Empress Dowager Cixi; born Yehe Nara Xingzhen, was a Chinese noblewoman of the Manchu Yehe Nara clan, concubine and later regent who effectively controlled the Chinese government in the late Qing dynasty for almost 50 years, from 1861 until her death in 1908. Although she is most famous for her corruption in the murder of her adopted son, she was also a great performer, and managed to keep the empire together for many decades.