Six Palaces mirrors the East Six Palaces. The gate of the cross alley in the East Six Palaces is called Xianhe Left Gate, so the gate of the West First Cross Alley here is naturally called Xianhe Right Gate.

Look—this Xianhe Right Gate is exactly the same as its eastern counterpart, and the names correspond. 'Xian' means 'together,' so 'Xianhe' suggests universal peace. Let's enter and see. There's a duty room at the entrance of the West First Cross Alley; in the past, eunuchs surely guarded the gate here—wind could enter, rain could enter, even the king could enter.

Heading west along the West First Cross Alley, the first courtyard gate is Yongshou Gate—this is Yongshou Palace.

Yongshou Palace's position corresponds to Jingren Palace in the East Six Palaces. Like Jingren Palace, inside Yongshou Gate there is also a white marble screen wall inlaid with marble panels, the marble bearing fascinating natural patterns. At the four corners of the screen wall base are Yuan-style crouching dragons with flowing hair—are these also relics from the Yuan imperial palace?

In the early Ming, Yongshou Palace was called Changle Palace; it was renamed Yude Palace in the 14th year of the Jiajing reign (1535 CE), and only became Yongshou Palace in the 44th year of the Wanli reign (1616 CE). Its architectural layout is identical to Jingren Palace in the East Six Palaces, but notice—its flanking side halls in the front courtyard have no wing rooms attached.

Let's look at the main hall of Yongshou Palace. Its architectural form is exactly the same as Jingren Palace: five bays wide, with bracket sets and a post-and-beam structure, covered by a single-eave hip-and-gable roof of yellow glazed tiles. The central bay has the door, and in front, the platform has an imperial ramp with carved stone steps. The inscribed plaque on the main hall in Yongshou Palace's front courtyard is the prototype for the plaques on the main halls of all East and West Six Palaces, inscribed by Emperor Qianlong of Qing.

The two crabapple trees in front of Yongshou Palace—who knows if they are original Ming plantings? Even now, they still bloom when the season comes.

Look at the rear courtyard: the rebuilt well pavilion is still there. In the East Six Palaces, the well pavilion in the rear courtyard is in the southwest corner; in the West Six Palaces, it's in the southeast corner—symmetrical. The front hall of Yongshou Palace has no veranda, but the rear hall does have a front veranda.

During the Chenghua reign of the Ming Dynasty, Emperor Xianzong Zhu Jianshen won a victory in a southern campaign against Guangxi and brought back numerous captives. Among them was an orphaned Yao ethnic girl named Ji. He installed her as a scribe in the palace's Inner Storehouse. One day, he casually strolled into the storehouse and chanced upon a debate with Ji; impressed by her quick wit and talent, he took her to bed. Ji then became pregnant and gave birth to a son at the Xi Nei Anle Hall near Di'anmen outside the palace, raising him until he was six. In the 11th year of Chenghua (1475 CE), Ji fell increasingly ill, and a close eunuch told the Chenghua Emperor about the child living outside the palace. Delighted—since his previous two sons had died and he sorely lacked an heir—the emperor brought the boy into the palace in the fourth month and named him Zhu Youcheng (pronounced 'cheng'). He also moved Ji into Yongshou Palace, then still called Changle Palace, and honored her as Consort Shu. Because Consort Shu was seriously ill, her son Zhu Youcheng was initially housed and raised in Consort Wan's palace upon entering. Consort Shu died not long after moving into Yongshou Palace, in the sixth month, which the palace staff found suspicious. The story leaked out of the palace, and civilian detectives reasoned that Consort Wan was the culprit—these Ming-era amateur sleuths were the predecessors of today's community tipsters. But since they couldn't enter the palace to collect evidence, the case became one of the Ming Dynasty's unsolved mysteries. In truth, Ji was already sick when she entered the palace and had little time left. In the eleventh month, after Zhu Youcheng was formally named crown prince, his grandmother, Empress Dowager Zhou, removed him from Consort Wan's care and raised him in Renshou Palace—today's Cining Palace. Legend has it that on a warm spring day in the 23rd year of Chenghua, Consort Wan invited Zhu Youcheng to her palace for a meal. The crown prince not only refused to eat or drink but also said some unpleasant things; Consort Wan was so furious she fell ill and never recovered, soon passing away. Emperor Chenghua, who had been cared for by Consort Wan since he was two and adored her, was devastated by her death and died in the eighth month. The affair involving Consort Wan, Consort Shu Ji, and Zhu Youcheng is a Ming mystery, but only among civilians; within the palace it was no mystery. After Chenghua, Zhu Youcheng ascended as the Hongzhi Emperor, Ming Xiaozong. He posthumously honored his mother as Empress Xiaomu Ji, interred her in his father's Maoling tomb, and specially built the Fengci Hall to house her spirit tablet for worship. Emperor Chenghua's mother was Consort Zhou of Ming Yingzong Zhu Qizhen; after Chenghua's succession, she was honored as Empress Dowager Zhou. When she died in the Hongzhi reign, Emperor Hongzhi Zhu Youcheng also placed her tablet in Fengci Hall and buried her in Ming Yingzong's Yuling tomb. Consort Wan was not buried in the shared consort tomb but separately in a tomb called Consort Wan's Tomb, now the Wan niangniang grave in the Ming Tombs. Though Consort Wan was seventeen years older than Chenghua Emperor Zhu Jianshen, their bond remains one of the great love stories between an emperor and consort in Chinese history. For some reason, Consort Wan fell afoul of unofficial historians, and popular lore paints her as a villainess—quite controversial. Additionally, which palace Consort Wan lived in is another riddle. Ming records state: 'her favor greatly increased; originally residing in Zhaode Palace, later moved to Anxi Palace and was promoted to Imperial Noble Consort.' Neither Zhaode Palace nor Anxi Palace can be found among the present East and West Six Palaces. Records say Anxi Palace was built in the tenth month of the fourth year of the Jiajing reign (1526 CE)—I believe it was rebuilt. That same year, Jingfu Palace was also completed. The current Jingfu Palace in the Forbidden City was rebuilt by Emperor Qianlong of the Qing. I think the area around the Jingqi Pavilion and Fuwang Pavilion next to Jingfu Palace—now north of Leshou Hall—was the site of Anxi Palace in the Ming. Qianlong completely overhauled that area to build a retirement home for himself, so he must have demolished the original Ming structures to erect his old-age palace.

When the Qing Shunzhi Emperor entered Beijing after the conquest, he dismissed the empress that Dorgon and Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang had married to him. That empress had a rather awkward name, and in the tenth year of Shunzhi she was demoted to Consort Jing. Consort Jing was moved to live in this very Yongshou Palace, vanishing from the records thereafter, making Yongshou Palace the first 'cold palace' of the Qing dynasty. This deposed Consort Jing probably did not stay long in Yongshou Palace; it is very likely she moved to the Cining Palace to live with her aunt, Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang. In the 13th year of Shunzhi (1656 CE), during the selection of consorts, a Han woman surnamed Shi was chosen as a fujin (imperial consort). Though nominally the Eastern Palace Consort, she was actually a rank lower than a consort. Emperor Shunzhi ordered that Eastern Palace Consort Shi reside in this Yongshou Palace among the West Six Palaces, granting her special permission to wear Han clothing. Her mother was also specially permitted to alight from a sedan chair at the West Flowery Gate and enter via the Inner Right Gate to perform family rites, and was even given an imperial meal. After her death in the Kangxi reign, Shi was posthumously honored as Imperial Consort Ke and buried in Shunzhi's Xiaodong Tomb—though whether it was her ashes remains uncertain. Shunzhi was the first Qing emperor after the Ming; to facilitate ruling the empire, he married a Mongol empress and had Han women among his consorts. But in truth, his most beloved was the Manchu Consort Donggo. When Kangxi became emperor, aiming to elevate the status of Ebilun, he married Ebilun's eldest daughter, of the Niohuru clan, in the 15th year of Kangxi (1676 CE). In the 16th year, she was appointed as his second empress and lived in Kunning Palace. By the Shunzhi era, Kunning Palace had already been converted for shamanic rituals; this empress was the last Qing empress to reside there, probably dwelling in the converted East Warmth Chamber. She was short-lived, dying in Kunning Palace in the 17th year of Kangxi, with the posthumous name Empress Xiaozhao. Unwilling to accept this, Kangxi then married Ebilun's younger daughter as a noble consort, known as Consort Wenxi. Consort Wenxi lived in Yongshou Palace and gave birth to the emperor's tenth son, Yin'e (pronounced 'e'). She died in the 33rd year of Kangxi, 'Wenxi' being her posthumous title. In the Qing dynasty, only imperial noble consorts received such posthumous titles, making Wenxi the only noble consort to ever have one. After Empress Niohuru's death, Kangxi did not install another empress, leaving Kunning Palace empty. The harem was managed for ten years by Noble Consort Tong of Chengqian Palace; it was only on her deathbed in the 28th year of Kangxi that she was finally named empress. Although she held the title for only one day, she counts as Kangxi's third empress. While Noble Consort Tong, she would select palace maids of exceptional looks and character to present to the emperor. One of these was a maid named Zhangjia, who served the emperor and gave birth, from the 25th to 30th years of Kangxi, to the 13th imperial son, Yinxiang, and two princesses. By all accounts, she was a woman much loved by Kangxi, yet despite living alongside Consort Wenxi in Yongshou Palace, she was never granted a title during her lifetime and remained a mere common consort. She died in the 38th year of Kangxi, only to be posthumously honored as Consort Min. After Yongzheng ascended the throne, because Prince Yinxiang (the 13th prince) was highly virtuous, he posthumously elevated his mother, Consort Min, to Imperial Noble Consort Jingmin and buried her in Kangxi's Jingling tomb. After Consort Wenxi and Consort Min, Kangxi's Consort Liang resided in Yongshou Palace; she was first titled Consort Liang in the 39th year of Kangxi, later promoted to consort. This Consort Liang, who entered the palace in the 14th year of Kangxi, was also a palace maid presented by Noble Consort Tong; she gave birth to the eighth imperial son, Yinsi (pronounced 'si'), in the 20th year of Kangxi. Raised by Consort Hui, Yinsi would become the leader of the Eighth Prince Party.

When Kangxi's fourth son, Yinzhen, became the Yongzheng Emperor, he conferred upon his secondary consort, of the Niohuru clan, the title of Consort Xi (pronounced 'xi'), and she lived in Jingren Palace in the East Six Palaces until Yongzheng's death. When Yongzheng's fourth son, Hongli, ascended as the Qianlong Emperor, he honored his mother, Consort Xi née Niohuru, as Empress Dowager Chongqing. Before moving into the Shoukang Palace, she resided in Yongshou Palace for a time. After the Empress Dowager Chongqing moved to Shoukang Palace, Qianlong promoted his own secondary consort, Gao Jia, to noble consort, and moved her from Zhongcui Palace to the Yongshou Palace where his mother had lived—she was Qianlong's first noble consort. In the tenth year of Qianlong, on her deathbed, Gao Jia was promoted to imperial noble consort, Qianlong's first imperial noble consort. Later, Qianlong's Consort Ying and Consort Shu lived in Yongshou Palace. According to Qing palace records, both Consort Shu and Consort Ling were promoted to consort in the 13th year of Qianlong (1748 CE); it may have been that year that Consort Shu moved from Chengqian Palace to Yongshou Palace. Consort Ying had previously lived in Jingren Palace in the East Six Palaces, not moving to Yongshou Palace until just before Qianlong abdicated. Three years into the Jiaqing reign, after Qianlong had retired, seeing that Consort Ying had been with him all her life and was nearly seventy, he reluctantly promoted her to noble consort. During the Jiaqing reign, Consort Ru lived in Yongshou Palace. Born in the 52nd year of Qianlong (1787 CE), she entered the palace during the Jiaqing reign and rose to Consort Ru. After Jiaqing's death, the Daoguang Emperor honored her as Imperial Noble Consort Ru of the previous reign. She did not live in Shoukang Palace but in the Qing-era Shou'an Palace behind it, known as Xianxi Palace in the Ming. During the Xianfeng reign, she was promoted to Grand Imperial Noble Consort Ru and died in the tenth year of Xianfeng (1860 CE) at seventy-four. Consort Ru is also a Qing legend who lived through four emperors.

Continuing west from Yongshou Gate, the intersection leads to the north-south West Second Long Street.

After crossing the West Second Long Street intersection, the next courtyard gate on the West First Cross Alley is Taiji Gate, with a wooden screen wall, or wooden spirit screen, inside.

Inside Taiji Gate is, of course, Taiji Hall.

The front courtyard's main hall is similar to those in other western and eastern palaces: post-and-beam bracket structure, five bays wide and three bays deep, with a single-eave hip-and-gable roof of yellow glazed tiles. In front is a two-chi-high bluestone platform with a central set of frontal steps and a carved stone imperial ramp in the middle. What sets Taiji Hall apart is that it has verandas both front and back, with double-dragon hexi patterns on the horizontal beams—likely painted in the 16th year of Guangxu (1890 CE). The front courtyard has flanking side halls of three bays each. The rear courtyard is also much like the others: a five-bay main hall and three-bay side halls. Taiji Hall corresponds to Yanxi Palace in the East Six Palaces, which, before a fire in the Daoguang reign, had the same architectural layout.

Taiji Hall was originally called Weiyang Palace in the early Ming, then renamed Qixiang Palace in the 14th year of Jiaqing. During the Ming Chenghua reign, Emperor Xianzong Zhu Jianshen's Consort Chen (pronounced 'chen') née Shao lived here and gave birth to the fourth imperial son, Zhu Youyuan. The title 'Consort Chen' is very special, implying imperial intent, and ranks as the highest consort. Initially, when Emperor Gaozong of Tang wanted to name Wu Zetian as Consort Chen, everyone objected, deeming it too lofty. Throughout history, there have been several Consort Chens, most of them beloved by emperors; the most favored consort of Hong Taiji, Hailanzhu, was also called Consort Chen. Emperor Chenghua loved Consort Wan the most, but he was also very fond of Consort Chen, who was promoted to noble consort on her deathbed. When Consort Wan lost her own son early and the child of Lady Ji entered the palace, Consort Wan urged Zhu Jianshen to depose Crown Prince Zhu Youcheng and install Consort Chen's son, Zhu Youyuan. This failed and was abandoned. In the 23rd year of Chenghua (1487 CE), Consort Wan died of illness; months later, the Chenghua Emperor also passed away. The third prince, Zhu Youcheng, succeeded as the Hongzhi Emperor, Ming Xiaozong. Hongzhi was talented, but in the 18th year of his reign (1505 CE), he died young at thirty-six, passing the throne to Crown Prince Zhu Houzhao, the Zhengde Emperor, Ming Wuzong. Consort Chen's son, Prince Xing Zhu Youyuan, was Zhengde's imperial uncle. Zhu Houzhao was even worse than his father, dying at thirty-one without fathering an heir. By the ancestral rule of accepting a younger brother when the emperor left no son, the Empress Dowager and the Grand Secretary decided to let the closest cousin ascend—Zhu Youyuan's son, the grandson of Consort Chen, Zhu Houcong, who became the Jiajing Emperor, Ming Shizong. This was in the 14th year of Zhengde (1519 CE). This period of Ming history is rather tangled; it took some effort to explain it clearly. Consequently, the Jiajing Emperor renamed the Weiyang Palace, where his father was born, to Qixiang Palace to celebrate his own branch's rise to the throne. Upon taking power, Jiajing honored his blind grandmother, Consort Chen, as Empress Dowager Shou'an, his father, Prince Xing Zhu Youyuan, as Ruizong, and his mother, Lady Jiang, as Empress Dowager Xingguo. He even elevated his father's princely mausoleum at the fief in Zhongxiang, Hubei, to an imperial tomb. Consort Chen died in the first year of Jiajing (1521 CE) and was buried in Zhu Jianshen's Maoling tomb; in the 15th year of Jiajing, she and Lady Ji (Consort Shu) were both moved into the main tomb hall. Maoling is very mysterious: Zhu Jianshen died in the 23rd year of Chenghua (1487 CE). The tomb was begun after his death, and that same year the pit was dug and he was the first to be interred. Emperor Hongzhi also buried his mother, Consort Shu Ji, there simultaneously, bestowing the posthumous title Empress Xiaomu. Zhu Jianshen's Empress Wang later died in the 13th year of Zhengde (1518 CE) and was rightfully interred in the main Maoling hall. Inside that main hall, beside Zhu Jianshen himself, everyone else was interred by his descendants; Empress Wang surely had Zhu Jianshen's consent, but the other two, Consort Chen and Consort Shu, may not have. By the way, the side halls of Maoling also contain Consort Xian née Bai, mother of the prematurely deceased second son, Zhu Youji. Consort Wan, Zhu Jianshen's favorite, who bore the dead first son, was not buried there. Yet her spirit in heaven did see to it that Consort Chen's son Zhu Youyuan became Ming Ruizong and her grandson Zhu Houcong became the Jiajing Emperor.

In the 24th year of Wanli (1596 CE), in the third month, Emperor Shenzong Zhu Yijun was secretly concocting a new elixir in the then-bianlian (side hall), the Yangxin Hall, when he suddenly saw red light emanating from Kunning Palace. Soon, flames and smoke erupted, and both Kunning and Qianqing Palaces were reduced to ashes. Thereafter, unable to return to Qianqing Palace, he stayed for a few days in what was then Yude Palace (now Yongshou Palace) before moving into this Qixiang Palace, living there until Qianqing Palace was rebuilt in the 32nd year of Wanli. Speaking of 'secretly concocting an elixir,' I'm reminded of a fun story. Nowadays, restaurants often have a signature dish called 'secret-recipe something or other.' Once, when a few colleagues and I went out to eat, a German colleague who knew a little Chinese asked me what 'secret recipe' meant on the menu. I was at a loss for words, so I told him it meant 'Made in a dark room.' He was baffled and asked, 'Why?' I said, 'No why,' and he glared at me angrily. Then the restaurant manager said it was 'Made with a secret prescription,' and now it was my turn to be baffled.

In the sixth year of Xianfeng in the Qing Dynasty (1856 CE), Consort Yi, who lived in the Palace of Gathered Elegance (Chuxiu Gong), gave birth to a prince named Zaichun, Xianfeng's only son. For the merit of bearing an heir, Consort Yi was promoted to Consort Yi—this was the future Empress Dowager Cixi of the West Palace. In the seventh year of Xianfeng, Consort Yi was further promoted to Noble Consort Yi. The literate Noble Consort Yi often helped the sickly Xianfeng review memorials and such, interspersed with bouts of acting coy. During those years, the ailing Xianfeng could no longer bed his consorts and produced no offspring, or any born did not survive. Noble Consort Yi constantly whispered in Xianfeng's ear that she wanted a bigger residence. Helpless, in the ninth year of Xianfeng, he agreed to connect the two courtyards of Changchun Palace and the front Qixiang Palace and renovate them, intending for her to live there. The front hall of Qixiang Palace was renamed Taiji Hall, while a hole was knocked in the rear wall of the back hall, turning the central bay into a passageway and renaming it Tiyuan Hall. Hoardings now stand on either side of Taiji Hall's main hall, so the rear Tiyuan Hall and Changchun Palace are currently hidden from view.

Before that, the twelve inscribed plaques of the East and West Six Palaces were all written by Qianlong; at that time, this palace's plaque read 'Qixiang Palace.' After Xianfeng's renovation of Qixiang Palace, the plaque of Taiji Hall became the only one in the East and West Six Palaces not in Qianlong's calligraphy. Qixiang Palace and Changchun Palace together formed a four-courtyard compound, larger than the emperor's own Yangxin Hall. Research indicates that although Xianfeng lived in Yangxin Hall, he often resided and worked in Xianfu Palace behind Changchun Palace. At that time, the central empress, Niohuru, lived in Zhongcui Palace in the East Six Palaces—the future Empress Dowager Ci'an of the East Palace. Even Zhongcui Palace was not as large as the combined Qixiang and Changchun Palaces; its encircling verandas were built after the Changchun Palace renovation.

Observe the late-Qing furnishings now placed in Taiji Hall—this is likely not Cixi's original throne. In the past, the central bay of each main hall in the East and West Six Palaces had such a setup: a dais, throne, and back screen. This throne was not for the palace mistress but for the emperor. Whenever the emperor visited a palace, he would first sit here, while the mistress would hurriedly come out from her inner room to greet him. If the emperor went directly to the rear hall bedchamber, the mistress had to kneel at once and cry out, 'Your slave welcomes you too late, worthy of ten thousand deaths.'

Changchun Palace is currently under renovation and not open to the public; apologies for the lack of images. In the Ming Dynasty, the Tianqi Emperor Zhu Youxiao's Consort Li Chengfei lived here. She was a tragic figure: when serving the emperor, she spoke up for another consort, Fan Huifei, who shared the same palace, and later fell victim to intrigue and was demoted to a palace maid. It was only when the Chongzhen Emperor succeeded Tianqi that she was rehabilitated.

In the Qing Dynasty, the Yongzheng Emperor styled himself the Taoist 'Abbot of Changchun' and gave his fourth son, Hongli, the sobriquet 'Layman of Changchun.' Upon ascending the throne, Qianlong installed his most beloved empress, née Fuca, in Changchun Palace. After Empress Fuca's death, Qianlong decreed that the palace remain exactly as she left it, with all her possessions kept in place. From then on, every New Year, Qianlong would come to Changchun Palace to mourn her. It was not until the 60th year of Qianlong, long after both Empress Fuca and Imperial Noble Consort Weijia had died and he himself had retired, that Changchun Palace was opened for other consorts of the Jiaqing reign to inhabit.

During the Xianfeng reign, before Changchun Palace could be occupied after renovation, the emperor fell terminally ill. After his death, his consorts did not, as expected, move to the Shoukang Palace; they all remained in their original palaces. Empress Niohuru was honored as Empress Dowager Ci'an of the East Palace, and Noble Consort Yi as Empress Dowager Cixi of the West Palace, thus giving rise to the Two Dowagers of East and West. Tongzhi ascended at age six, unable to wield power. Although Xianfeng had designated eight regents before his death, Cixi colluded with Prince Gong Yixin to launch the Xinyou Coup and eliminate them. The two dowager empresses concocted the practice of 'ruling from behind a curtain,' seizing power, and made Yixin, Xianfeng's half-brother, Prince Regent. At the beginning of the Tongzhi reign (1862 CE), the two dowagers lived together in Changchun Palace: Ci'an in the east side hall, Cixi in the west side hall. Later, for convenience in attending state affairs, both moved to the rear courtyard of Yangxin Hall—Ci'an in the east wing, Cixi in the west wing. In the 11th year of Tongzhi, the two dowagers arranged Tongzhi Emperor Zaichun's marriage; in the 12th year, they rolled up the curtain and returned governance, and Tongzhi began his personal rule. Ci'an had Zhongcui Palace remodeled with a festooned gate and encircling verandas modeled on Changchun Palace, then moved back. Cixi moved into Changchun Palace, finally enjoying a large residence. Thinking Ci'an's veranda murals in Zhongcui Palace were beautiful, Cixi had many paintings done on the walls of her Changchun Palace veranda—some say they depict the Twelve Beauties of the Red Chamber at leisure. Cixi also extended a porch from the rear veranda of Taiji Hall's rear hall, turning it into a private stage for operas. Later, the Guangxu Emperor's Consort Jin would copy this, hosting opera troupes in her own Yonghe Palace in the East Six Palaces. In the 13th year of Tongzhi, the emperor held a grand 40th birthday celebration for his mother, Empress Dowager Cixi, in Changchun Palace. He had hoped to confine his troublesome mother there with daily performances and storytelling, but she still frequently slipped out to meddle in state affairs. Meanwhile, Tongzhi himself passed away at year's end, only nineteen. Empress Dowager Cixi had the four-year-old son of Prince Chun, Zaitian, brought in to become the Guangxu Emperor, and the two dowager empresses returned to rule from behind the curtain in Yangxin Hall. Prince Chun Yixuan was another half-brother of Xianfeng, and his principal wife was Cixi's own sister. The Prince Chun mansion is now the State Administration for Religious Affairs, and its garden is the Former Residence of Soong Ching-ling. In the seventh year of Guangxu (1881 CE), Empress Dowager Ci'an died of a cerebral hemorrhage in Zhongcui Palace; some say Cixi fed her an overdose of aspirin sugar pills. From then on, Cixi almost entirely monopolized power. In the 15th year of Guangxu, the emperor married. The empress was chosen by Cixi: her own niece, daughter of her brother, Yehenara Jingfen. Thereafter, Cixi ostensibly returned governance to Guangxu but continued to control the government through the guise of 'tutelage,' thoroughly reactionary. In the 30th year of Guangxu, Cixi moved to the Yiluan Hall in Zhongnanhai, specially prepared for her retirement; in the early Republic, Yuan Shikai renamed it Huairen Hall. In the 34th year of Guangxu, the emperor fell terminally ill, gravely. Cixi again had Prince Chun's grandson, Puyi, brought in. As soon as Guangxu passed away, Puyi was placed on the throne in the Hall of Supreme Harmony that same day, becoming the Xuantong Emperor. Cixi became Grand Empress Dowager. By then, Cixi herself was also terminally sick in the sickroom at Yiluan Hall; she stubbornly held on until Guangxu died, waited for Xuantong's accession, and breathed her last the next day, uttering her final words: 'From now on, never let women meddle in state affairs.' Xianfeng's central empress Niohuru had risen from Consort Zhen to Empress within forty days—the fastest-rising woman of the Qing dynasty. Xianfeng's Noble Consort Yi, Yehenara, rose the highest of any Qing woman. Xianfeng himself, meanwhile, was the Qing emperor with the shortest reign, a mere eleven years. Thus, Xianfeng was the most... well, lacking both courage and talent, he failed to right the tottering imperial edifice. Most critically, because of his incompetence, Cixi climbed to the pinnacle of late-Qing power and gave that edifice a hard shove.

After Cixi's death, Emperor Guangxu's Empress Yehenara moved from Zhongcui Palace into Changchun Palace and became Empress Dowager Longyu. Since Emperor Xuantong Puyi was only four, Longyu followed Cixi's example and undertook the business of ruling from behind the curtain—eventually hearing the Qing dynasty right out of existence, and herself dying in Changchun Palace in the second year of the Republic (1913 CE). The deposed emperor Puyi was still living in the inner court. In the 11th year of the Republic (1922 CE), Puyi married his primary wife, Wanrong, and secondary wife, Wenxiu. This secondary wife, Wenxiu, lived in Changchun Palace. We often refer to Qing emperors as 'Emperor so-and-so,' like Qianlong or Daoguang. The last emperor should properly be called Emperor Xuantong—he himself called himself Xuantong. But we are more accustomed to calling him Puyi, perhaps because he was so young when he became emperor, reigned only a few years, and spent far longer as the deposed emperor.

After viewing Taiji Hall and Changchun Palace, you'll have to exit through Taiji Gate. Then continue to see the other courtyards of the West Six Palaces.

(To be continued)