How Luxurious was China Empress Dowager Cixi's Life? | Cixi Palace & Daily Life 

So disgusting 🤮

Or poop and pee in corners or behind curtains

barbarian. Thank your for sharing

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And the ladies didn't wash their wigs with water but only using powder and perfume 😶

Very true as we see from the French, Russian, Indian, English aristocrats royalty etc. But its still ridiculous and a terrible waste while people in all their countries were starving and they were inept at ruling over them or improving their lives.. They were all in for a terrible shock in the after world..if they made it!

i think it's more luxurious compared to european monarchs... forbidden city is much more larger than buckingham or windsor... maybe you should watch the movie the last emperor...

@@moneypakiaw1752 I have to disagree with you there. Indeed the Forbidden City is the largest palace complex on earth, but we need to keep in mind Chinese architectural traditions and the fact the a large percentage of the palace is actually the open space of the courtyards and most of the buildings are single story structures, although some of the ceremonial halls are huge. The European architectural traditions favor multi-storied structures for the most part and if you laid out the floor area they would likely be similar in area. The English like other European courts did not live in one palace. The English royals moved between Windsor Castle, Buckingham Palace, St. James Palace, Kensington Palace, Claraence House, Marlborough House, Hampton Court, Osbourne House, Sandringham Estate and the palace of Holy Rood House. If you include the gardens and estates that surround them they would probably equal the estates of the Qing court including the destroyed Yuan Ming Yuan, the Summer Palace, the Imperial hunting lodge at Jehol and Shenyang palace. I don't need to watch the movie 'The Last Emperor', as much of it is not historically accurate in the manner of most 'historical' films everywhere, also I've been to the Forbidden City and the Summer palace. Both the Palace Museums in Beijing and Taipei have the crowns and jewels worn at court, but they don't have the same value of the Crown jewels in London nor the vast private jewel collections of any of the other surviving European royal houses.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World%27s_largest_palace#:~:text=According%20to%20the%20Guinness%20World,residential%20palace%22%20held%20in%20Brunei. According to the Guinness World Records, Forbidden City holds the "largest palace in the world".[11] The Istana Nurul Iman, with 2,152,782 square feet (200,000 m2) of floorspace,[12] holds the title as the "world's largest residential palace" held in Brunei.

@@moneypakiaw1752 True that may be, but it does not take into account that fact that in the period we are looking at the European courts moved regularly between various palaces according to a time honored schedule; there was no single residence for the monarch, Even Louis XIV's Versailles although the principal palace during the final years of the French monarchy, they moved regularly between Versailles, Fontainbleau, Marley, St. Germain en Laye and the Louvre. That being said, I think my point is still valid that the late Qing Dynasty monarchy and court were no more luxurious that any of the others. The systems worked differently so the architectural requirements were different. Chinese Emperors had their enthronement ceremony in the Hall of Supreme Harmony which was the largest and most important building in the Forbidden City, European monarch did not have their coronation ceremonies in their palaces so they had no need to such a ceremonial space. The fact that the luxury was expressed in different terms according to the cultural values of each of the nations in question, but that is not to say that Qing court was more extravagant than the others.

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right? hehehehhee

And buying 5 ply Toiletpaper...🧻🤭

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@@dittedatte8046 💯💯

@K L all in bitcoin

@K L Heh, USA is even worse!! USA seen an increase of homeless people already! Los Angeles has dozens homeless people roaming around while USA elites are enjoying themselves!

@K L Your words mean nothing. The USA act like it never make a single mistake since the establishment of USA! Why do the USA look at the sins of others and pay no attention to the sins it has done? USA must do some own soul seeking or otherwise USA will be a double standard hypocrite country. No, wait. it already is double standard hypocrite country.😂

The Qing Empire was in decline long before Cixi was even born in 1835.

@@billcipherproductions1789 Yes but Cixi nailed the Final coffin to the disorganized empire.

@@gregorjerman973 Yes.

@@gregorjerman973 maria antoinnete version of china

@K L Or find your beliefs from within. Even Jesus said the kingdom of God is within. We don't need anyone to tell us about our soul. If we look inside ourselves, the answers are already there.

Being a Monk and A Empress Dowager who just memorized the Enlightened fold is a different story btw haha.

Any royal in the western world was probably being a bit contradictory to their beliefs as well, “blessed are the poor”, “easier for a camel to get through the eye of a needle than a rich man to get to heaven” etc.

Me too

@@AltaicPride01 manchurian people also chinese, its just a cast in china. They also belong to chinese culture, but there are bit, very tiny differences in their culture, but chinese culture, only small differences

She had the money

It’s almost like someone did her dirty and she promised herself to live such a life

On eBay?

@K L there was no ccp back then

@@lindaliang3825 當時你自己想想，整個北京，賣的就是她的襪

@@MrBoliao98 I can't read Chinese fluently enough to give you an answer....

@K L I don't think so, the woman doesn't have to walk since she has servants to carry. She is constantly wiped and cleaned. I doubt the socks be smelly, they're probably prized secondhand socks worth a ton on the black market

I was looking for this comment.😅😅😅

@Steve Wolcott well, empress Jia Nanfeng married a somewhat mentally challenged emperor, and was said to provoke the war of eight princes, a civil war in which eight princes literally fought over territory and caused turbulence to the people, she is often seen as a villian, rather interesting I suppose.

@@vivianton I didn't know that. Is there a TV series about her and the 8 princes? Cheers

Yup. We Chinese hate her even to this day.

@@willylao5430 Yes, she was quite a bad Empress by the end of her reign in 1908 but overall she was pretty good and di keep the Qing Empire from falling during her reign because, with her, it would've fallen in the 19th century.

Look back, and learn from the past. Can't undo what is already laid down in the history books.

@@billcipherproductions1789 Qing deserved to fall. Yes she did prolong it, but she only prolonged the humiliation.

@@photon812 If Qing fell earlier, there was a chance it would've been partitioned between the Colonial Powers like Africa.

Arsenic would have been a possible ingredient in her white face powders and ceramic dishes. If arsenic was found in her body, deliberate poisoning isn’t the only option.

@@vysharra it was so high a dose she had surely been poisoned with a large quantity all at once

I agree that it all sounds like regular monarchy royal noble people activities war or not of living luxuriously and extravagantly

What so they were trying to poison her for the longest

@@amesavis Was there green wallpaper? It’s my understanding older green wallpaper had large amounts of arsenic.

Recommend that you read the book " Empress Orchid " by Anchee Min. lots of details there.

Yup. All these... while the ordinary folks were literally starving to death. Disgusting, isn't it?

@@willylao5430 And the Nation is being humiliated by Foreign Power with no mean to oppose them. Humiliated after battle and wars, especially with Japan. Prove that Qing Mordenization of the country is still very lacking. Then she removed the Emperor because he wanted reform the country more. Then allies it self against bandit boxer to wage war against major European Power, US and Japan. Which ended with the final nail in the Empire coffin. Every effort to save the empire have been smash by her.

Says the mindless slave working a minimum wage job for her corporate masters and mistresses. The irony. 😂😂😂

She's like a beggar in front of her

Actually, the money, the prized possessions, and other expensive items in China ended up in the hands of foreigners who terrorized China.

@@lindaliang3825 partially, as the video and and documentation states she had an unreasonably lavish life especially after the death of the other dowerger. Given the looming threat from the west, money and resources should have been poured into military, diplomacy and education. I know she effectively had the highest status in the country but socks, apples, tea and lavish 120 courses is foolish. Wagging all that wealth at a avid opponent with a canon, what could she expect to happen? Frankly, if she looked at what happened to the Ming by the Manchu (her own ancestors) maybe she would have responded accordingly.

@@Ashley-vs8nu Some people are well advised as they sit on the throne. One doesn't have many opportunities to leave the palace or to venture anywhere once status has been assigned. The threat from the West started when Elizabeth I was queen. Her sea dogs stole from every ship that sailed from China. Then, there was Queen Victoria & the First Opium War, and then the Second Opium War with France. After that, the USA came to China and ruined so many people, and stole very expensive items like ships, jewels, etc.

@@lindaliang3825 which further substantiates my point. China had a well equipped foe in the west that clearly had no issue with desicrating and disrespecting them and their culture. China has a long history of warfare so this concept shouldn't have been foreign to Cixi or her advisors. Based off of what I have read (I also have a degree in this as well) it appears that China was going through somewhat of an "echo chamber" ( too many yes men)and didn't put aside traditional aspects to properly protect themselves. This cycle has repeated itself through many societies and history where one becomes too comfortable, has poor leadership or too money hungry/ hell bent on tradition and it has led to their downfall (Greece Rome Persia Egypt France just to name a few). You can't think you're the center of the universe and or the "mandate of heaven" when someone is forcing you to "bend the knee" and is pumping dr-g$ into your country.

@@Ashley-vs8nu Does the date August 14, 1945, Shanghai Harbor mean anything in your history degree? Or World War II?

At least imelda helps in promoting local shoe businesses

She hastened it's downfall more than anything.

@@theenclave4981 How so?

Well she poisoned the emperor before Puyi, the Guangxu emperor as she figured that he would enact reforms after she died. He died a day before she did, the Guangxu emperors body was found to have 2k the times of arsenic in his body as a normal person. Cixi was very anti reform and because of her turning the emperors into puppets so she could live out a very luxurious lifestyle so she hastened the downfall of Imperial China.

​​​@@jeffreysommer3292 this may be a year too late to reply but, she did it through not deploying the money where it should be like reforming their policies to modernize so they won't fall weak and potentially gain strength and more political followers. She spent so much of the empires money on herself. Through loopholes in the system, she choose young emperors like her own son and nephew, and since they are young they need regents, she eliminated 8 regents so she could become it. Then later killed them at 18 years old and since they were force married they were manipulated to have no offspring. She did this twice and essentially remained the most powerful person in the court. She not only killed her own son and nephew for this power and money but she abuse the shit out of them and the system through bribing the officials along the way. She could have focused on reforming her empire and tried her best to find a proper well aged successor and allow him to rule with or without regents. However that's not what she did is it 😂

Wow. I'm surprised they're not threadbare after 35 years.

A Buddhist for show only. No real Buddhist will be splurging on luxury while her people were literally starving to death.

@@willylao5430 One could even say, she's the real Marie Antoinette.

@@willylao5430 yes. Well said👍

@@willylao5430 Seriously I'm sure there were a lot of religious Buddish monarchs who were splurging in luxury while their people suffered.

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And while her country is a weak power kick around by the Western Power. I know the European royal spent luxury but they don't forgot that they have to improve themselves to stay ahead of other.

Joseph...spoken like a real sucker lol

You're not the only one

I think that might be a perspective issue. I. An imagine in couple hundred years Buckingham Palace might look disappointing or gauche to people in the future.

I think most of those 600K silver taels went into expensive material, elaborate architecture feature, and precious decoration. Even if it looks small and dull (today) but surely it have gold ceramic roof tile, expensive wood, some part have elaborate & colorful carving (look dull today), and for the interior, it seems had a series of well made expensive ceramic, jade and other precious decor, and also the paintings. And think also the homewares, i watched in other documentary, they made of very fine material and with very delicate techniques, delicate embroidery and ultra complicated loom. Just think of those socks but in big versions as bedsheet, drapes, etc. So, yes, it might get into 600K or millions dollar with todays money. But after 100 years or so it lost the status as royal palace, in some ways, it looks dull.

Ye, the buildings don't look as glorious as the western castles or palaces. That's a difference in the aesthetic value between the two different cultures. Chinese royal luxury usually spends money on rare expensive materials and complicated handcrafts. Back then common people simply prefer noble metals like gold and silver while noble people prefer something more delicate and culturally implicated. A lot of westerners didn't understand why Chinese nobles value fine jade much more than gold.

It's mostly based on the book "A palace woman talks about her recollection of the past", which is told by Cixi's lady in waiting. :)

@@storyofhistoricalfigures9278 Thank you... I am a history teacher so very keen

No!! Cixi is DEAD!! She was born in the Early 1800's.

Plot thickens: she was actually reincarnated as one of the Kardashian.

black lives matter

Taiwan is a province says car registration plate in Taipei streets.

And while the country need those money for mordenization to survived ? Even the Ottoman knew this better than the Qing and made more effort than Qing ever was.

@@thanhhoangnguyen4754 my country ? Which country is that ?

@@azabujuban-hito8085 Wait i type it wrong sorry for the confusion

Relax. We all know what she means. Not everyone in the world has the same exact pronunciation.

The tomb was looted long ago, it’s empty coffin now.

She like to drink breastmilk for anti aging. For sure

I was wondering if somebody else cought that. China be weird sometimes.

When my mum was breastfeeding my brothers, I couldn't hold them after cuz of the smell of milk, but she liked drinking it. Interesting🤔🤔

@@merveillem001 well, people in the past often doing something that they believe it could gain power or something they wanted. Even Sometimes it related with mystic believes

@@wolfenstien13 did u know that they eat soup that contains of human fetus? Just because they believe it could give them strength

He died and his brother died in the 90s. I heard he has a niece or something like that who lives a commoner life now. His last wife lived years ago but not sure about now. I heard she wanted to be buried with him after she dies too.

Actually, her moving toilet is much fancier than a modern one. The picture of her toilet in this video is not accurate. If you do research you'll know how luxurious her toilet is. Her toilet is one of the treasures in her collection, way better than you thought.

Just Like Today's Government!!

1908 she suffered a severe stroke.