Library

"Twilight in the Forbidden City" describes the special years from 1919 to 1924, when Johnston formed an indissoluble bond with China at the peak of his life. Johnston painted a unique and longing picture of life in the strange and closed world of the Forbidden City. Johnston was well versed in Chinese history and culture, so the rich historical details of that almost forgotten era emerged from his writing like a claw in the mud.

This book is a memoir of Johnston, Puyi's British teacher. It focuses on Puyi, the last emperor of China, and describes modern China from a Western perspective. The whole book can be roughly divided into three stages based on time: the dying struggle of the Qing Dynasty (1898-1912); the end of the imperial system (1912-1924); and the life from Puyi's expulsion from the Forbidden City to his departure to Fengtian (1924-1931). In this book, Johnston not only describes the life of the last emperor from boyhood to youth, but also shows a series of major events from the late Qing Dynasty to the Republic of China: from the Hundred Days Reform to the Boxer Rebellion, Yuan Shikai proclaimed himself emperor, Zhang Xun was restored, Feng Yuxiang launched the Beijing coup, and so on.