RSL Events
The making of China
Jung Chang in conversation with Colin Thubron
Anne Chisholm
LSE, 7pm
Information
Empress Dowager Cixi, who effectively controlled the Manchu Qing Dynasty from 1861 to 1908, was responsible for transforming China from a medieval to a modern state. At the age of 16, she was chosen as one of the emperor's concubines; after his death in 1861, she launched a palace coup against the regents appointed to rule for their five-year-old son. Working from court records, official and private correspondence, diaries and eye-witness accounts, Jung Chang, bestselling author of Wild Swans, and Mao: The Unknown Story, has written a groundbreaking biography of the dowager empress. On the day of its publication, she talks to Colin Thubron, President of the Royal Society of Literature, about how Cixi fought against monumental obstacles to change China, how she abolished foot-binding and inaugurated women's liberation, and how she fell in love with one of her eunuchs, with tragic consequences.
We are grateful to the Legatum Institute for sponsoring this event.
Booking Information
RSL Members and Fellows may book one seat for this event for free.
Seats for guests (one per meeting, £5) must be booked and paid for in advance. This can be done through the RSL website as part of the usual booking process.
The RSL takes bookings from the public in advance of each event. We are able to take payment for bookings over the phone, but, as we do not have a box office, we ask that the public book online.
Tickets will be sold on a first come, first served basis, for £8 (£5 for students). Students will be asked to present a valid student identification card on the night of the event.
Read our Terms and Conditions for ticket purchases here.
Venue
London School of Economics and Political Science, The Sheikh Zayed Theatre, New Academic Building, Lincoln's Inn Fields, London WC2A 3LJ
RSL Events
Legatum Institute
