author
Sir Reginald Fleming Johnston
1874–1938
Best known as the tutor and adviser to Puyi, the last emperor of China, he left a rare firsthand account of life inside the Forbidden City. His writing opens a window onto the final years of imperial China through the eyes of a sharp and sympathetic observer.
2 Audiobooks
Lion and Dragon in Northern China
by Sir Reginald Fleming Johnston
From Peking to Mandalay A Journey from North China to Burma through Tibetan Ssuch'uan and Yunnan
by Sir Reginald Fleming Johnston
About the author
Born in Edinburgh in 1874, Sir Reginald Fleming Johnston was a Scottish diplomat, scholar, and writer whose career took him deep into East Asia. He studied at Oxford, entered the British colonial service, and became known for his knowledge of Chinese history, language, and culture.
Johnston is most remembered for serving as tutor and adviser to Puyi, the last emperor of China. That unusual role gave him extraordinary access to the inner life of the fallen Qing court, and it later shaped his best-known book, Twilight in the Forbidden City. The book remains valued for its vivid, firsthand picture of Puyi and a world on the edge of dramatic change.
Alongside his literary work, Johnston also served as the last British commissioner of Weihaiwei. He died in 1938, but his writing still stands out for bringing together diplomacy, biography, and eyewitness history in a way that feels immediate and human.