Zi Xi (or Tz'u-his) (c. 1834–1908)

Empress dowager of China. She was presented as a concubine to the emperor Xianfeng. On his death in 1861 she became regent for her young son Tongzhi (1856–1875) until 1873 and, after his death, for her nephew Guangxu (1871–1908) until 1889. A ruthless conservative, she blocked the Hundred Days' Reform launched in 1898 and assumed power again, having Guangxu imprisoned. Her policies helped deny China a peaceful transition to political and economic reform.