Celestial women : imperial wives and concubines in China from Song to Qing / Keith McMahon.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

McMahon, Keith, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Emperors' spouses--China--History.

Emperors' spouses.

Mistresses--China--History.

Mistresses.

Polygamy--Political aspects--China--History.

Polygamy.

Concubinage--China--History.

Concubinage.

Women--Political activity.

History.

Polygamy--Political aspects.

China--Politics and government--960-1644.

China.

Politics and government.

China--Politics and government--1644-1912.

Emperors' spouses--China--Biography.

Mistresses--China--Biography.

Women--Political activity--China--History.

Women.

Sex role--China--History.

Sex role.

Genre:

Biographies.

History.

Physical Description:

xxxiii, 277 pages ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Lanham : Rowman & Littlefield, [2016]

Summary:

"This volume completes Keith McMahon's acclaimed history of imperial wives and royal polygamy in China. Avoiding the stereotype of the emperor's plural wives as mere victims or playthings, the book considers empresses and concubines as full-fledged participants in palace life, whether as mothers, wives, or go-betweens in the emperor's relations with others in the palace. Although restrictions on women's participation in politics increased dramatically after Empress Wu in the Tang, the author follows the strong and active women, of both high and low rank, who continued to appear. They counseled emperors, ghostwrote for them, oversaw succession when they died, and dominated them when they were weak. They influenced the emperor's relationships with other women and enhanced their aura and that of the royal house with their acts of artistic and religious patronage. Dynastic history ended in China when the prohibition that women should not rule was defied for the final time by Dowager Cixi, the last great monarch before China's transformation into a republic"--Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Prologue: After Wu Zetian

Part 1. The Song, Jin, and Yuan dynasties, 960-1368

The Song dynasty

The Jin and Yuan dynasties, 1115-1368

Part 2. The Ming dynasty, 1368-1644

From founder to 1505

Three intemperate rulers, 1506-1572

The last Ming emperors, 1573-1644

Conclusion: Giving reign to imperial will

Part 3. The Qing dynasty, 1644-1911

The founding of the Qing, 1636-1722

From Yongzheng to Xianfeng (1722-1861)

Empress Dowager Cixi (1835-1908)

Conclusion: The lack of good sons

Conclusion to part 3

Appendix.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Other Format:

Online version: McMahon, Keith. Celestial women.

ISBN:

9781442255012

1442255013

OCLC:

928606357