In January 1875, the Guangxu Emperor, who was not yet 4 years old, was made emperor by the empress dowagers of the two palaces, and at first the empresses of Ci'an and Cixi were put under the curtain. After Ci'an's death, Empress Dowager Cixi was placed under the scrutiny. In 1889, the Guangxu Emperor came to power, but in fact the power was still in the hands of Cixi. Guangxu strongly supported the reform of the reform faction in order to become stronger, and in 1898 the Guangxu Emperor implemented the "Pengshu Reform Law", but was opposed by conservatives led by Empress Dowager Cixi. The Guangxu Emperor hoped that Yuan Shikai would help him overthrow Cixi, but instead he was betrayed by Yuan Shikai and imprisoned by Empress Dowager Cixi in Yingtai, Zhongnanhai.
Guangxu Emperor
Not long after Guangxu fell ill and bedridden, he rolled in bed three days before he died, screaming that his stomach hurt. He died within a few days.
In fact, the Guangxu Emperor was still very politically ambitious, but he could not exert it. The death of the Guangxu Emperor was very strange, and the day after his death, Empress Dowager Cixi also died.
In 2008, after an identification of a remnant of the Guangxu Emperor's hair, it was confirmed that he died of arsenic poisoning. So who was poisoned? There are many theories about the death of the Guangxu Emperor.
Cixi said
Cixi is the most likely to be poisoned, and so are the proponents of this claim. When the Eight-Nation Alliance advanced into Beijing, the Qing soldiers were repeatedly defeated and unable to stop it, and when Cixi felt cornered and prepared to commit suicide, she decided that she could not let Guangxu live in the world. In addition, Empress Dowager Cixi was also worried that Guangxu would be reinstated after her death, so she would do this poison.
Empress Dowager Cixi
In October 1908, Guangxu fell ill and was bedridden, and Cixi was also ill. Guangxu wrote in his diary: "I was very ill, but I felt in my heart that Lafayette (Cixi) would die before me. If so, I will order the beheading of Yuan Shikai and Li Lianying. Unexpectedly, this diary was learned by Li Lianying, who immediately reported cixi, saying: "The emperor wants to die after Lafayette!" Cixi listened and said, "I can't die before him!" ”。
Yuan Shikai said
After Yuan Shikai informed Guangxu, he was deeply used by Cixi, but Guangxu gritted his teeth and hated him. If Guangxu regained power, he would definitely punish Yuan Shikai, and Yuan Shikai knew this well.
Li Lianying said
Li Lianying only empress dowager Cixi was the head of the horse, so Li Lianying had already offended the Guangxu Emperor, and he was also afraid that cixi would not have good fruit to eat after his death, so he poisoned and killed the Guangxu Emperor, and Li Lianying was the grand eunuch in the palace, and he had the opportunity to attack for a while.
Guangxu funeral
As for why the people set off firecrackers after the death of the Guangxu Emperor at that time, it is said that it was because they could not marry during the national mourning period, and as soon as the news of the death of the Guangxu Emperor came out, the people who were supposed to do the happy event were done in advance before the national funeral, which also caused the situation that after the death of the emperor, the people were firing cannons everywhere, and the situation was extremely lively.