Puyi

| mi = | bpmf = ㄆㄨˇ ㄧˊ | altname = Xuantong Emperor | t2 = 宣統帝 | s2 = 宣统帝 | p2 = Xuāntǒng Dì | w2 = | mi2 = | tp2 = Syuan-tǒng Dì | bpmf2 = ㄒㄩㄢ ㄊㄨㄥˇ ㄉㄧˋ | j2 = syun1 tung2 dai3 | ci2 = }}

Puyi)}} (7 February 190617 October 1967) was the last emperor of China, reigning as the eleventh and final monarch of the Qing dynasty. In 1908, when the Guangxu Emperor died without an heir, Empress Dowager Cixi picked his nephew Puyi, aged two, to succeed him as the Xuantong Emperor. Puyi's father, Zaifeng, Prince Chun, served as regent for his son before Puyi was forced to abdicate in 1912 as a result of the Xinhai Revolution, which ended two millennia of imperial rule and established the Republic of China.

The Empress Dowager Longyu signed the Imperial Edict of the Abdication of the Qing Emperor on Puyi's behalf, and in return the royal family was offered the Articles of Favorable Treatment, which allowed him to retain his imperial title and continue to live in the Forbidden City. From 1 to 12 July 1917, Puyi was briefly restored to the Qing throne by the loyalist general Zhang Xun, and in 1924 he was expelled from the capital by warlord Feng Yuxiang after a coup. Puyi found refuge in Tianjin, where he began to court both various warlords and the Japanese, who had long desired control of China. After the Japanese invaded Manchuria and established the puppet state of Manchukuo in 1932, they installed Puyi as the state's chief executive.

In 1934, Puyi was declared emperor of Manchukuo and crowned under the era name "Kangde". He largely resided in the Manchukuo Imperial Palace in Changchun, where his personal life was closely watched by the Japanese. He never held any real power, only able to sign edicts that the Japanese gave him. At the end of the Second Sino-Japanese War in 1945, Puyi fled the capital and was captured by the Soviet Red Army. In 1946, he testified at the Tokyo War Crimes Tribunal, and in 1950, was repatriated to the People's Republic of China. Puyi was then imprisoned and re-educated as a war criminal until his release in 1959.

After his release, Puyi wrote an autobiography (with the help of a ghostwriter) and became a member of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference. His time in prison greatly changed him, and he expressed deep regret for his actions while he was emperor. He died in 1967 and was ultimately buried near the Western Qing tombs in a commercial cemetery. Puyi married five times, but had no children. Provided by Wikipedia