Yehonala was born on November 29, 1835. By the age of seventeen she had become a concubine of Hsien-Feng and was known as Tzu-Hsi. Out of all the emperor's wives and concubines, Tzu-Hsi was the only to provide him with a son. When the emperor died, Tzu-Hsi became the Empress of the Western Palace. She was named one of eight regents for her son, Tung Chih, the Emperor. Though she could not have complete control over, she seized control over the government. When Tung Chih turned seventeen, Tzu-Hsi lost all power. However, in 1875 Tung Chih died of venereal disease and his mother became empress once again. The Boxer Rebellion was a major event during her reign in which China had to accept an embarrassing peace agreement. Tzu-Hsi was in favor of modernizing China. She promised the Chinese people a constitution and representative government, but she died before she was able to fulfill her promise. Tzu-Hsi died in 1908 after suffering from a stroke.
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