rehabilitating Cixi

The Empress Dowager went on a propaganda campaign of her own

Cixi’s reputation was severely tarnished after the Boxer Rebellion of 1900, both in China and around the world. Foreign visitors were invited to receptions at the palace in an attempt to improve her image. After her return to Beijing, she even invited the wives of foreign diplomats – whose lives had been threatened by the violent Boxers she had encouraged – to tea at the Forbidden City.

Between 1903 and 1904, a young photographer named Xunling was invited to take a series of staged photographic portraits of Cixi and her court, with the Empress Dowager becoming one of the first in the imperial court to engage with photography. These photos, which are the only ones of Cixi that exist, were rich in symbolism, emphasising her imperial authority and earning her the moniker ‘the dragon lady’. These photographs, some of which were given as diplomatic gifts, show Cixi’s face to the world and provide a rare glimpse into the imperial court.

In 1903, Sarah Conger, wife of the US ambassador to China, persuaded Cixi to have her portrait painted by American artist Katharine A Carl for the 1904 St. Louis World Fair. Carl spent nine months in the Forbidden City while she painted the Empress Dowager, creating one of the most famous images of Cixi. President Theodore Roosevelt later received the portrait from Cixi as a gift and he donated it to the Smithsonian Institution.