The Fringe Review

Paul French: The Last Emperor of China

T he road to modern China began with the 1912 abdication of the final emperor Puyi and the establishment of the People’s Republic, ending half a millennium of imperial rule from the mysterious Forbidden City. Award-winning historian of modern China, Paul French, brings all his expertise to bear in the meticulously-researched The Last Emperor of China, and today reveals the hidden story of the last days of empire and how they influenced all that followed.