Kuang-Hsϋ's minority, as he was the nominee of the
Empresses, whereas the Emperor T'ung-Chih held his man-
date direct from the late Emperor, his father. It was not
until the final Regency ( 1898-1908), which was not a
Regency at all in the strict sense of the word but an
usurpation of the Imperial prerogative during the lifetime of
the sovereign, that, assured of the strength of her position,
she gave full rein to her love of power and, with something of
the contempt which springs from long familiarity, took unto
herself all the outward and visible signs of Imperial authority,
holding audience daily in the Great Hall of the Palace,
seated on the Dragon Throne, with the puppet Emperor
relegated to a position of inferiority, recognised and
acclaimed as the Old Buddha, the sole and undisputed ruler
of the Empire.

At the outset of her career, she appears to have realised
that the idea of female rulers had never been popular with
the Chinese people; that even the Empress Wu of the
eighth century, the greatest woman in Chinese history, was
regarded as a usurper. She was aware that the Empress
Lϋ (whose character, as described by historians, was not
unlike her own), to whom was due the consolidation of
power that marked the rise of the Han Dynasty, enjoys but
scant respect from posterity. On the other hand, she knew
--for the study of history was her pastime--that the
Empresses Dowagers of the past had often wielded supreme
power in the State, principles and precedents notwithstanding,
and their example she determined to follow. Upon the
taking off of the three chief conspirators, the Censors and
Ministers urged her to deal in similar drastic fashion with
their aiders and abettors, and Prince Kung was anxious, if not
for revenge, at least for precautions being taken against those
who had had the ear of the late Emperor during the last
months of his reign. But Yehonala showed statesmanlike
forbearance: early in life she realised that a few victims are
better than many, and that lives spared often mean whole

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