Alice Poon's Blog, page 8
June 7, 2017
History and Historical Fiction
Historians have attributed the demise of the Ming Dynasty (1368 – 1644) to various reasons, the most prominent being: emperors indulging in extravagance and/or self-glory or being pathetically paranoid and/or incompetent, factional feuds between eunuchs and officials in court, endemic corruption in all levels of administration, and the court overtaxing the already desperate underclass of peasants. It took a long period of time (stretching over the reigns of the last three or four emperors) for these factors to foment and become a deadly tumor that set the nation’s body and spirit on an irreversible trend of decay. This internal cancerous growth, in convergence with fateful external factors like the emergence of an ogling neighbor state and the rise of rebellious commoner leaders, ultimately put the Dynasty to rest. Indeed, those internal causes of death sound almost banal, given that they can probably be applied, with adjustments here and there, to any previous dynastic era in China’s long history.
In the case of the Ming Dynasty, one external factor - the “ogling neighbor state” - turned out to be the Manchu Empire, a newly united tribe of cavalry Jurchens under Nurhaci of the Aisin Gioro clan. The origins of the Jurchens could be traced back to the Great Jin Dynasty (1115 to 1234), which had persisted in nettling the Southern Song Dynasty after defeating the Liao in Northern China. It was Hong Taiji, one of Nurhaci’s sons, who established the Qing Dynasty in Mukden, just outside the borders of Ming China. But his dream of conquering China proper was not to be realized in his lifetime. Just one year after his death, though, his half-brother Dorgon, Regent to the child Shunzhi Emperor, fulfilled that dream with the uncanny help of a Ming General, Wu Sangui. Yet the fledgling years of Qing were far from stable, and it took the wits and tenacity of one Mongolian woman – Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang - to keep the multi-ethnic Empire from crumbling.
Those are just some basic facts of history at the crucial crossroads where Ming’s end met with Qing’s start. The study of history can turn people off if it involves only chewing on dry hard facts. But we ought to sing the praises of historians who take great pains to attempt an unbiased and accurate recording of historical facts, if only because our collective future depends on drawing valuable lessons from and avoiding disastrous mistakes of our past, all races included. That said, we must remember that history is often written by the victors, or those who dominate or suppress others (no distinction is made between Western and Eastern history here), and thus we should keep a questioning mind. As well, there is always the element of historians’ own subjective interpretation of facts, so that three different historians may well present three accounts of the same event with quite different slants. All of them valid.
Yet, history is intrinsically made by people and it is always the “actors” of history that make the study interesting or even worthwhile. It should not be surprising then, that some of us love reading historical fiction for the very reason that such fiction focuses on telling the personal stories of those “actors” of history.
The task of weaving historical facts with fictional narratives (in some cases with fictional characters) falls to historical novelists, whose mission is to work creatively with the gaps left by historians, while animating the actors of history with feelings, emotions and thoughts. In general, historical novels are invariably more enticing and less intimidating than dry, non-fiction history, thus more likely to reach a wider audience. If such novels can pique readers’ interest and curiosity and make them want to learn more, then they will have served one great purpose.
I am not a historian, at best only an amateur in Chinese history. But I am passionate about writing historical fiction set in China’s distant past, in which is embedded a colossal untapped reservoir of juicy materials to write good fiction from. The historical fiction genre has long been skewed towards Western history and badly needs diversification into Oriental history. I, for one, would certainly love to see more historical fiction writers jump on this Old China bandwagon.
The above is my humble view.
In the case of the Ming Dynasty, one external factor - the “ogling neighbor state” - turned out to be the Manchu Empire, a newly united tribe of cavalry Jurchens under Nurhaci of the Aisin Gioro clan. The origins of the Jurchens could be traced back to the Great Jin Dynasty (1115 to 1234), which had persisted in nettling the Southern Song Dynasty after defeating the Liao in Northern China. It was Hong Taiji, one of Nurhaci’s sons, who established the Qing Dynasty in Mukden, just outside the borders of Ming China. But his dream of conquering China proper was not to be realized in his lifetime. Just one year after his death, though, his half-brother Dorgon, Regent to the child Shunzhi Emperor, fulfilled that dream with the uncanny help of a Ming General, Wu Sangui. Yet the fledgling years of Qing were far from stable, and it took the wits and tenacity of one Mongolian woman – Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang - to keep the multi-ethnic Empire from crumbling.
Those are just some basic facts of history at the crucial crossroads where Ming’s end met with Qing’s start. The study of history can turn people off if it involves only chewing on dry hard facts. But we ought to sing the praises of historians who take great pains to attempt an unbiased and accurate recording of historical facts, if only because our collective future depends on drawing valuable lessons from and avoiding disastrous mistakes of our past, all races included. That said, we must remember that history is often written by the victors, or those who dominate or suppress others (no distinction is made between Western and Eastern history here), and thus we should keep a questioning mind. As well, there is always the element of historians’ own subjective interpretation of facts, so that three different historians may well present three accounts of the same event with quite different slants. All of them valid.
Yet, history is intrinsically made by people and it is always the “actors” of history that make the study interesting or even worthwhile. It should not be surprising then, that some of us love reading historical fiction for the very reason that such fiction focuses on telling the personal stories of those “actors” of history.
The task of weaving historical facts with fictional narratives (in some cases with fictional characters) falls to historical novelists, whose mission is to work creatively with the gaps left by historians, while animating the actors of history with feelings, emotions and thoughts. In general, historical novels are invariably more enticing and less intimidating than dry, non-fiction history, thus more likely to reach a wider audience. If such novels can pique readers’ interest and curiosity and make them want to learn more, then they will have served one great purpose.
I am not a historian, at best only an amateur in Chinese history. But I am passionate about writing historical fiction set in China’s distant past, in which is embedded a colossal untapped reservoir of juicy materials to write good fiction from. The historical fiction genre has long been skewed towards Western history and badly needs diversification into Oriental history. I, for one, would certainly love to see more historical fiction writers jump on this Old China bandwagon.
The above is my humble view.
May 30, 2017
Book Review - Azincourt
Azincourt by Bernard CornwellMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
This was my first Bernard Cornwell novel and I picked it up because I wanted to learn about the historical background of the Battle of Azincourt, one of the significant battles in the Hundred Years' War, and about Henry V of England. When I closed the book, I was a little disappointed at the dearth of historical details relating to the ultimate and proximate causes that led to the battle, and the character of Henry V still seemed somewhat blurry in my head.
In the sweltering summer of 1415, the English army, having crossed the channel, engaged in the siege of Harfleur (in Normandy), which ended in a hard-won English victory. This prelude is followed by the English march north towards Calais (English-occupied). Then in the rainy and gloomy month of October, the English army had to face off with the far-outnumbering French army waiting in the muddy field of Azincourt in Picardy. The battle scenes are vividly drawn, with lots of gore, savagery, horror and obscenities (and feces too). Descriptions about armor, weapons and archery, in particular the usage of longbows, are expertly detailed. But some episodes as well as the ending of the novel come across as a bit cliched.
I did come away with a better understanding of why the English and the French hated each other's guts for so long.
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May 21, 2017
Book Review - Katherine
Katherine by Anya SetonMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
I’m giving this novel 3.5 stars. It is overall a meticulously researched and well-written historical romance set in 14th century England about Katherine Swynford, the third wife of John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster.
The first half of the book is dedicated to describing the romantic love that develops in a tortuous way between the two protagonists. Katherine is initially married off against her wish to a brutish husband, whose faults include poverty that results from mismanagement of his estates. Then Prince Charming, who is happily married to a charming and kind princess, comes along and delivers the poor girl from despair. Then the lovers find ways to carry on with their illicit love affair, always plagued by guilt towards their respective spouses. I find this portion too drawn out with too many happy coincidences, that is, too much of a Cinderella type of story. The bits about John’s childhood bête noire and his squire’s murder of Katherine’s husband are contrived.
The second half is much better and more realistic and the pace is quicker. I like the back stories about the Plantagenet family, the political intrigue surrounding religious reform and the lead-up to and the actual June 1381 peasants’ revolt in London. But the part about Katherine’s self-imposed penitence drags too much.
By the time I was near the ending, I could pretty much predict what was going to happen.
I’m glad though to have learned where Henry V and Henry VI of England came from, and the origins of the Beaufort/Tudor line and of the Yorkists.
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April 22, 2017
Book Review - Embers
Embers by Sándor MáraiMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
This was a powerful read that pulled my heart along with the narrator Henrik’s soul-searching dialogue (perhaps monologue is more appropriate) with his best friend and enemy Konrad whom he has not seen for forty-one years. The story is set in the 1900s in the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
The speech evokes a past love triangle between the two and Henrik’s wife, long dead, and a murder attempt. Henrik chose to stay silent about the double betrayal and to live on stoically. Konrad chose to escape to the tropics. Henrik’s wife chose to die.
Henrik’s mordant observations about fidelity and betrayal between intimate man-friends, passionate and possessive man-and-woman relationship, dark human nature like arrogance and cowardice, and the solitude and sorrow of aging are beautifully woven into a web of silky smooth words that has the power of swallowing one’s heart and mind whole with no reprieve.
I find these passages especially striking:
It’s the moment when something happens not just deep among the trees but also in the dark interior of the human heart, for the heart, too, has its night and its wild surges, as strong an instinct for the hunt as a wolf or a stag. The human night is filled with the crouching forms of dreams, desires, vanities, self-interest, mad love, envy, and the thirst for revenge, as the desert night conceals the puma, the hawk and the jackal.
Every exercise of power incorporates a faint, almost imperceptible, element of contempt for those over whom the power is exercised. One can only dominate another human soul if one knows, understands, and with the utmost tact despises the person one is subjugating.
There is this question of otherness….So just as it is blood alone that binds people to defend one another in the face of danger, on the spiritual plane one person will struggle to help another only if this person is not ‘different’, and if, quite aside from opinions and convictions, they share similar natures at the deepest level.
Is the idea of fidelity not an appalling egoism and also as vain as most other human concerns? When we demand fidelity, are we wishing for the other person’s happiness? And if that person connot be happy in the subtle prison of fidelity, do we really prove our love by demanding fidelity nonetheless? And if we do not love that person in a way that makes her happy, do we have the right to expect fidelity or any other sacrifice?
Do you also believe that what gives our lives their meaning is the passion that suddenly invades our heart, soul and body, and burns in us forever, no matter what else happens in our lives?.... Is it indeed about desiring any one person, or is it about desiring desire itself? Or perhaps, is it indeed about desiring a particular person, a single, mysterious other, once and for always, no matter whether that person is good or bad, and the intensity of our feelings bears no relation to that individual’s qualities or behavior?
This novel forces one to ponder on one's own intimate relationships.
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April 18, 2017
Book Review - Eugenie Grandet
Eugénie Grandet by Honoré de BalzacMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
[Note: I read this novel in March/April 2013 and posted a review in my Asia Sentinel blog on April 12, 2013. I've just dug out the review from my files and am posting it here with some minor changes. Date: April 17, 2017.]
What is a miser? The dictionary says it means either one of two types of persons: (1) one who lives very meagerly in order to hoard money; or (2) a greedy or avaricious person. I’ve lately read Honore de Balzac’s famous novel Eugenie Grandet and am impressed with the author’s perspicacious insight into the traits of misers.
This is an excerpt from the novel that illustrates Balzac’s perception:-
A miser’s life is a constant exercise of every human faculty in the service of his own personality. He considers only two feelings, vanity and self-interest; but as the achievement of his interest supplies to some extent a concrete and tangible tribute to his vanity, as it is a constant attestation of his real superiority, his vanity and the study of his advantage are two aspects of one passion – egotism. That is perhaps the reason for the amazing curiosity excited by misers skillfully presented upon the stage. Everyone has some link with these persons, who revolt all human feelings and yet epitomize them. Where is the man without ambition? And what ambition can be attained in our society without money?.......
Like all misers he had a constant need to pit his wits against those of other men, to mulct them of their crowns by fair legal means. To get the better of others, was that not exercising power, giving oneself with each new victim the right to despise those weaklings of the earth who were unable to save themselves from being devoured? Oh! Has anyone properly understood the meaning of the lamb lying peacefully at God’s feet - that most touching symbol of all the victims of this world - and of their future, the symbol of which is suffering and weakness glorified? The miser lets the lamb grow fat, then he pens, kills, cooks, eats and despises it. Misers thrive on money and contempt.
In the novel, Felix Grandet is depicted as the stingy, egotistic and mean-spirited money hoarder in suburban France, against a money-grubbing social backdrop with the rise of the bourgeoisie. He rations everyday food for his weak-minded wife, his only daughter Eugenie and his loyal house servant, and purposely keeps his house in shabby disrepair, while making immense fortunes secretively. He almost seems to derive sadistic pleasure in ruling his domestic household with an iron fist.
The only two persons who have knowledge of his true worth are his lawyer and his banker. Knowing that these two are trying to get their respective nephew/son to win the hand of Eugenie, he plays one against the other to extract the greatest monetary advantage. He employs devious means to cheat and fleece his deceased brother’s creditors and insists on Eugenie breaking romantic ties with his own nephew Charles, who is left penniless by his deceased father’s bankruptcy. Charles is forced to go off to the Indies to find his fortune and Eugenie gives him all her gold coins that her father has given her over the years, to the miser’s furious dismay.
When Charles comes back to France a rich man, having made his fortune from dealing in slaves, he forsakes Eugenie for a wealthy aristocrat, mistaken that the former is now poor.
Eugenie, by nature a kind-hearted country girl, faces the music after having her heart broken by Charles and discovering her father’s base deeds. She becomes disgusted with the wealthy class as she learns about its hypocrisy and shallowness. Upon inheriting both her father’s and her husband’s fortunes (the husband being the lawyer’s nephew, who dies shortly after their loveless marriage), she chooses to live a modest and philanthropic life on her own terms.
The novel makes one ponder on whether there is an effective cure for avarice and excessive materialism in our society of today.
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April 12, 2017
Book Review - Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc
Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc by Mark TwainMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
This novel was Mark Twain's last completed work which he considered to be the best of all his books. He claimed that he had spent twelve years in its research and two in writing. One of his key sources of research was Jules Quicherat's Proces de Condamnation et de Rehabilitation de Jeanne d'Arc
As a historical novel, this is one of those that let me learn a great deal about the historical background and the historical character(s) while keeping me emotionally engaged with the plot. It was not a fast read, but by the time I finished reading, I felt glad that I had picked up the book.
As already mentioned in numerous other reviews, Twain's deep fascination with and affection for Joan of Arc shines through the entire novel. It's been pointed out that in writing this book, the author made a deliberate departure from his well-known comedic style, as he wanted readers to take it seriously. Be that as it may, I find that his innate sense of humor is all too readily discernible.
Joan's story is without question a compelling and poignant one. The fact that an illiterate teenage French peasant girl was able to make such a stunning impact on late middle-ages history of France and England, more specifically on the outcome of the infamous Hundred Years' War, is reason enough for history lovers to read this important account of her humble and glorious life.
As with many historical novels set around this period in Europe, religion plays an important part in the factual details and plot twists. In the case of Joan of Arc's story, this passage can best describe how some French Catholic priests, in depraved conspiracy with the English nobility, have a hand in deciding her tragic fate:
The Church was being used as a blind, a disguise; and for a forcible reason: the Church was not only able to take the life of Joan of Arc, but to blight her influence and the valor-breeding inspiration of her name, whereas the English power could but kill her body; that would not diminish or destroy the influence of her name; it would magnify it and make it permanent. If the Church could be brought to take her life, or to proclaim her an idolater, a heretic, a witch, sent from Satan, not from Heaven, it was believed that the English supremacy could be at once reinstated."
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March 10, 2017
My Upcoming Historical Epic - Tentative Date of Release
After two-and-a- half years of solitary hard work, I am thrilled to say that I recently put my pen on a publishing contract for my historical epic set in 17th century China. The novel is presently undergoing editing and proofing.
Before reaching this stage, my publisher Graham Earnshaw of Earnshaw Books had also offered me a role as the curator of a new series of historical novels set in Old China, a role I gladly accepted because I felt he and I share a vision of extending and enhancing interest in and knowledge of Chinese history to a global audience through fictional works. The project is progressing well.
Over the last few years, I have read several books and many articles on the craft of writing. The essay that impressed me most is Milan Kundera’s The Art of the Novel. The key lesson I drew from the essay is this:
“I’ve always constructed them on two levels: on the first, I compose the novel’s story; over that, I develop the themes. The themes are worked out steadily within and by the story. Whenever a novel abandons its themes and settles for just telling the story, it goes flat.”
My upcoming novel is based on the life story of the Manchu Qing Dynasty's influential first matriarch, who was born a Mongolian princess. She was the mother of Shunzhi Emperor and grandmother of Kangxi Emperor. Set against a background of war, racial hatred and great turmoil, when the failing Ming Empire was dealt the final blow by the invading Manchus, the novel encompasses such themes as conflicts caused by cultural gaps, duty versus love, self-interest versus the greater good, how power corrodes humanity and the burdens of hatred and forgiveness. In the course of writing, I made sure that I followed Mr. Kundera’s advice closely.
The latest I’ve heard from my publisher is that my novel has been tentatively scheduled for release on July 1, 2017.
Before reaching this stage, my publisher Graham Earnshaw of Earnshaw Books had also offered me a role as the curator of a new series of historical novels set in Old China, a role I gladly accepted because I felt he and I share a vision of extending and enhancing interest in and knowledge of Chinese history to a global audience through fictional works. The project is progressing well.
Over the last few years, I have read several books and many articles on the craft of writing. The essay that impressed me most is Milan Kundera’s The Art of the Novel. The key lesson I drew from the essay is this:
“I’ve always constructed them on two levels: on the first, I compose the novel’s story; over that, I develop the themes. The themes are worked out steadily within and by the story. Whenever a novel abandons its themes and settles for just telling the story, it goes flat.”
My upcoming novel is based on the life story of the Manchu Qing Dynasty's influential first matriarch, who was born a Mongolian princess. She was the mother of Shunzhi Emperor and grandmother of Kangxi Emperor. Set against a background of war, racial hatred and great turmoil, when the failing Ming Empire was dealt the final blow by the invading Manchus, the novel encompasses such themes as conflicts caused by cultural gaps, duty versus love, self-interest versus the greater good, how power corrodes humanity and the burdens of hatred and forgiveness. In the course of writing, I made sure that I followed Mr. Kundera’s advice closely.
The latest I’ve heard from my publisher is that my novel has been tentatively scheduled for release on July 1, 2017.
March 8, 2017
Book Review - Corrag
Corrag by Susan FletcherMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
If I hadn’t read this book, I would never have imagined that there was still persecution of witches in late 17th century Great Britain, the practice of which was only banned in 1735 with the introduction of the Witchcraft Act.
The story is a gripping one that recounts the political massacre of Glencoe in February 1692, told through an imprisoned woman who was condemned as a witch and was waiting to be burned, and who had earlier managed to save many lives in Glencoe. Her only audience was a reverend of Christian faith, whose motive was initially to obtain an eyewitness account for political purposes. During the course of listening to the “witch”, he was transformed from a disgusted bigot to a compassionate sympathizer.
The structure of the novel is such that the first-person narrator flips between the “witch” telling her story and the reverend writing to his wife. The themes that dapple the novel are love of nature, getting in touch with one’s heart, futility of hatred and violence, tolerance of others’ values and compassion for all living creatures.
The writing is deeply affecting, especially the description of Scottish scenery. In the end, I think it is the underlying themes that resonate viscerally with me.
These are passages that I love:-
But maybe the best thing I learnt was this: that we cannot know a person’s soul and nature until we’ve sat beside them, and talked.
When was I not a bit lonesome inside? I mostly was. Seeing true, natural beauty can lessen it, because sunsets and winter light can make you say inside you ‘I am not alone’ – you feel it, through such beauty. But it can worsen it, also. When you want a person with you it can be a sore thing. Sometimes you see this beauty and think it is not as lovely as them.
Your heart’s voice is your true voice. It is easy to ignore it, for sometimes it says what we’d rather it did not – and it is so hard to risk the things we have. But what life are we living, if we don’t live by our hearts? Not a true one. And the person living it is not the true you.
It is the small moments, sir, which change a world.
No war. Fight with your pen. Give your battle-cry in ink, and mark your dreams down on a page.
I’m giving this novel 4.5 stars.
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March 7, 2017
How Did Johann Adam Schall von Bell Relate to the Qing Dynasty?
It may be common knowledge for current and former students of The Chinese University of Hong Kong that the earliest student hostel ever built on campus is called the Adam Schall Residence. But perhaps the person Johann Adam Schall von Bell, in honor of whom the hostel was named, is not too familiar a figure for many, students or otherwise.
Johann Adam Schall von Bell was a German Jesuit missionary born in Cologne. In 1619, at the age of 28, he arrived Macau with a few other Jesuit missionaries, planning to enter China to spread Christianity, only to find themselves stranded in the Portuguese Settlement, as it was the Chinese policy then to curb foreigners’ entry. So Schall von Bell decided to settle down in Macau and learn Chinese and continue with his mathematics studies.
A few years later, in 1622, he unexpectedly got embroiled in Portuguese Macau’s military defense against an attack by the Dutch Calvinists, which attack was instigated by trade disputes. The Dutch (i.e. the Dutch East India Company) had for a long time been jealous of Macau’s lucrative intermediary position on the China-Japan trade route (silk in exchange for silver) and wanted to capture the Settlement. Schall von Bell and his fellow Jesuits went up to the citadel to man cannons that fired on the invading Dutch soldiers, and a shot accidentally hit an explosive dump near their camp. The defense was victorious and the Dutch were chased out.
When news of this reached the Ming Emperor’s ears, he invited Schall von Bell to Court and asked him to produce cannons for use against the invading Manchus. But the Jesuit’s skill at weaponry was clearly eclipsed by his knowledge in astronomy and his work in the calendar reform.
After the Ming Empire transitioned into the Qing Dynasty, Schall von Bell rose to prominence as a key adviser in Shunzhi Emperor’s reign. His influence on Shunzhi and Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang was profound. After Shunzhi died, Schall von Bell’s envious Chinese colleagues initiated a depraved false accusation against him, which led to a death sentence. Although ultimately exonerated, his prison ordeal took a toll on his already frail health and he died shortly after regaining freedom. This roller-coaster phase of his presence in China was nothing short of dramatic and is one of the sub-plots in my upcoming novel.
Johann Adam Schall von Bell was a German Jesuit missionary born in Cologne. In 1619, at the age of 28, he arrived Macau with a few other Jesuit missionaries, planning to enter China to spread Christianity, only to find themselves stranded in the Portuguese Settlement, as it was the Chinese policy then to curb foreigners’ entry. So Schall von Bell decided to settle down in Macau and learn Chinese and continue with his mathematics studies.
A few years later, in 1622, he unexpectedly got embroiled in Portuguese Macau’s military defense against an attack by the Dutch Calvinists, which attack was instigated by trade disputes. The Dutch (i.e. the Dutch East India Company) had for a long time been jealous of Macau’s lucrative intermediary position on the China-Japan trade route (silk in exchange for silver) and wanted to capture the Settlement. Schall von Bell and his fellow Jesuits went up to the citadel to man cannons that fired on the invading Dutch soldiers, and a shot accidentally hit an explosive dump near their camp. The defense was victorious and the Dutch were chased out.
When news of this reached the Ming Emperor’s ears, he invited Schall von Bell to Court and asked him to produce cannons for use against the invading Manchus. But the Jesuit’s skill at weaponry was clearly eclipsed by his knowledge in astronomy and his work in the calendar reform.
After the Ming Empire transitioned into the Qing Dynasty, Schall von Bell rose to prominence as a key adviser in Shunzhi Emperor’s reign. His influence on Shunzhi and Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang was profound. After Shunzhi died, Schall von Bell’s envious Chinese colleagues initiated a depraved false accusation against him, which led to a death sentence. Although ultimately exonerated, his prison ordeal took a toll on his already frail health and he died shortly after regaining freedom. This roller-coaster phase of his presence in China was nothing short of dramatic and is one of the sub-plots in my upcoming novel.
January 27, 2017
Borjigit Bumbutai (Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang)
On this day (January 27) in 1688, a pivotal historical figure from the Qing Dynasty passed away. This person was a Mongolian princess named Borjigit Bumbutai, better known as Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang.
Her existence was critical to Chinese history in that she was the one who pulled the fledgling Qing Empire from the brinks of disintegration in its early days. It can be said that without her sharp wit and charismatic leadership, Qing history, and for that matter Chinese history, would’ve been re-written. The reason is that at the time when her son Shunzhi and grandson Kangxi came to the throne in tandem, they were only young children, and those times were steeped in social and political chaos and unending wars while the ruling Aisin Gioro clan was split by vehement discord and self-interested strife.
As fate would have it, Shunzhi lived a short life of 23 years, his time on the throne even shorter – only 18 years. During much of his reign, although his mother tried to steer him on the right track, he was coerced by self-seeking and corrupt ministers like Oboi and his venal clique. When Kangxi was enthroned, he was only a seven-year old child, but he smartly looked to his self-taught grandmother for advice, guidance and support, which she graciously bestowed. Her greatest contribution was perhaps teaching Shunzhi and Kangxi to appreciate the importance of soft power and humanity.
History would witness Kangxi eventually becoming the most culturally-minded, tolerant and benevolent of emperors. Under his auspices, the Kangxi Dictionary was compiled. Poetry lovers would no doubt know that the world-renowned Three Hundred Tang Poems emanated from the Quan Tangshi (Complete Tang Poems), which compilation Kangxi had personally championed.
In 1691, in honor and memory of his beloved grandmother and mentor, Kangxi built a temple called “In Eternal Veneration” (永慕寺) in South Park (南苑), the imperial hunting park located south of Beijing.
Her existence was critical to Chinese history in that she was the one who pulled the fledgling Qing Empire from the brinks of disintegration in its early days. It can be said that without her sharp wit and charismatic leadership, Qing history, and for that matter Chinese history, would’ve been re-written. The reason is that at the time when her son Shunzhi and grandson Kangxi came to the throne in tandem, they were only young children, and those times were steeped in social and political chaos and unending wars while the ruling Aisin Gioro clan was split by vehement discord and self-interested strife.
As fate would have it, Shunzhi lived a short life of 23 years, his time on the throne even shorter – only 18 years. During much of his reign, although his mother tried to steer him on the right track, he was coerced by self-seeking and corrupt ministers like Oboi and his venal clique. When Kangxi was enthroned, he was only a seven-year old child, but he smartly looked to his self-taught grandmother for advice, guidance and support, which she graciously bestowed. Her greatest contribution was perhaps teaching Shunzhi and Kangxi to appreciate the importance of soft power and humanity.
History would witness Kangxi eventually becoming the most culturally-minded, tolerant and benevolent of emperors. Under his auspices, the Kangxi Dictionary was compiled. Poetry lovers would no doubt know that the world-renowned Three Hundred Tang Poems emanated from the Quan Tangshi (Complete Tang Poems), which compilation Kangxi had personally championed.
In 1691, in honor and memory of his beloved grandmother and mentor, Kangxi built a temple called “In Eternal Veneration” (永慕寺) in South Park (南苑), the imperial hunting park located south of Beijing.
