Returning to China in 1903 after four years in Paris, where her father had been Chinese Minister, the young author was summoned to court as a lady-in-waiting to the Empress Dowager Cixi. She describes palace plays, luncheons and audiences, the court ladies and their costumes, the captive Emperor Kwang Hsu, the young Empress, the visit of Mrs. Conger, and the painting of the Empress’s portrait.
A rare insider’s view of the last imperial court of China, full of small domestic detail. Download the free EPUB.