BBC Radio 4 - In Our Time, The Eunuch

38 rare pictures of eunuchs during the Qing Dynasty - China Underground

The system of court eunuchs in China began long before most people imagine. By the time the Qin dynasty ruled in the third century BC, the imperial court had already turned to boys and young men who had undergone a life altering procedure in order to serve the dynasty without threatening the bloodline. It was a harsh solution created out of fear of rivals. Power in those courts was fragile, and the emperors treated it like something that had to be guarded at every moment. Families knew what the

Top 10 Fascinating Eunuchs