Sat, Dec 29, 2007
The history of the Forbidden City begins with a bloody coup at the beginning of the 15th century, when the ambitious field commander Prince Zhu Di took power. He declared Beijing the new capital of China and ordered the construction of the Forbidden City, a symbol of his divine and almighty power. However, Yongle's destiny was to be intimately tied to the empire's collapse.
Sat, Dec 29, 2007
She was the ruthless "dragon lady" that subjected the last regents of the Dragon Throne to becoming her marionettes. The emperor's widow Cixi was one of the most powerful women in Chinese history. She came to the Forbidden City as a young concubine in 1850. Quickly winning the favor of the Chinese emperor, she rose through the ranks and became the empire's most important woman.