Jung Chang, "Empress Dowager Cixi" 

I am amazed at how well Jung Chang made the transition from Chinese citizen to British citizen and succeeded as a writer! Her books read fluently, and keep the reader interested or engrossed in the story. She researched extensively on this subject and I can appreciate her book.

She is one of the greatest living writers. Wild Swans will be a classic. I am just finishing Cixi and find it utterly compelling.

I am not a big fan of celebrities person and I am not a follower but I have read her books and for some reason I burst into tears listening to her account of why she became a writer - thus heaven plays tricks on cynics and stone hearts.

She is such a brilliant writer. When I read her books, I felt like I was in China and being one of the people there experiencing the reforms and failure. Talented2 writer.

China has such a storied, dramatic, amazing and terrifying history. It's really truly unique.

Finally I just got your book today. I've been reading for an hour. I also cried. You made me imagine what was it like 200-220 year ago in Beijing. It's beautiful in my imagination which happen in middle of reading your book. I bet there must be other book that can illustrate beautiful Beijing back in the old day. I will save up to buy another one. Thank you for writing this beautiful book of yours. It made me miss Beijing.

Just finished reading this book,it made me proud and at the same time sad to be chinese knowing how the empire that had lasted for centuries ended up in such a tragic disastrous atrocity. Whether Her Majesty Cixi was regarded as a villain or heroine is all up to your perception. But from my perspective as a man of chinese ancestry, this lady was a true defender of chinese legacy and royal dignity. My ancestors ran away from their homeland China because my great great grandfather was a convert to Catholic, he lost his house and lands to a boxer criminals and he had to flee. Empress Cixi once regained power ceased the boxer turmoil and brought peace and diplomatic reforms to the great empire of China. She was an extraordinary person,and Jung Chang,on behalf of my family,we thank you for bringing up this story. You are a brilliant writer, thank you for this treasure. 多谢您。

Your book helped me so much in my history class! Amazing writing.

What a privilege to be able to view this talk!

Jung Chang, a living wealth of Chinese history!

Thank you for sharing Jung Chang your work on Empress Dowager Cixi!!

Currently enjoying your book. What a woman Cixi was - thanks for writing about her!

Thank you Jung Chang for the great books of your wisdom shared with so many of us...

Fascinating lecture! Gives a whole different perspective of the empress!

Thank you for your journey of becoming a writer! So touching

Absolutely Fascinating living in Hong Kong as a foreigner for over 20 years ... I love learning more about the fabulous past of China .

Fabulous lecture! I had no idea Cixi was a leader WAY ahead of her time.

With all due respects to the writer, but the way it was taught in Chinese history is that it was Emperor Guangxu who initiated modern reforms but was crashed 100 days later by the Empress Dowager. But if the writer has sufficient proofs to contradict Chinese history books, then hope it can be used to revise the good things done by the Empress Dowager.

I love her book and ,her fashion sense.

One of those books that makes you want more... Highly recommended.

i had read the first 2 chapters of the book, n i feel contradict with wat i used to believed of empress dowager cixi as a heartless woman...maybe by the end of the reading, it give me another point of view... appreciate this book so much!

Wonderful lecture! Funny & informative. Thank You for posting it. I'm going to read the book.

I'm a mixed-race American in Washington DC who loves world history; your presentation was fascinating and I enjoyed it very much. Cheers Madam Chang!

I have just finished reading this wonderful book and am in awe of the accomplishments of Cixi and who she was as a person. This book should be read by everyone who wants to begin to understand China and it's people.

Cixi had to be very cautious in order to stay in power, She shared power with the empress of the deceased emperor(empress dowager Ci"An. Cixi was a cautious reformer and hold the firm belief that all things old were only to be discarded when there was a proper alternative. She used the puppet emperors to stay in power and go on with her politics but it was only after the death of co-empress Ci An that she could reign supreme. The negative view of her reign and her persona was the construct of an english writer who never met her and the new people in power who had to demonize her in order to justify their take-over. An old chinese lady I met in Thailand told me that back in the thirties when she was a child a lot of people still thaught the old Buddha as they called her was still in charge and upon learning that she had passed away were quite distraught and wondered who was going to protect them...I am happy that history is rehabilitating her... Thank you Madam Jung Chan....

I had No idea that Cixi had done so much for China in the attempt to draw it into the new age! I just knew of the negative aspects and stories of her extreme extravagance and huberis behavior! I'd like to read Madame Jung's book and thank her for her enlightenment of China before communism and during! Well done.

I enjoyed this very much.

That was a good talk. Thank you.

why is the sound so low..I wish i could hear it fine

THANK you.

This talk completely upturns whatever I've learnt in my Cambridge A'Level History more than a decade ago... Wonder how "history" was institutionalised as fact...

The author's personal story is no less interesting too! How she was brave enough to write a poem even though it was punishable....I think that's amazing.

excelent madame chang,thanks.

Very informative and interesting video❤️👍🙏🏽

just finishing reading this book, fascinating story correcting a lot of falsification of the history... extraordinary writing too

Very interesting and well written book but polarizing nonetheless. At the very least, it's great to see a counter argument to the well worn despot image of Cixi.

Loved it, thank youBTW beautiful silk coat

A favorite author. Love White Swans. It reveals the horrors of Communism and Maoism very well.

Reading Cixi and it is mind blowing

Very interesteting book learn a lot about China

Some interesting and progressive thoughts about a autocratic ruler. Must read.

a great book ..

I thought the reason why she didn't like cars was the driver accidentally injured a maid while cixi was in the car for the first time, and she thought cars were bad luck hence forth and never rode in one again.

At 60 I'm just now discovering Chinese history. It wasn't taught in schools in America I guess due to communism. It seems very difficult due to name changes whenever one moved up a rank. Even pronunciation is hard. But I find it fascinating. A part of the world I'm just seeing from a human point of view. The only Chinese we were taught were the ones helped build the railroads as (slave) laborers. Btw... I just ordered Wild Swans.

Why do I get the feeling that the lecturer is the Empress herself?

totally different perspective

I wish I could meet her

Read online cixi didn't have the pearl concubine killed.

She’s so powerful that she fled to Xi’an when the 8 Nation Alliance struck Beijing. Comrade Mao and his guerillas would have made life hell for the Allies.

Sto leggendo cigni selvatici per la seconda volta mi ha entusiasmato impressionato veramente un libro che a ogni pagina che leggevo mi apriva un mondo,e sua mamma è stata una donna stoica è fantastica,certo che ha sopportato tanto,,El pueblo unido jamas sera'vencido 💥🍾

I have not read the book yet but have her only in mind as the cruel empress in the movie 55 days at Peking with Heston, Niven and Gardner! Sigh!

Cixi saved China

I had high hopes for this book to shed some light on the events surrounding the fall of the Qing dynasty. Mindful of he fact that the many of the previous accounts of Cizu tend to create a lurid caricature. The approach of this book is simply a 180 degree reversal of the previous period. To portray the Empress Dowager as some sort of proto feminist is something of an anachronistic idea. She was no more a feminist than Catherine the Great or Queen Victoria. Some of her terminology was rather problematic, calling the Imperial guard as 'Praetorian guard' is very strange to use an Imperial Roman military term. Although the Chinese emperor had secondary wives and concubines the use of the term 'harem' for the imperial household is also not very accurate. It would have a far better approach to explore how she rose thorough the ranks of the household and how she managed to rule. An examination of how she ruled in a system which was no longer functioning in a rapidly changing world and the challenges that came with it would have been a more balanced and meaningful approach. The author's attempt at making Cixi some sort of female superhero who single handedly brought China into almost the 21st century is something of a fantasy if you take a closer look at the facts and their subsequent results. The truth probably lies somewhere in between the two extremes, it just seem as shame that that story was not told.

Exotic

If you know a bit more about China you will see that the lady is not always correct in her judgement and facts...

Wkakakakaaa.. sejarahwan abal2

Cixi blocked reform. She overthrew the emperor after his hundred days of reform. If she had not acted then China would have reformed and become as strong as Japan. If not for her conservatism and her determination to stay in power then China would not have needed the revolution. She is to blame.

This info is not everything accurate The empress was cruel and cold blooded Taking fresh milk from just delivered mother She also used the development fund to realise her dream marble boat

never seen anything more boring than this and yet i know the emperess story and find it fascinating

So she left China after the cultural revolution and kept a bad memory of China.I agree that the cult rev was a period of political mistake.After that period China became better and better.

Just make sure your presentation can be more fluently next time.