How one incredible woman rose from a life of poor prostitution to command a fearsome fleet that ruled the South China Sea.
The so-called ‘flower boats’ of Pearl River, which flows through the city of Guangzhou, also known as Canton, acted as pleasure palaces for the rich and powerful. While they were luxuriously decorated with chandeliers and stained glass windows to attract customers, conditions were not so great for the women that lived and worked on them.
We don’t know much about Ching’s Shih early life, except that she was born around 1775 and possibly given the name Shi Xianggu. While she is popularly known today as Ching Shih, this is a Westernisation of Cheng I Sao, which literally means ‘wife of Cheng I’.
The Cheng I in question was a notorious pirate who changed Shi Xianggu’s life. How the couple met is not known for certain. According to legend, Cheng stormed the flower boats with his crew to find himself a wife. Taking the women hostage, Cheng was captivated by the beautiful Shi Xianggu and proposed to her.
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Denne historien er fra Issue 69-utgaven av All About History.
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