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Infosys Science Foundation Series in Mathematical Sciences

Ramji Lal

Algebra 2
Linear Algebra, Galois Theory,
Representation Theory, Group
Extensions and Schur Multiplier
Infosys Science Foundation Series

Infosys Science Foundation Series in Mathematical

Sciences

Series editors
Gopal Prasad, University of Michigan, USA
Irene Fonseca, Mellon College of Science, USA

Editorial Board
Chandrasekhar Khare, University of California, USA
Mahan Mj, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai, India
Manindra Agrawal, Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, India
S.R.S. Varadhan, Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences, USA
Weinan E, Princeton University, USA
The Infosys Science Foundation Series in Mathematical Sciences is a sub-series of
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Ramji Lal

Algebra 2
Linear Algebra, Galois Theory,
Representation Theory, Group Extensions
and Schur Multiplier

123
Ramji Lal
Harish Chandra Research Institute (HRI)
Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh
India

ISSN 2363-6149 ISSN 2363-6157 (electronic)

Infosys Science Foundation Series
ISSN 2364-4036 ISSN 2364-4044 (electronic)
Infosys Science Foundation Series in Mathematical Sciences
ISBN 978-981-10-4255-3 ISBN 978-981-10-4256-0 (eBook)
DOI 10.1007/978-981-10-4256-0
Library of Congress Control Number: 2017935547

© Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2017

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Dedicated to the memory of
my mother
(Late) Smt Murti Devi,
my father
(Late) Sri Sankatha Prasad Lal, and
my father like brother
(Late) Sri Gopal Lal
Preface

Algebra has played a central and decisive role in all branches of mathematics and,
in turn, in all branches of science and engineering. It is not possible for a lecturer to
cover, physically in a classroom, the amount of algebra which a graduate student
(irrespective of the branch of science, engineering, or mathematics in which he
prefers to specialize) needs to master. In addition, there are a variety of students in a
class. Some of them grasp the material very fast and do not need much of assis-
tance. At the same time, there are serious students who can do equally well by
putting a little more effort. They need some more illustrations and also more
exercises to develop their skill and confidence in the subject by solving problems on
their own. Again, it is not possible for a lecturer to do sufficiently many illustrations
and exercises in the classroom for the aforesaid purpose. This is one of the con-
siderations which prompted me to write a series of three volumes on the subject
starting from the undergraduate level to the advance postgraduate level. Each
volume is sufficiently rich with illustrations and examples together with numerous
exercises. These volumes also cater for the need of the talented students with
difficult, challenging, and motivating exercises which were responsible for the
further developments in mathematics. Occasionally, the exercises demonstrating the
applications in different disciplines are also included. The books may also act as a
guide to teachers giving the courses. The researchers working in the field may also
find it useful.
The first volume consists of 11 chapters, which starts with language of mathe-
matics (logic and set theory) and centers around the introduction to basic algebraic
structures, viz., groups, rings, polynomial rings, and fields together with funda-
mentals in arithmetic. This volume serves as a basic text for the first-year course in
algebra at the undergraduate level. Since this is the first introduction to the
abstract-algebraic structures, we proceed rather leisurely in this volume as com-
pared with the other volumes.
The present (second) volume contains 10 chapters which includes the funda-
mentals of linear algebra, structure theory of fields and the Galois theory, repre-
sentation theory of groups, and the theory of group extensions. It is needless to say
that linear algebra is the most applicable branch of mathematics, and it is essential

vii
viii Preface

for students of any discipline to develop expertise in the same. As such, linear
algebra is an integral part of the syllabus at the undergraduate level. Indeed, a very
significant and essential part (Chaps. 1–5) of linear algebra covered in this volume
does not require any background material from Volume 1 of the book except some
amount of set theory. General linear algebra over rings, Galois theory, represen-
tation theory of groups, and the theory of group extensions follow linear algebra,
and indeed these are parts of the syllabus for the second- and the third-year students
of most of the universities. As such, this volume together with the first volume may
serve as a basic text for the first-, second-, and third-year courses in algebra.
The third volume of the book contains 10 chapters, and it can act as a text for
graduate and advance graduate students specializing in mathematics. This includes
commutative algebra, basics in algebraic geometry, semi-simple Lie algebras,
advance representation theory, and Chevalley groups. The table of contents gives an
idea of the subject matter covered in the book.
There is no prerequisite essential for the book except, occasionally, in some
illustrations and exercises, some amount of calculus, geometry, or topology may be
needed. An attempt to follow the logical ordering has been made throughout
the book.
My teacher (Late) Prof. B.L. Sharma, my colleague at the University of
Allahabad, my friend Dr. H.S. Tripathi, my students Prof. R.P. Shukla, Prof.
Shivdatt, Dr. Brajesh Kumar Sharma, Mr. Swapnil Srivastava, Dr. Akhilesh Yadav,
Dr. Vivek Jain, Dr. Vipul Kakkar, and above all, the mathematics students of the
University of Allahabad had always been the motivating force for me to write a
book. Without their continuous insistence, it would have not come in the present
form. I wish to express my warmest thanks to all of them.
Harish-Chandra Research Institute (HRI), Allahabad, has always been a great
source for me to learn more and more mathematics. I wish to express my deep sense
of appreciation and thanks to HRI for providing me all infrastructural facilities to
write these volumes.
Last but not least, I wish to express my thanks to my wife Veena Srivastava who
had always been helpful in this endeavor.
In spite of all care, some mistakes and misprints might have crept in and escaped
my attention. I shall be grateful to any such attention. Criticisms and suggestions for
the improvement of the book will be appreciated and gratefully acknowledged.

Allahabad, India Ramji Lal

April 2017
Contents

1 Vector Spaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1.1 Concept of a Field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1.2 Concept of a Vector Space (Linear Space) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
1.3 Subspaces. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
1.4 Basis and Dimension . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
1.5 Direct Sum of Vector Spaces, Quotient of a Vector Space . . . . 23
2 Matrices and Linear Equations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
2.1 Matrices and Their Algebra . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
2.2 Types of Matrices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
2.3 System of Linear Equations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
2.4 Gauss Elimination, Elementary Operations, Rank,
and Nullity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
2.5 LU Factorization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
2.6 Equivalence of Matrices, Normal Form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
2.7 Congruent Reduction of Symmetric Matrices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
3 Linear Transformations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
3.1 Definition and Examples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
3.2 Isomorphism Theorems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
3.3 Space of Linear Transformations, Dual Spaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
3.4 Rank and Nullity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
3.5 Matrix Representations of Linear Transformations . . . . . . . . . . . 85
3.6 Effect of Change of Bases on Matrix Representation . . . . . . . . . 88
4 Inner Product Spaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
4.1 Definition, Examples, and Basic Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
4.2 Gram–Schmidt Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
4.3 Orthogonal Projection, Shortest Distance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
4.4 Isometries and Rigid Motions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120

ix
x Contents

5 Determinants and Forms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131

5.1 Determinant of a Matrix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
5.2 Permutations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135
5.3 Alternating Forms, Determinant of an Endomorphism . . . . . . . . 139
5.4 Invariant Subspaces, Eigenvalues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150
5.5 Spectral Theorem, and Orthogonal Reduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159
5.6 Bilinear and Quadratic Forms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176
6 Canonical Forms, Jordan and Rational Forms. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195
6.1 Concept of a Module over a Ring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195
6.2 Modules over P.I.D . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
6.3 Rational and Jordan Forms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214
7 General Linear Algebra . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229
7.1 Noetherian Rings and Modules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229
7.2 Free, Projective, and Injective Modules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 234
7.3 Tensor Product and Exterior Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 250
7.4 Lower K-theory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258
8 Field Theory, Galois Theory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265
8.1 Field Extensions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265
8.2 Galois Extensions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 275
8.3 Splitting Field, Normal Extensions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 284
8.4 Separable Extensions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 294
8.5 Fundamental Theorem of Galois Theory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 305
8.6 Cyclotomic Extensions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 311
8.7 Geometric Constructions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 318
8.8 Galois Theory of Equation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 324
9 Representation Theory of Finite Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 331
9.1 Semi-simple Rings and Modules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 331
9.2 Representations and Group Algebras . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 346
9.3 Characters, Orthogonality Relations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 351
9.4 Induced Representations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 361
10 Group Extensions and Schur Multiplier . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 367
10.1 Schreier Group Extensions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 368
10.2 Obstructions and Extensions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 391
10.3 Central Extensions, Schur Multiplier . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 398
10.4 Lower K-Theory Revisited . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 418
Bibliography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 427
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 429
About the Author

Ramji Lal is Adjunct Professor at the Harish-Chandra Research Institute (HRI),

Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh. He started his research career at the Tata Institute of
Fundamental Research (TIFR), Mumbai, and served at the University of Allahabad
in different capacities for over 43 years: as a Professor, Head of the Department, and
the Coordinator of the DSA Program. He was associated with HRI, where he
initiated a postgraduate (PG) program in mathematics and coordinated the Nurture
Program of National Board for Higher Mathematics (NBHM) from 1996 to 2000.
After his retirement from the University of Allahabad, he was Advisor cum Adjunct
Professor at the Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT), Allahabad, for
over 3 years. His areas of interest include group theory, algebraic K-theory, and
representation theory.

xi
Notations from Algebra 1

h ai Cyclic subgroup generated by a, p. 122

a/b a divides b, p. 57
a*b a is an associate of b, p. 57
At The transpose of a matrix A, p. 200
AH The hermitian conjugate of a matrix A, p. 215
Aut(G) The automorphism group of G, p. 105
An The alternating group of degree n, p. 175
Bðn; RÞ Borel subgroup, p. 187
CG ðH Þ The centralizer of H in G, p. 159
C The field of complex numbers, p. 78
Dn The dihedral group of order 2n, p. 90
det Determinant map, p. 191
End(G) Semigroup of endomorphisms of G, p. 105
f(A) Image of A under the map f, p. 34
f −1(B) Inverse image of B under the map f, p. 34
f |Y Restriction of the map f to Y, p. 30
Eij‚ Transvections, p. 200
Fit(G) Fitting subgroup, p. 353
g.c.d. Greatest common divisor, p. 58
g.l.b. Greatest lower bound, or inf, p. 40
G=l HðG=r HÞ The set of left(right) cosets of G mod H, p. 135
G/H The quotient group of G modulo H, p. 151
½G : H  The index of H in G, p. 135
jGj Order of G, p. 331
G0 ¼ ½G; G Commutator subgroup of G, p. 403
Gn nth term of the derived series of G, p. 345
GLðn; RÞ General linear group, p. 186
IX Identity map on X, p. 30
iY Inclusion map from Y, p. 30
Inn(G) The group of inner automorphisms, p. 407

xiii
xiv Notations from Algebra 1

ker f The kernel of the map f, p. 35

Ln ðGÞ nth term of the lower central series of G, p. 281
l.c.m. Least common multiple, p. 58
l.u.b. Least upper bound, or sup, p. 40
Mn(R) The ring of n  n matrices with entries in R, p. 350
N Natural number system, p. 21
NG ðH Þ Normalizer of H in G, p. 159
O(n) Orthogonal group, p. 197
O(1, n) Lorentz orthogonal group, p. 201
PSO(1, n) Positive special Lorentz orthogonal group, p. 201
Q The field of rational numbers, p. 74
Q8 The quaternion group, p. 88
R The field of real numbers, p. 75
R(G) Radical of G, p. 346
Sn Symmetric group of degree n, p. 88
Sym(X) Symmetric group on X, p. 88
S3 The group of unit quaternions, p. 92
h Si Subgroup generated by a subset S, p. 116
SLðn; RÞ Special linear group, p. 196
SO(n) Special orthogonal group, p. 197
SO(1, n) Special Lorentz orthogonal group, p. 201
SPð2n; RÞ Symplectic group, p. 202
SU(n) Special unitary group, p. 202
U(n) Unitary group, p. 202
Um Group of prime residue classes modulo m, p. 100
V4 Kleins four group, p. 102
X/R The quotient set of X modulo R, p. 36
Rx Equivalence class modulo R determined by x, p. 27
X+ Successor of X, p. 20
XY The set of maps from Y to X, p. 34
 Proper subset, p. 14
}ðXÞ
Qn Power set of X, p. 19
k¼1 Gk Direct product of groups Gk ; 1  k  n, p. 142
/ Normal subgroup, p. 147
// Subnormal subgroup, p. 332
Z(G) Center of G, p. 108
Zm The ring of residue classes modulo m, p. 256
p(n) The number of partition of n, p. 172
HK Semidirect product of H with K, p. 204
pffiffiffi
A Radical of an ideal A, p. 286
R(G) Semigroup ring of a ring R over a semigroup G, p. 238
R[X] Polynomial ring over the ring R in one variable, p. 240
R½X1 ; X2 ;    ; Xn  Polynomial ring in several variables, p. 247
„ The Mobius function, p. 256
Notations from Algebra 1 xv


 Sum of divisor function, p. 256
a Legendre symbol, p. 280
p
Stab(G, X) Stabilizer of an action of G on X, p. 295
Gx Isotropy subgroup of an action of G at x, p. 295
XG Fixed point set of an action of G on X, p. 296
Zn(G) nth term of the upper central series of G, p. 351
ΦðGÞ The Frattini subgroup of G, p. 355
Notations from Algebra 2

B2 ðK; HÞ Group of 2 co-boundaries with given , p. 385

C(A) Column space of A, p. 42
Ch(G, K) Set of characters from G to K, p. 278
Ch(G) Character ring of G, p. 350
dim(V) Dimension of V, p. 18
EXT Category of Schreier group extensions, p. 368
E(H, K) The set of equivalence classes of extensions of H by K, p. 376
E1 ] E2 Baer sum of extensions, p. 388
EXT ˆ ðH; KÞ Set of equivalence classes of extensions associated to abstract
kernel ˆ, p. 384
E(V) Exterior algebra of V, p. 257
FACS Category of factor systems, p. 375
F(X) The fixed field of a set of automorphism of a field, p. 275
G(L/K) The Galois group of the field extension L of K, p. 275
G^G Non-abelian exterior square of a group G, p. 413

K Algebraic closure of K, p. 289
H2 ðK; HÞ Second cohomology with given , p. 385
K0 ð RÞ Grothendieck group of the ring R, p. 257
K1 ð RÞ Whitehead group of the ring R, p. 260
KSL Separable closure of K in L, p. 295
L/K Field extension L of K, p. 262
mT ð X Þ Minimum polynomial of linear transformation T, p. 212
minK ðfi ÞðXÞ Minimum polynomial of fi over the field K, p. 265
M(V) Group of rigid motion on V, p. 122
M R N Tensor product of R-modules M and N, p. 250
NL=K Norm map from L to K, p. 279
N(A) Null space of A, p. 41
ObsðˆÞ Obstruction of the abstract kernel ˆ, p. 393
R(A) Row space of A, p. 42
St(R) Steinberg group, p. 422

xvii
xviii Notations from Algebra 2

Symr ðVÞ rth symmetric power of V, p. 345

T L=K Trace map from L to K, p. 314
T(V) Tensor algebra of V, p. 257
TS Semi-simple part of T, p. 219
Tn Nilpotent part of T, p. 220
Z 2 ðK; HÞ Group of 2 co-cycles with given , p. 385
Vr
V rth exterior power of V, p. 255
ΨE Abstract kernel associated to the extension E, p. 377
‰ · Direct sum of representations ‰ and ·, p. 345
‰· Tensor product of representations ‰ and ·, p. 345
Symr ‰ rth symmetric power of the representation ‰, p. 345
SF(L/K)
Vr Set of all intermediary fields of L/K, p. 275
‰ rth exterior power of the representation ‰, p. 345
´‰ Character afforded by the representation ‰, p. 350
`n ðXÞ nth cyclotomic polynomial, p. 311
`A ðXÞ Characteristic polynomial of A, p. 149
Chapter 1
Vector Spaces

This chapter is devoted to the structure theory of vector spaces over arbitrary fields.
In essence, a vector space is a structure in which we can perform all basic operations
of vector algebra, can talk of lines, planes, and linear equations. The basic motivating
examples on which we shall dwell are the Euclidean 3-space R3 over R in which
we live, the Minkowski Space R4 of events (in which the first three coordinates
represent the place and the fourth coordinate represents the time of the occurrence
of the event), and also the space of matrices.

1.1 Concept of a Field

Rings and fields have been introduced and studied in Algebra 1. However, to make the
linear algebra part (Chaps. 1–5) of this volume independent of Algebra 1, we recall,
quickly, the concept of a field and its basic properties. Field is an algebraic structure
in which we can perform all arithmetical operations, viz., addition, subtraction, mul-
tiplication, and division by nonzero members. The basic motivating examples are the
structure Q of rational numbers, the structure R of real numbers, and the structure
C of complex numbers with usual operations. The precise definition of a field is as
follows:
Definition 1.1.1 A Field is a triple (F, +, ·), where F is a set, + and · are two
internal binary operations, called the addition and the multiplication on F, such that
the following hold:
1. (F, +) is an abelian Group in the following sense:
(i) The operation + is associative in the sense that
(a + b) + c = a + (b + c) for all a, b, c ∈ F.
(ii) The operation + is commutative in the sense that
(a + b) = (b + a) for all a, b ∈ F.

© Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2017 1

R. Lal, Algebra 2, Infosys Science Foundation Series in Mathematical Sciences,
DOI 10.1007/978-981-10-4256-0_1
2 1 Vector Spaces

(iii) There is a unique element 0 ∈ F, called the zero of F, such that

a + 0 = a = 0 + a for all a ∈ F.
(iv) For all a ∈ F, there is a unique element −a ∈ F, called the negative of a,
such that
a + (−a) = 0 = −a + a.
2. (i) The operation · is associative in the sense that
(a · b) · c = a · (b · c) for all a, b, c ∈ F.
(ii) The operation · is commutative in the sense that
(a · b) = (b · a) for all a, b ∈ F.
3. The operation · distributes over + in the sense that
(i) a · (b + c) = a · b + a · c, and
(ii) (a + b) · c = a · c + b · c for all a, b, c ∈ F.
4. (i) There is a unique element 1 ∈ F − {0}, called the one of F, such that
1 · a = a = a · 1 for all a ∈ F.
(ii) For all a ∈ F − {0}, there is a unique element a−1 ∈ F, called the multiplicative
inverse of a, such that
a · a−1 = 1 = a−1 · a.
Before having some examples, let us observe some simple facts:
Proposition 1.1.2 Let (F, +, ·) be a field.
(i) The cancellation law holds for the addition + in F in the sense that (a + b =
a + c) implies b = c. In turn, (b + a = c + a) implies b = c.
(ii) a · 0 = 0 = 0 · a for all a ∈ F.
(iii) a · (−b) = −(a · b) = (−a) · b for all a, b ∈ F.
(iv) The restricted cancellation for the multiplication in F holds in the sense that
(a = 0 and a · b = a · c) implies b = c. In turn, (a = 0 and b · a = c ·
a) implies b = c.
(v) (a · b = 0) implies that (a = 0 or b = 0).

Proof (i) Suppose that a + b = a + c. Then b = 0 + b = (−a + a) + b =

−a + (a + b) = −a + (a + c) = (−a + a) + c = 0 + c = c.
(ii) 0 + a · 0 = a · 0 = a · (0 + 0) = a · 0 + a · 0. Using the cancellation for +,
we get that 0 = a · 0. Similarly, 0 = 0 · a.
(iii) 0 = a · 0 = a · (b + (−b)) = a · b + a · (−b). It follows that a · (−b) =
−(a · b). Similarly, the other part follows.
(iv) Suppose that a = 0 and a · b = a · c. Then b = 1 · b = (a−1 · a) · b =
a−1 · (a · b) = a−1 · (a · c) = (a−1 · a) · c = 1 · c = c. Similarly, the other part
follows.
(v) Suppose that (a · b = 0). If a = 0, there is nothing to do. Suppose that a = 0.
Then a · b = 0 = a · 0. From (iv), it follows that b = 0. 

Integral Multiples and the Integral Powers of Elements of a Field

Let a ∈ F. For each natural number n, we define the multiple na inductively as fol-
lows: Define 1a = a. Assuming that na is defined, define (n + 1)a = na + a.
1.1 Concept of a Field 3

Thus, for a natural number n, na = a + a +· · · + a. We define 0a = 0. Further,

ntimes
if m = −n is a negative integer, then we define ma = n(−a). Thus, for a negative
integer m = −n, ma = −a + (−a) + · · · + (−a). This defines the integral multi-
  
ntimes
ple na for each integer n. Similarly, we define all integral powers of a nonzero element
a of F as follows: Define a1 = a. Assuming that an has already been defined, define
an+1 = an · a. This defines all positive integral powers of a. Define a0 = 1, and
for negative integer n = −m, define an = (a−1 )m . The following law of exponents
follow immediately by the induction.
(i) (n + m)a = na + ma for all n, m ∈ Z.
(ii) (nm)a = n(ma) for all n, m ∈ Z.
(iii) an+m = an · am for all a ∈ F − {0}, and n, m ∈ Z.
(iv) anm = (an )m for all a ∈ F − {0}, and n, m ∈ Z.
Examples of Fields
Example 1.1.3 The rational number system Q, the real number system R, and the
complex number system C with usual addition and multiplications are basic examples
of a field.
√ √
Example 1.1.4 Consider F = Q( 2) = {a + b 2 | a, b ∈ Q}. √ The addition and
multiplication
√ in R induce the corresponding operations in Q( 2). We claim that
Q( 2) is a field with respect to the induced operations. All the defining properties of
a field are consequences of the corresponding√properties in R except, perhaps, 4(ii)
which we verify. Let a, b ∈ Q such that a + b 2 = 0. We claim that a2 − 2b2 = 0.
Suppose not. Then a2 − 2b2 = 0. In turn,√b = 0 (and so also a = 0), otherwise,
( ab )2 = 2, a contradiction to the fact that 2 is not a rational number. Thus, then
√
−b
√ √
a+b 2
1√
= a 2 −2b2 = a2 −2b2 + a2 −2b2
a−b 2 a
2 is in Q( 2).

Remark 1.1.5 There is nothing special about 2 in the above example, indeed, we can
take any prime, or for that matter any rational number in place of 2 which is not a
square of a rational number.

So far all the examples of fields are infinite. Now, we give an example of a finite
field.
Let p be a positive prime integer. Consider the set Zp = {1, 2, . . . , p − 1} of
residue classes modulo a prime p. Clearly, a = r, where r is the remainder obtained
when a is divided by p. The usual addition ⊕ modulo p, and the multiplication 
modulo p are given by
i ⊕ j = i + j, i, j ∈ Z,

and
i  j = i · j, i, j ∈ Z
4 1 Vector Spaces

For example, in Z11 , 6 ⊕ 7 = 13 = 2. Similarly, the product 6  7 = 42 = 9.

We have the following proposition.
Proposition 1.1.6 For any prime p, the triple (Zp , ⊕, ) introduced above is a field
containing p elements.

Proof Clearly, 1 is the identity with respect to . We verify only the postulate 4(ii)
in the definition of a field. The rest of the postulates are almost evident, and can be
verified easily. In fact, we give an algorithm (using Euclidean Algorithm) to find the
multiplicative inverse of a nonzero element i ∈ Zp . Let i ∈ Zp − {0}. Then p does
not divide i. Since p is prime, the greatest common divisor of i and p is 1. Using the
Euclidean algorithm, we can find integers b and c such that

1 = i · b + p · c.

Thus, 1 = i · b = i  b. It follows that b is the inverse of i with respect to . 

The above proof is algorithmic and gives an algorithm to find the multiplicative
inverse of nonzero elements in Zp .
Definition 1.1.7 Let (F, +, ·) be a field. A subset L of F is called a subfield of F
if the following hold:
(i) 0 ∈ L.
(ii) If a, b ∈ L, then a + b ∈ L and a · b ∈ L.
(iii) 1 ∈ L.
(iv) For all a ∈ L, −a ∈ L.
(v) For all a ∈ L − {0}, a−1 ∈ L.
Thus, a subfield L of a field F is also a field at its own right with respect to the
induced operations. The field F is a subfield of itself. This subfield is called the
improper subfield of F. Other √ subfields are called proper subfields. The set Q of
rational numbers, the set Q( 2) described in Example 1.1.4, are proper subfields of
the field R of real numbers. The field R of real numbers is a subfield of the field C
of complex numbers.
Proposition 1.1.8 The field Q of rational numbers, and the field Zp have no proper
subfields.

Proof We first show that Q has no proper subfields. Let L be a subfield of Q. Then
by the Definition 1.1.7(iii), 1 ∈ L. Again, by (ii), n = 1 + 1 +· · · + 1 belongs to
n
L for all natural numbers n. Thus, by (iv), all integers are in L. By (v), n1 ∈ L for
all nonzero integers n. By (ii), mn ∈ L for all integers m, n; n = 0. This shows that
L = Q.
1.1 Concept of a Field 5

Next, let L be a subfield of Zp . Then by the Definition 1.1.7(iii), 1 ∈ L. By (ii),

i = 1 ⊕ 1 ⊕  · · · ⊕ 1 belongs to L for all i ∈ Zp . This shows that L = Zp . 
i

We shall see that, essentially, these are the only fields which have no proper
subfields. Such fields are called prime fields.
Homomorphisms and Isomorphisms Between Fields
Definition 1.1.9 Let F1 and F2 be fields. A map f from F1 to F2 is called a
fieldhomomorphism if the following conditions hold:
(i) f (a + b) = f (a) + f (b) for all a, b ∈ F1 (note that + in the LHS is the
addition of F1 , and that in RHS is the addition of F2 ).
(ii) f (a · b) = f (a) · f (b) for all a, b ∈ F1 (again · in the LHS is the multiplication
of F1 , and that in RHS is the multiplication of F2 ).
(iii) f (1) = 1, where 1 in the LHS denotes the multiplicative identity of F1 , and 1
in RHS denotes the multiplicative identity of F2 .
A bijective homomorphism is called an isomorphism. A field F1 is said to be
isomorphic a field F2 if there is an isomorphism from F1 to F2 .
We do not distinguish isomorphic fields.
Proposition 1.1.10 Let f be a homomorphism from a field F1 to a field F2 . Then,
the following hold.
(i) f (0) = 0, where 0 in the LHS is the zero of F1 , and 0 in the RHS is the zero of
F2 .
(ii) f (−a) = −f (a) for all a ∈ F1 .
(iii) f (na) = nf (a) for all a ∈ F1 , and for all integer n.
(iv) f (an ) = (f (a))n for all a ∈ F1 − {0}, and for all integer n.
(v) f is injective, and the image of F1 under f is a subfield of F2 which is isomorphic
to F1 .

Proof (i) 0 + f (0) = f (0) = f (0 + 0) = f (0) + f (0). Using cancellation law

for addition in F2 , we get that f (0) = 0.
(ii) 0 = f (0) = f (a + (−a)) = f (a) + f (−a). This shows that f (−a) = −f (a).
(iii) Suppose that n = 0. Then 0f (a) = 0 = f (0) = f (0a). Clearly, f (1a) =
f (a) = 1f (a). Assume that f (na) = nf (a) for a natural number n. Then f (n +
1)a = f (na + a) = f (na) + f (a) = nf (a) + f (a) = (n + 1)f (a). By induction,
it follows that f (na) = nf (a) for all a ∈ F1 , and for all natural number n. Suppose
that n = −m is a negative integer. Then, f (na) = f ((−m)a) = f (−(ma)) =
−f (ma) = −(mf (a)) = −(m)f (a) = nf (a).
(iv) Replacing na by an , imitate the proof of (iii).
(v) Suppose that a = b. Then (a − b) = 0. Now, 1 = f (1) = f ((a − b)(a −
b)−1 ) = f (a − b)f ((a − b)−1 ). Since 1 = 0, it follows that (f (a) − f (b)) =
f (a − b) = 0. This shows that f (a) = f (b). Thus, f is injective, and it can be real-
ized as a bijective map from F1 to f (F1 ). It is sufficient, therefore, to show that
f (F1 ) is a subfield of F2 . Clearly, 0 = f (0), and 1 = f (1) belong to f (F1 ). Let
6 1 Vector Spaces

f (a), f (b) ∈ f (F1 ), where a, b ∈ F1 . Then (f (a) + f (b)) = f (a + b) ∈ f (F1 ),

and also (f (a)f (b)) = f (ab) ∈ f (F1 ). Finally, if f (a) = 0, then a ∈ F1 − {0}. But,
then (f (a))−1 = f (a−1 ) ∈ F1 . 
Characteristic of a Field
Let F be a field. Consider the multiplicative identity 1 of F. There are two cases:
(i) Distinct integral multiples of 1 are distinct, or equivalently, n1 = m1 implies that
n = m. This is equivalent to say that n1 = 0 if and only if n = 0. In this case we
say that F is of characteristic 0. Thus, for example, the field R of real numbers,
the field Q of rational numbers, and the field C of complex numbers are the fields
of characteristic 0.
(ii) Not all integral multiples of 1 are distinct. In this case there exists a pair n, m of
distinct integers such that n1 = m1. But, then, (n − m)1 = 0 = (m − n)1.
In turn, there is a natural number l such that l1 = 0. In this case, the smallest
natural number l such that l1 = 0 is called the characteristic of F. Thus, the
characteristic of Zp is p.
Proposition 1.1.11 The characteristic of a field is either 0 or a prime number p.
A field of characteristic 0 contains a subfield isomorphic to the field Q of rational
numbers, and a field of characteristic p contains a subfield isomorphic to the field
Zp .
Proof Suppose that F is a field of characteristic 0. Then n1 = m1 implies that n = m.
Also (m1 = 0) if and only if (m = 0). Suppose that ( mn = rs ). Then (m1)(s1) =
ms1 = nr1 = (n1)(r1). In turn, ((m1)(n1)−1 = (r1)(s1)−1 ). Thus, we have a map
f from Q to F given by f ( mn ) = (m1)(n1)−1 . Next, suppose that ((m1)(n1)−1 =
(r1)(s1)−1 ). Then ms1 = (m1)(s1) = (n1)(r1) = nr1. This means that ms = nr,
or equivalently, ( mn = rs ). This shows that f is an injective map. It is also straight
forward to verify that f is a field homomorphism. Thus, L = {(m1)(n1)−1 | m ∈
Z, n ∈ Z − {0}} is a subfield of F which is isomorphic to Q.
Next, suppose that the characteristic of F is l = 0. Then l is the smallest natural
number such that l1 = 0. We show that l is a prime p. Suppose not. Then l =
l1 l2 , 1 < l1 < l, 1 < l2 < l. But, then 0 = l1 = (l1 l2 )1 = (l1 1)(l2 1). In turn,
l1 1 = 0 or l2 1 = 0. This is a contradiction to the choice of l. Thus, the characteristic
of F is a prime p. Suppose that i = j. Then p divides i − j. In turn, (i − j)1 = 0,
and so i1 = j1. Thus, we have a map f from Zp to F defined by f (i) = i1. Clearly,
this is an injective field homomorphism. 
Exercises
1.1.1 Show that Q(ω) = {a + bω | a, b ∈ Q}, where ω a primitive cube root of
1, is a subfield of the field C of complex numbers.
√ √
1.1.2 Show that 2 is not a member of Q( 2). Use the method
 of Example 1.1.4
√ √ √ √ √
to show that Q( 2)( 2) = {a + b 2 + (c + d 2)( 2) | a, b, c, d ∈ Q}
is a field with respect to the addition and multiplication induced by those in R.
Generalize the assertion.
1.1 Concept of a Field 7
√ √ √ √ √
1.1.3 Show that Q( 2)( 3) = {a + b 2 + (c + d 2)( 3) | a, b, c, d ∈ Q}
is a field with respect to the addition and multiplication induced by those in R.
1 1 2
1.1.4 Show that Q(2 3 ) = {a + b2 3 + c2 3 | a, b, c ∈ Q} is also a field with
respect to the addition and multiplication induced by those in R. Express 1 1 as
1+2 3
1 2
a + b2 3 + c2 3 , a, b, c ∈ Q.

1.1.5 Show that F = {0, 1, α, α2 } is a field of characteristic 2 with respect to the

addition + and multiplication · given by the following tables:

+ 0 1 α α2
0 0 1 α α2
1 1 0 α2 α
α α α2 0 1
α2 α2 α 1 0

· 0 1 α α2
0 0 0 0 0
1 0 1 α α2
α 0 α α2 1
α2 0 α2 1 α

1.1.6 Find the multiplicative inverse of 20 in Z257 , and also find the solution of
10x ⊕ 2 = 3.

1.1.7 Write a program in C++ language to check if a natural number n is prime, and
if so to find the multiplicative inverse of a nonzero element m in Zn . Find the output
4
with n = 22 + 1, and m = 641.

1.2 Concept of a Vector Space (Linear Space)

Consider the space (called the Euclidean 3-space) in which we live. If we fix a point
(place) in the three space as origin together with three mutually perpendicular lines
(directions) passing through the origin as the axes of reference, and also a segment of
line as a unit of length, then any point in the 3-space determines, and it is determined
uniquely by an ordered triple (α, β, γ) of real numbers.
8 1 Vector Spaces

P (α, β, γ)

O
Y

X
Thus, with the given choice of the origin and the axes as above, the space in which
we live can be represented faithfully by

R3 = {x = (x1 , x2 , x3 ) | x1 , x2 , x3 ∈ R},

and it is called the Euclidean 3-space. The members of R3 are called the usual 3-
vectors. It is also evident that the physical quantities which have magnitudes as well
as directions (e.g., force, velocity, or displacement) can be represented by vectors.
More generally, for a fixed natural number n,

Rn = {x = (x1 , x2 , . . . , xn ) | x1 , x2 , . . . , xn ∈ R}

is called the Euclidean n-space, and the members of the Euclidean n-space are called
the Euclidean n-vectors. We term x1 , x2 , . . . , xn as components, or coordinates of
the vector x = (x1 , x2 , . . . , xn ). Thus, R2 represents the Euclidean plane, and R4
represents the Minkowski space of events in which the first three coordinates rep-
resent the place, and the fourth coordinate represents the time of the occurrence of
the event. R1 is identified with R. By convention, R0 = {0} is a single point. We have
the addition + in Rn , called the addition of vectors, and it is defined by

x + y = (x1 + y1 , x2 + y2 , . . . , xn + yn ),

where x = (x1 , x2 , . . . , xn ) and y = (y1 , y2 , . . . , yn ). We have also the external

multiplication · by the members of R, called the multiplication by scalars, and it is
given by
α · x = (αx1 , αx2 , . . . , αxn ), α ∈ R.
1.2 Concept of a Vector Space (Linear Space) 9

Remark 1.2.1 The addition + of vectors in 3-space R3 is the usual addition of vectors,
which obeys the parallelogram law of addition.

The Euclidean 3-space (R3 , +, ·) introduced above is a Vector Space in the

sense of the following definition:
Definition 1.2.2 A Vector Space (also called a Linear Space) over a field F (called
the field of Scalars) is a triple (V, +, ·), where V is a set, + is an internal binary
operation on V , called the addition of vectors, and · : F × V → V is an external
multiplication, called the multiplication by scalars, such that the following hold:
A. (V, +) is an abelian group in the sense that:
1. + is associative, i.e.,
(x + y) + z = x + (y + z)

for all x, y, z in V .
2. + is commutative, i.e.,
x+y = y+x

for all x, y in V .
3. We have a unique vector 0 in V , called the null vector, and it is such that

x+0 = x = 0+x

for all x in V .
4. For each x in V , we have a unique vector −x in V , called the negative of x, and
it is such that
x + (−x) = 0 = (−x) + x.

B. The external multiplication · by scalars satisfies the following conditions:

1. It distributes over the vector addition + in the sense that

α · (x + y) = α · x + α · y

for all α ∈ F and x, y in V .

2. It distributes over the addition of scalars also in the sense that

(α + β) · x = α · x + β · x

for all α, β ∈ F and x in V .

3. (αβ) · x = α · (β · x) for all α, β ∈ F and x in V .
4. 1 · x = x for all x in V .

Example 1.2.3 Let F be a field, and n be a natural number. Consider the set

V = F n = {x = (x1 , x2 , . . . , xn ) | x1 , x2 , . . . , xn ∈ F}
10 1 Vector Spaces

of row vectors with n columns, and with entries in F. We have the addition + in F n
defined by

x + y = (x1 + y1 , x2 + y2 , . . . , xn + yn ),

where x = (x1 , x2 , . . . , xn ) and y = (y1 , y2 , . . . , yn ). We have also the external

multiplication · by the members of F defined by

α · x = (αx1 , αx2 , . . . , αxn ), α ∈ F.

The field properties of F ensures that the triple (F n , + ·) is a vector space over F.
The zero of the vector space is the zero row 0 = (0, 0, . . . , 0), and the negative of
x = (x1 , x2 , . . . , xn ) is −x = (−x1 , −x2 , . . . , −xn ). We can also treat the members
of F n as column vectors.

Example 1.2.4 Let L be a subfield of a field F. Consider (F, +, ·), where + is the
addition of the field F, and · is the restriction of the multiplication in F to L × F.
Then it is evident that (F, +, ·) is a vector space over L. Thus, every field can be
considered as vector spaces over its subfields.

Example 1.2.5 Let C[0, 1] denote the set of all real valued continuous functions on
the closed interval [0, 1]. Since sum of any two continuous functions is a continuous
function, we have an addition on C[0, 1] with respect to which it is an abelian group.
Define the external multiplication · by (a · f )(x) = a · f (x). Then C[0, 1] is a vector
space over the field R of reals. Note that the set D[0, 1] of differentiable functions is
also a vector space over the field R of reals with respect to the addition of functions,
and multiplication by scalars as defined above.

Example 1.2.6 Let Pn (F) denote the set of all polynomials of degree at most n over
a field F. Then Pn (F) is an abelian group with respect to the addition of polynomials.
Further, if a ∈ F and f (X) ∈ Pn (F), then af (X) ∈ Pn (F). Thus, Pn (F) is also a vector
space over F.

Proposition 1.2.7 Let V be a vector space over a field F. Then the following hold:
(i) The cancellation law holds in (V, +) in the sense that (x + y = x +
z) implies y = z (In turn, (y + x = z + x) implies y = z).
(ii) 0 · x = 0, where 0 in the left side is the 0 of F, 0 on right side is that of V , and
x ∈ V.
(iii) α · 0 = 0, where both 0 are that of V , and α ∈ F.
(iv) (−α) · x = −(α · x) for all α ∈ F, and x ∈ V . In particular, (−1) · x = −x.
(v) (α · x = 0) implies that (α = 0 or x = 0).

Proof (i) Suppose that (x + y = x + z). Then y = 0 + y = (−x + x) + y =

−x + (x + y) = −x + (x + z) = (−x + x) + z = 0 + z = z.
(ii) 0 + 0 · x = 0 · x = (0 + 0) · x = 0 · x + 0 · x. By the cancellation in (V, +),
1.2 Concept of a Vector Space (Linear Space) 11

0 = 0 · x.
(iii) 0 + α · 0 = α · 0 = α · (0 + 0) = α · 0 + α · 0. By the cancellation in
(V, +), 0 = α · 0.
(iv) 0 = 0 · x = (−α + α) · x = (−α) · x + α · x. This shows that (−α) · x =
−(α · x)
(v) Suppose that (α · x = 0), and α = 0. Then, x = 1 · x = (α−1 α) · x = α−1 ·
(α · x) = α−1 · 0 = 0. 

1.3 Subspaces

Definition 1.3.1 Let V be a vector space over a field F. A subset W of V is called

a subspace, or a linear subspace of V if
(i) 0 ∈ W .
(ii) x + y ∈ W for all x, y ∈ W .
(iii) α · x ∈ W for all α ∈ F and x ∈ W .

Thus, a subspace is also a vector space over the same field at its own right.
Proposition 1.3.2 Let V be a vector space over a field F. Then a nonempty subset
W of V is a subspace if and only if ax + by ∈ W for all a, b ∈ F, and x, y ∈ V .

Proof Suppose that W is a subspace of V . Let a, b ∈ F, and x, y ∈ V . From the Defi-

nition 1.3.1(i), ax, by ∈ W . In turn, by Definition 1.3.1(ii), ax + by ∈ W . Conversely,
suppose that W is a nonempty subset of V such that ax + by ∈ W for all a, b ∈ F,
and for all x, y ∈ W . Let x, y ∈ W . Then x + y = 1x + 1y belongs to W . Further,
since W is nonempty, there is an element x ∈ W , and then 0 = 0x + 0x belongs
to W . Also for x ∈ W , and a ∈ F, ax = ax + 0x ∈ W . This shows that W is a
subspace of V . 

Example 1.3.3 Let V be a vector space over a field F. Then V is clearly a subspace of
V , and it is called an improper subspace of V . The singleton {0} is also a subspace
of V , and it is called the trivial subspace of V . Other subspaces of V are called
Proper subspaces of V .

Example 1.3.4 (Subspaces of R2 over R) Let W be a nontrivial subspace of R2 .

Then there is a nonzero element (l, m) ∈ W . Since W is a subspace, α · (l, m) =
(αl, αm) ∈ W for all α ∈ R. Thus, Wlm = {(αl, αm) | α ∈ R} ⊆ W . Wlm is easily
seen to be a subspace of R2 . Indeed, Wlm is the line in the plane R2 passing through
origin and the point (l, m). Note that all lines in R2 are of this type. Suppose that
W = Wlm . Then there is a nonzero element (p, q) in W − Wlm . We claim that
ql − pm = 0. Suppose that ql − pm = 0. Since (l, m) = (0, 0), l = 0 or m = 0.
Suppose that l = 0. Then, (p, q) = ( pl l, pl m) turns out to be in Wlm , a contradiction
to the choice of (p, q). Similarly, if m = 0, then (p, q) = ( mq l, mq m), a contradiction.
Now, let (a, b) be an arbitrary member of R2 . Since ql − pm = 0, we can solve the
12 1 Vector Spaces

pair of equations αl + βp = a and αm + βq = b. In other words, (a, b) =

α(l, m) + β(p, q) belongs to W , and so W = R2 . This shows that only proper
subspaces of R2 are the lines passing through origin.

Example 1.3.5 (Subspaces of R3 over R) As in the above example, lines and planes
passing through origin are proper subspaces of R3 over R. Indeed, they are the only
proper subspaces.

Proposition 1.3.6 Intersection of a family of subspaces is a subspace.

Proof Let {Wα | α ∈ } be a family of subspaces of a vector space V over F. Then

0 ∈ Wα for all α, and so 0 belongs to the intersection of the family. Thus, the
intersection of the given family is nonempty. Let x, y ∈ α∈ Wα , and a, b ∈ F.
Then x, y ∈ Wα for all α. Since each Wα is a subspace, ax + by ∈ Wα for all α.
Hence ax + by belongs to the intersection. This shows that the intersection of the
family is a subspace. 

Proposition
 1.3.7 Union of subspaces need not be a subspace. Indeed, the union
W1 W2 of two subspaces is a subspace if and only if W1 ⊆ W2 or W2 ⊆ W1 .

Proof If W1 ⊆ W2 , then W1 W2 = W2 a subspace. Similarly,  if W2 ⊆ W1 , then
also the union is a subspace. Conversely, suppose that W1 W2 is a subspace and W1
is not a subset ofW2 . Then there is an element x ∈W1 which is not in W2 . Let y ∈ W2 .
Then, since W1 W2 is a subspace, x + y ∈ W1 W2 . Now x + y does not belong to
W2 , for otherwise x = (x + y) − y will be in W2 , a contradiction to the supposition.
Hence x + y ∈ W1 . Since x ∈ W1 and W1 is subspace, y = −x + (x + y) belongs
to W1 . This shows that W2 ⊆ W1 . 

Proposition 1.3.8 Let W1 and W2 be subspaces of a vector space V over a field F.

Then W1 + W2 = {x + y | x ∈ W1 , y ∈ W2 } is also a subspace
 (called the sum of
W1 and W2 ) which is the smallest subspace containing W1 W2 .

Proof Since 0 ∈ W2 , x ∈ W1 implies that x = x + 0 ∈ W1 + W2 . Thus,  W1 ⊆

W1 + W2 . Similarly, W2 ⊆ W1 + W2 . Also, if L is a subspace containing W1 W2 ,
then x + y ∈ L for all x ∈ W1 , and y ∈ W2 . Therefore, it is sufficient to show that
W1 + W2 is a subspace. Clearly, W1 + W2 = ∅. Let x + y and u + v belong to W1 +
W2 , where x, u ∈ W1 , and y, v ∈ W2 . Since W1 and W2 are subspaces, αx + βu ∈ W1 ,
and αy + βv ∈ W2 . But, then α(x + y) + β(u + v) = (αx + βu) + (αy + βv)
belongs to W1 + W2 . 

Definition 1.3.9 A family {Wα | α ∈ } of subspaces of a vector space V over a

field F is called a chain if for any given pair α, β ∈ , Wα ⊆ Wβ , or Wβ ⊆ Wα .

Proposition 1.3.10 Union of a chain of subspaces is a subspace.

Proof Let {Wα |α ∈ } be a chain ofsubspaces of a vector space V over a field
F. Clearly, 0 ∈ α∈ Wα . Let x, y ∈ α∈ Wα , and α, β ∈ F. Then x ∈ Wα , and
y ∈ Wβ for some α, β ∈ F. Since the family is a chain, Wα ⊆ Wβ , or Wβ ⊆ Wα .
1.3 Subspaces 13

This means that x, y ∈ Wα , or x, y ∈ Wβ . Since Wα and W

β are subspaces, αx + βy
belongs
 to W α or to W β . It follows that αx + βy ∈ α∈ Wα . This shows that
α∈ W α is a subspace. 
Subspace Generated (Spanned) by a Subset
Definition 1.3.11 A subset S of a vector space V over a field F need not be a
subspace, for example, it may not contain 0. The intersection of all subspaces of
V containing S is the smallest subspace of V containing S. This subspace is called
the subspace generated (spanned) by S, and it is denoted by < S >. If < S > = V ,
then we say that S generates V, or S is a set of generators of V . A vector space V
is said to be finitely generated if it has a finite set of generators.
Clearly, < ∅ > = {0}.
Remark 1.3.12 The subspace < S > of V generated by S is completely characterized
by the following 3 properties:
(i) < S > is a subspace.
(ii) < S > contains S.
(iii) If W is a subspace containing S, then < S >⊆ W .
Definition 1.3.13 Let S be a nonempty subset of a vector space V over a field F.
An element x ∈ V is called a linear combination of members of S if

x = a1 x1 + a2 x2 + · · · + an xn

for some a1 , a2 , . . . , an ∈ F and x1 , x2 , . . . , xn ∈ V . We also say that x depends

linearly on S.
Remark 1.3.14 If S is a nonempty set, then 0 is always a linear combination of the
members of S, for 0 = 0x. All the members of S are linear combination of members
of S, for any x ∈ S is 1x. Further, if x is a linear combination of members of S, and
S ⊆ T , then x is also a linear combination of members of T . A Linear combination
of linear combinations of members of S is again a linear combination of members of
S.
Proposition 1.3.15 Let S be a nonempty subset of a vector space V over a field F.
Then < S > is the set of all linear combinations of members of S.
Proof Let W denote the set of all linear combinations of members of S. Since mem-
bers of S are also linear combinations of members of S, it follows that S ⊆ W . Thus, W
is nonempty set. Let x = a1 x1 + a2 x2 + · · · an xn and y = b1 y1 + b2 y2 + · · · bm ym
be members of W , and a, b ∈ F. Then

ax + by = a1 x1 + a2 x2 + · · · an xn + b1 y1 + b2 y2 + · · · bm ym ,

being a linear combination of members of S, is again a member of W , and so W is a

subspace of V . Let L be a subspace of V containing S. It follows, by induction on r,
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methods, so long as it remained part of the official curriculum. Her
Majesty took pains to point out by Edict that colleges had
undoubtedly existed in the days of that model ruler, the Regent Duke
Chou, more than two thousand five hundred years ago, on lines not
greatly different from those of the foreign Universities of the present
day; she proved also that the classical essay system was, so to
speak, quite a recent innovation, having been introduced for the first
time under the Ming Dynasty, about a.d. 1390. Eventually, in 1904,
upon the advice of Yüan Shih-k’ai, approved by Chang Chih-tung, a
Decree was issued finally abolishing the old system of examinations
and making graduation at one of the modern colleges the only
recognised path to official employment. At the same time, realising
that the training of students in Japan, which had been proceeding on
a very large scale, had produced a body of revolutionary scholars
most undesirable in the eyes of the Government, she gave orders
that arrangements should be made for sending more students in
future to Europe and America.
This epoch-making announcement was followed by several other
important Decrees, notably that which ordered the complete abolition
of the opium traffic within a period of ten years, a Decree, which,
embodying a sincere and powerful consensus of public opinion, has
produced most unexpected results, marvellously creditable to the
moral sense and recuperative energies of the Chinese race. The
contrast is most striking between the widespread reform effected
under this Edict, and the almost complete failure of those which set
forth to reform the Metropolitan administration; these, thanks to the
steady passive resistance of the mandarin in possession, resulted
merely in perpetuating the old abuses under new names. The one
new Ministry created at that time, and saluted by foreigners as a sign
of genuine progress, was that of Posts and Communications (Yu-
Ch’uan pu), which has been a byword for corrupt practices since its
establishment, and a laughing stock among the Chinese themselves
for inefficiency and extravagance.
After dealing with education, the Old Buddha turned her attention
to a question which had frequently figured in recent Memorials of
progressive officials, namely, the abolition of torture and other
abuses prevalent in the so-called judicial system of the Empire. She
realised that if China were ever to obtain the consent of the western
Powers to the abolition of the foreigner’s rights of extra-territoriality,
she must devise and enforce civil and criminal codes similar to those
of civilised countries. Her Edict on this subject, though in form
excellent, seems to lack something of the conviction which marks
her other Decrees of this period; it is very different, for instance, from
those dealing with the abolition of opium and the reform of
education. Its principles were obviously contrary to all her previous
ideas and practice, and it is only fair to say that its result, in spite of
much drafting of codes, has been little or none, as far as the
barbarous practices of the provincial Yamêns are concerned. She
decreed that, pending the introduction of the criminal code,
decapitation should be the extreme penalty of the law;
dismemberment and mutilation were to be abolished as barbarous;
branding, flogging, and the vicarious punishment of relatives were to
cease. These savage penalties, she observed, were originally
introduced into China under the Ming Dynasty, and had only been
adopted by the Manchus, with other Chinese customs, against their
own more merciful instincts.
Finally, in deference to the unmistakable and growing tendencies
of public opinion in the south, Tzŭ Hsi took the first steps towards the
introduction of constitutional government by sending an Imperial
Commission (under Duke Tsai Tsê) to study the various systems in
force in foreign countries, and their results. The return of this Mission
was followed in the autumn of 1905 by the issue of the famous
Decree in which she definitely announced her intention to grant a
constitution, which should come into effect sooner or later, according
to circumstances and the amount of energy or procrastination
displayed by the officials and people in preparing themselves for the
change. As an example of subtle argument calculated to appeal to
the Chinese mind, the document is a masterpiece in its way. It says:
—

“Ever since the foundation of the Dynasty one wise

sovereign after another has handed down sage counsels to
 posterity; it has always been their guiding principle that
methods of Government should be modified and adapted to
meet the exigencies of the moment and changing conditions.
China’s great and increasing danger to-day is largely due to
her unwise adherence to antiquated methods; if we do not
amend our educational and political systems, we shall be
violating the spirit which animated our Imperial ancestors, and
shall disappoint the best hopes of our people. Our Imperial
Commissioners have reported to us that the prosperity and
power of foreign nations are largely due to principles of
constitutional government based on the will of the people,
which assures bonds of union and sympathy between the
Sovereign and his subjects. It is therefore our duty to consider
by what means such a Constitution may be granted as shall
retain the sovereign power in the hands of the Throne, and at
the same time give effect to the wishes of the people in
matters of administration. Our State being at present
unprepared, and our people uneducated, any undue haste is
inadvisable, and would lead to no practical results. We must
first reform the official system, following this by the
introduction of new laws, new methods of education, finance
and military organisations, together with a police system, so
that officials and people may come to realise what executive
government means as a foundation and preparation for the
granting of a Constitution.”

It was not to be expected that even Tzŭ Hsi could frame so radical
and comprehensive a programme of change without incurring the
strongest opposition and criticism of those to whom the established
order meant loaves and fishes: at Peking, however, owing to the
absence of an outspoken press, the opposition ran beneath the
surface, exercised in the time-honoured form of dogged adherence
to the ancient methods by the officials and bureaucrats on whose
goodwill all reform ultimately depends. Against anyone less
masterful and less popular than Tzŭ Hsi the Clansmen would
undoubtedly have concerted other and more forcible measures, but
they knew their Old Buddha and went in wholesome fear of her
wrath. It was only her exceptional position and authority that enabled
her to introduce the machinery for the establishment of constitutional
government, based on the Japanese model, and there is reason to
believe that even at this moment many conservative Manchus do not
regard that measure seriously.
But despite the promise of constitutional government, public
opinion in the south, never restrained in its utterances by the free-
lances of the vernacular press of Hongkong and Shanghai, was
outspoken in condemnation of Her Majesty’s new policy, criticising
her policy in general on the ground of her undignified truckling to
Europeans. Lacking alike her masculine intelligence and courageous
recognition of hard facts, making no allowance for the difficulties with
which she was encompassed, and animated in many instances by a
very real hatred of the Manchu rule, they attacked her in
unmeasured terms of abuse; while the foreign press of the Treaty
Ports, naturally suspicious of her motives and mindful of her share in
the anti-foreign rising, was also generally unsympathetic, if not
hostile. In both cases knowledge of the woman’s virility and vitality
was lacking. Her critics failed to realise that, like most mortals, the
Empress was a mixture of good and bad, of wisdom and error,
largely swayed by circumstances and the human equations around
her, as well as by an essentially feminine quality of mutability; but
withal, and above all, a born leader of men and a politician of the
very first order.
The following extracts from articles published in the Shanghai
press at that time, throw an instructive light on the spirit of Young
China (like that of the Babu of India) as displayed in its anti-Manchu
proclivities and bigoted chauvinism. One critic, taking for his text the
entertainments given by Her Majesty to the Foreign Legations,
wrote:—

“There can be no objection to giving a banquet to anyone

who is likely to be grateful and show some return for
hospitality, but what possible good purpose can be served by
feasting those who treat you with suspicion? We Chinese are
wont to despise our ignorant rustics when they display
 servility to foreigners, but what is to be said when one in the
exalted position of the Empress Dowager demeans herself by
being on terms of affectionate intimacy with the wives of
Foreign Ministers, and even with women belonging to the
commercial and lower classes? Nowadays foreign food is
served at the Palace in a dining-room decked out in European
style: the guests at these entertainments thank their Imperial
hostess on taking leave, and the very next day their Legations
will furiously rage against China at our Foreign Office.
Therefore, as for moderating their barbarous ways, her food
and her wines are simply wasted. As a matter of fact, these
guests of hers do not scruple to compare her banquets of to-
day with the melons and vegetables which she sent to the
Legations during the siege, a comparison by no means
flattering to Her Majesty. The thing is becoming a scandal.
When Russia poured out entertainments in honour of Li
Hung-chang she got something for her money; can it be that
Her Majesty is looking to similar results in the present case for
herself?”

Another critic, nearer the truth as we know, doubted whether the

Empress Dowager was in reality enamoured of foreign ways, and
whether she was not simulating good relations, while preparing
some deep-laid scheme of future revenge.

“It is scarcely credible,” he observed, “that, at her time of

life, she should be able to change all her habits and form ties
so completely alien to her education and nature. Would not
the foreigners naturally ask themselves whether she was
likely to cherish any real affection for people who had
plundered her palace and had forced her to hand over to the
executioners her most faithful and trusted officials?”

This writer had difficulty, however, in believing that she

contemplated another Boxer movement and frankly confessed
himself perplexed.
 “As Her Majesty’s chief occupation at the present time
would appear to be to accumulate money at all costs rather
than to reorganise and strengthen the resources of the
Empire, her ultimate object may well be to secure that
whatever happens, her old age shall be comfortably provided
for.”

Nevertheless, unheeding of criticism and strong in the wisdom of

her own convictions, Tzŭ Hsi continued steadily on the lines which
she had laid down as necessary for the future safety of the Empire. It
was not to be expected that even her strong personality could
overcome in a day the entrenched forces of native prejudice and
conservatism within and without the palace. At the time of her death
many of the chief strongholds of the ancient system (e.g., the power
of the eunuchs and the organised corruption of officials) remained
practically uncriticised and untouched; but at her passing she had
marked out a rough course by which, if faithfully followed, the ship of
State might yet be safely steered through the rocks and shallows of
the dangerous seas ahead.
 XXV
THE VALEDICTORY MEMORIAL OF JUNG LU

The death of Jung Lu was a great grief to the Empress Dowager.

In the course of her long life there was hardly any crisis or important
event of her reign wherein she had not been greatly assisted by this
devoted follower. Upon hearing of his death she issued a Decree
from the Travelling Palace at Pao-ting-fu, praising the patriotism and
clear-sighted intelligence of the deceased, who, since the beginning
of his career as an honorary licentiate had risen to be Controller of
the Imperial Household, Tartar General and Viceroy, in all of which
capacities he had rendered signal service. At the time of his death
he had attained to the highest honours open to a subject in China,
namely, the position of Grand Secretary and Grand Councillor. In this
Decree Her Majesty laid particular stress on his endeavours to
promote a good understanding with the foreign Powers in 1900.
Further, in token of her affectionate regard, she bestowed upon him
a coverlet with charms worked thereon from the Dharani Sutra in
Sanscrit and Thibetan, to be used as a pall for his burial, and she
commanded Prince Kung to proceed to the residence of the
deceased, with ten officers of the Imperial Guard, to perform a
sacrifice on her behalf to the soul of the departed statesman. She
granted him the posthumous designation of “learned and loyal,”
together with the highest hereditary rank open to one who had not
been a victorious military commander or a member of the Imperial
Clan. His ancestral tablet was given a place at the Shrine of Good
and Virtuous Officials, and three thousand taels (£350) were issued
from the privy purse towards his funeral expenses.
Jung Lu’s valedictory Memorial has never been published in
China, but those in attendance on Her Majesty reported that it
affected her very deeply. On the day after it reached her, she issued
the following Decree:—
 “The deceased Grand Secretary, Jung Lu, was our senior
Grand Councillor at a time of critical danger to the State, and
his sage counsel and eminent services to the Throne have
never been sufficiently appreciated either in China or abroad.
He was absolutely indispensable to us, and we depended
entirely upon his advice. Two months ago, owing to his ill-
health, we were compelled to grant him leave of absence, but,
unfortunately, all remedies have proved unavailing, and he
has passed away. We have perused his valedictory Memorial,
full of a deep and touching earnestness in regard to the future
of our Empire and the condition of the Chinese people; and in
recalling all the incidents of his distinguished career the
violence of our grief can only find expression in tears.
Following upon the posthumous honours already conferred
upon him, we hereby decree that a second Imperial sacrifice
shall be offered to his spirit on the day before his remains are
removed for burial, and, furthermore, that the record of his life
be transmitted to the Historiographers’ Department for
inclusion in the annals of our Dynasty. All faults that may have
been recorded against him shall be expunged, so that the
depth of our sincere affection for this faithful servant may be
made manifest.”

Jung Lu was sixty-seven years of age at the date of his death

(April 11th, 1903), and it is probable that had it not been for the
severe hardships and mental strain which he endured during the
Boxer crisis, he would have lived much longer to serve his Imperial
mistress. By his death Prince Ch’ing and his corrupt following rose to
increased power (Prince Ch’ing being the only available Manchu of
rank sufficient to succeed Jung Lu as head of the Grand Council),
and they have retained it, in the subterranean labyrinths of Palace
intrigues, ever since.
Jung Lu was essentially a middle-course man, striving earnestly
for that “happy mean” which the Empress Dowager professed to
desire. Had he lived, it is safe to say that he would not have
approved of the haste with which she proceeded to sanction the
undigested programme for constitutional government, and with his
advice against it the Old Buddha would probably not have persisted
in the idea. He had repeatedly urged her, before the return of the
Court, to make it quite clear in her Edicts that a reform policy was
necessary for the preservation of the Empire, but, like the late Prince
Ito, he was all for a slow and cautious procedure, and present-day
observers of events connected with the constitutional government
programme can hardly doubt the wisdom of his advice.
The following is a translation of his, hitherto unpublished,
valedictory Memorial, a document which throws valuable light on the
coup d’état and the relations between Tzŭ Hsi and the Emperor at
that time. In other respects it confirms many conclusions wherein
Jung Lu’s authoritative testimony was lacking to complete an
otherwise satisfactory chain of evidence.

“I, your slave, Jung Lu, a Grand Councillor and Grand

Secretary of the Wen Hua Throne Hall, having grievously
failed to requite the favours of your Majesties, now that my
breath is almost spent, respectfully upon my knees do present
this my valedictory Memorial, and beg that your Majesties
may be pleased to cast your divine glance upon it.
“I, all unworthy, have received no small bounty at the hands
of your Majesty the Empress Dowager, and had hoped that
Heaven might grant me length of days, wherein to display my
utmost endeavour in your Majesty’s service. Respectfully I
recall the fact that I began my career of service as an Imperial
guardsman, and was on duty with H.M. Hsien-Feng in his
excursion to the hunting park at Mulan (Jehol) in the tenth
year of his reign. At that time the situation of the Empire was
one of great danger; within there was the grave peril of the
rebellion, while from without the English and French
barbarians had captured our sacred capital. We witnessed the
violation of the Imperial shrines and saw the sacred chariot of
His Majesty leave Peking, in accordance with the principle
laid down by Mencius that a sovereign should leave his
capital when it is threatened by invasion of barbarians.
 “After the Court’s arrival at Jehol, I had the honour of
attending on your Majesty the Empress Dowager as
Chamberlain, and when His Majesty Hsien-Feng lay on his
deathbed, I had the honour to warn your Majesty and the
Empress Consort that the Princes Cheng and Yi were
conspiring against the State. After the death of His Majesty,
those wicked Princes usurped the Regency and for many
days your Majesty was in danger so great that it may not be
spoken of by any loyal subject. Happily, your Majesty, acting
on your own firm initiative and by the favour of Heaven, dealt
with those abominable traitors in the twinkling of an eye and
rescued the State from its dire peril. For years thereafter you
carried on the Regency, rebellions were suppressed and
peace reigned within the four seas.
“Your slave received many marks of the Imperial favour and
rose to be Minister of the Household; I was thus constantly in
attendance on your Majesty. When the late Emperor T’ung-
Chih mounted the dragon and ascended on high, it was to me
that your Majesty confided the duty of bringing the present
Emperor Kuang-Hsü to the Palace. Favours vast as the
universe have I received, and for these I have made no
return.
“While acting as Captain General of the Peking
Gendarmerie, I incurred your Majesty’s displeasure; thereafter
for seven years I awaited, without incurring, the fitting penalty
for my offence. Later, when His Majesty came to his majority
and you were pleased to hand over to him the reins of
government, you conferred on me the post of Tartar General
at Hsi-an. Subsequently I was recalled to my former position
at the capital. In the 24th year of Kuang-Hsü (1898) your
Majesties determined on the introduction of European
methods of government and the Emperor summoned me to
audience and conferred on me the post of Viceroy of Chihli at
Tientsin where I was ordered to select and introduce reforms
based on foreign methods in order to remedy the weakness of
China’s administration. But who could then have believed that
the damnable treasons of K’ang Yu-wei should be the means
of thwarting your Majesties’ great plans? His Majesty the
Emperor, by giving ear to the lying inventions of that traitor
and his associates, if only for a little while, undoubtedly
allowed his filial piety to suffer temporary decline. This was
particularly the case when he wrote with his own Imperial
hand a Decree stating that his reform proposals were being
blocked by your Majesty and that, as you were opposed to the
spirit of progress, your interference in State affairs was a
danger to the nation. Towards me also His Majesty displayed
his divine wrath, so that once more had your slave deserved
the penalty of ‘axes and halberds.’ But when I sought your
Majesty in secret audience and laid before you the details of
the plot, once more did your Majesty, without a moment’s
hesitation respond to our prayer and resume the control of
affairs, swiftly visiting upon evildoers of that treacherous crew
the might of your august displeasure.
“In the 26th year of Kuang-Hsü, certain Princes and
Ministers, statesmen deficient in virtue, gained your Majesty’s
ear, and even your divine wisdom was misled to believe in the
unholy arts and magic of the Boxers until the ancestral
shrines were the centre of cataclysmic disaster and the
destinies of the Empire trembled in the balance. Again and
again I besought your Majesty to put an end to these traitors,
but could not gain your consent. I incurred at that time your
censure on more than one occasion, and for forty days waited
in my house fully expectant of doom. But even so your
Majesty repeatedly sought my advice, and though it was not
always followed, I was able to avert the crowning misfortune
which would have resulted from the killing of the foreign
Ministers. For this service your Majesty has since deigned
frequently to express gratitude.
“When your Majesties left the city on your tour of inspection
to Hsi-an, you decided upon punishing those evil-minded
Princes and Ministers, and thereafter to introduce a policy of
gradual and effective reform in every branch of the
administration. Already, during the past two years,
considerable progress has been made. By your return to the
capital the sun has been restored to our firmament, and even
the barbarians of the east and west have acclaimed your
Majesty’s benevolence and impartial solicitude for all,
Chinese and foreigners alike.
“For the past year I have been continually ill, but until two
months ago was able to continue in the performance of my
arduous duties. Since then I have been compelled to apply for
sick-leave and have sought permission to resign my offices,
but your Majesty sent eunuchs to me with gracious messages
and presents of ginseng[124] and commanded that I should
make all haste to recover and resume my duties.
“But even the beneficent protection of your Majesty has
failed to avert from me the last ravages of illness. Repeated
attacks of asthma, with increasing difficulty in breathing, have
now brought me to the last stage of weakness and the very
point of death. With my last breath I now entreat your Majesty
vigorously to continue in the introduction of reforms, so that
gradually our Middle Kingdom may attain to a condition as
prosperous as that of the great States of Europe and Japan.
During my tenure of the office of Grand Councillor I have seen
many men appointed to offices for which they were by no
means fitted; herein lies a source of weakness, but above all
it is necessary that a radical change should be made in the
selection of District Magistrates and in the methods by which
taxation is levied and collected. It were well if the good
example of economy which your Majesty is setting were more
generally followed. In the seclusion of the Palace it is
impossible for your Majesty to know the truth as to the
condition of your subjects, and were it not for the prohibitive
cost of transporting your enormous retinues, I should advise
that the Throne should make regular tours of inspection in
various parts of the Empire. His Majesty Ch’ien-Lung made
several such tours, and among the wise sovereigns of ancient
times the custom was regularly observed. At this moment my
mind is becoming confused; I can say no more. Humbly do I
pray that your Majesty’s fame may continue to grow, and that
all my good wishes on your Majesty’s behalf may be fulfilled.
Then, even though I die, yet shall I live.
“I have dictated this, my valedictory Memorial, to my
adopted son, Liang Ku’ei, for transmission to your Majesty, in
temporary residence at Pao-ting fu. Though conscious of its
numerous shortcomings, for which I beg forgiveness, I
reverently entreat your Majesty to peruse it. Prostrate before
the Throne, with my dying breath, I, Jung Lu, now conclude
my Memorial.
“(Dated the 10th April, 1903.)”
 XXVI
HER MAJESTY’S LAST DAYS.

In the summer of 1908 Tzŭ Hsi’s generally robust health showed

signs of failing, a fact which is recorded in her valedictory Decree,
and one of no small importance in considering the coincident fact of
the illness of the Emperor. Of the causes and manner of the latter’s
death, nothing will ever be definitely known; they lie buried with
many another secret of the Forbidden City, in the hearts of Li Lien-
ying and his immediate satellites. Even among the higher officials,
Manchu and Chinese, of the capital, opinions differ, and many
conflicting theories are current to account for the remarkable
coincidence of the death of Tzŭ Hsi and her unhappy nephew on
successive days. For those who seek it there is no lack of
circumstantial evidence to justify the conclusion that the long-
threatened Emperor was “removed” by the reactionaries, headed by
the chief eunuch, who had only too good cause to fear his unfettered
authority on the Throne. At the same time it is conceivably possible
that many of the plots and proceedings of the Summer Palace at that
time might have been unknown to Tzŭ Hsi, and that she was
purposely kept in ignorance by those who foresaw the possibility of
her early death and took their precautions accordingly, after the
Oriental manner. Indeed, in the light of much trustworthy evidence of
eye-witnesses, this seems a rational explanation of events to which
any solution by theories of coincidence is evidently difficult. Most of
the following account of Her Majesty’s last days is derived from the
statements of two high officials, one Manchu and the other Chinese,
who were at that time on duty with the Court. Their testimony and
their conclusions coincide, on the whole, with those of the best-
informed and most reliable Chinese newspapers, whose news from
the capital is also generally from official sources. We accept them,
naturally, with all reserve, yet with an inclination to give the Empress
Dowager, on this occasion, the benefit of their good opinions and our
own doubts. The simultaneous deaths may possibly have been due
to natural causes, but it is to be observed by the most sympathetic
critic, that the account given by Her Majesty’s loyal servants of her
behaviour immediately after the Emperor’s death, is by no means
suggestive of sorrow, but rather of relief.
It was in the previous autumn that the Emperor became very ill, so
much so that he was gradually compelled during the last year of his
life to desist from performance of the usual sacrifices, which entail no
small expenditure of physical energy through their genuflections and
continual prostrations. The impression gradually gained ground that
His Majesty was not likely to live much longer, and it was remarked,
and remembered as a significant fact, that the Old Buddha had some
time before given orders for the engagement of special wet-nurses
for the infant son of Prince Ch’un, born in February, 1906. It was
understood that these orders implied the selection of this infant
Prince to succeed Kuang-Hsü, but although many attempts were
made to induce her to declare herself on this subject, she declined to
do so on the ground that her previous experience had been unlucky,
that her selections had been the cause of much misunderstanding,
and that, moreover, it was a house-law of the Dynasty that the heir to
the throne could only be lawfully selected when the sovereign was in
extremis, a rule which she had completely disregarded in the
nomination of Prince Tuan’s son in 1900.[125]
In this connection, there is every reason to believe that Tzŭ Hsi’s
superstitious nature, and the memory of the prophecies of woe
uttered by the Censor Wu K’o-tu at the time of his protesting suicide,
had undoubtedly led her to regret the violation of the sacred laws of
succession which she committed in selecting Kuang-Hsü for the
Throne. On more than one occasion in recent years she had
endeavoured to propitiate the shade of the departed Censor, and
public opinion, by conferring upon him posthumous honours.
Towards the end of her reign, after the humiliations inflicted on China
in successive wars by France, Japan and the coalition of the Allies,
she was frequently heard to express remorse at having been led into
courses of error which had brought down upon her the wrath of
Heaven. In 1888, when the Temple of Heaven was struck by
lightning, and again, when the chief gate of the Forbidden City took
fire and was destroyed, she interpreted these events as marks of the
Supreme Being’s disapproval of her actions. The Emperor’s
subsequent conspiracy with K’ang Yu-wei and his associates of
1898, became in her eyes another judgment and visitation of
Heaven. It may therefore reasonably be assumed that when the
Boxer Princes persuaded her of the efficacy of their magic arts and
of their ability to drive the foreigner into the sea, she seized upon the
hope thus offered as a means of regaining the favour of the gods
and atoning for past errors. Although in selecting the son of Prince
Tuan to be heir to her son, the Emperor T’ung-Chih (thus passing
over Kuang-Hsü), she had once more violated the house-laws of the
Dynasty, there is no doubt that she took her risks in the certain hope
that further prestige must accrue to her house and to herself, by the
fact that the boy Emperor’s father, next to herself in power, would be
hailed by the Chinese people as the Heaven-sent deliverer, the
conqueror of the hated barbarian, and the saviour of his country. In
other words, recognising that the mistakes she had committed had
seriously injured her in the eyes of the nation, she determined to
endeavour to retrieve them by one last desperate throw. Later, after
the return from exile, when she realised that this heroic venture had
been as misguided in its inception as any of her former misdeeds,
she showed her splendid courage and resource by a swift volte-face
in the adoption of those very reform measures which she had
formerly opposed, and by annulling the appointment of Prince Tuan’s
son as Heir to the Throne. She thus cut herself adrift from all
connection with the Boxer leaders as completely and unhesitatingly
as she wiped out from the annals of her reign all reference to the
Edicts which she had issued in their favour. The present-day result
brought about by this change of policy, and of the succession of
Prince Chun’s infant son to the Throne, has been to establish more
firmly than ever that junior branch of the Imperial family. It is now
believed, if not accepted, at Court, that the first Prince Ch’un, the
father of Kuang-Hsü and grandfather of the present sovereign, will
eventually be canonised with the title of “Ti” or Emperor, which would
practically make him, by posthumous right, the founder of a new
Dynastic branch. The problem of the direct succession, even in
Chinese eyes, is not simple, and it was generally supposed (e.g. by
the Times correspondent at Peking in October 1908) that the
Empress Dowager would nominate Prince P’u Lun to succeed
Kuang-Hsü, thus restoring the succession to the senior branch of the
family. This would certainly have appealed to orthodox and literary
officials throughout the Empire, and, as a means of appeasing the
distressed ghost of the protesting Censor, would have been more
effective than the course she actually adopted. Doctor Morrison,
discussing this question of the succession before the event,
expressed the general opinion that the appointment of another infant
to succeed the Emperor Kuang-Hsü (involving another long
Regency) would be fraught with great danger to the Dynasty. There
is no doubt that the present situation, lacking that strong hand which
for half a century has held together the chaotic fabric of China’s
Government, suffers from the fact that for many years to come the
supreme authority must remain in the hands of a Regent, and a
Regent whose position is ab initio undermined by the powerful
influences brought to bear by the senior branch of the Imperial Clan.
Tzŭ Hsi was fully aware of the position which would be created, or
rather prolonged, by the selection of Prince Chun’s son, and for this
reason, no doubt, the selection of Kuang-Hsü’s successor was
postponed until the very day of her death. When, at last, confronted
by the imperative necessity for action, she had to make up her mind,
there were two things that chiefly weighed with her. These were,
firstly, the promise that she had made to Jung Lu, and, secondly, her
unconcealed dislike for Prince Ch’ing, who had made himself the
chief spokesman for the claims of Prince P’u Lun. It was also only
natural that she should wish to leave to her favourite niece (the
Consort of Kuang-Hsü) the title and power of Empress Dowager, if
only in reward for years of faithful and loyal service to herself. In
other words, the claims of the human equation and her own
inclinations outweighed, unto the end, the claims of orthodox
tradition and the qualms of her conscience.
Throughout the winter of 1907 and the following spring, the
Empress enjoyed her usual vigorous health. In April she went, as
usual, to the Summer Palace, where she remained all through the
hot season. With the heat, however, came a recurrence of her
dysenteric trouble and in August she had a slight stroke of paralysis,
as the result of which her face, hitherto remarkably youthful for a
woman of seventy, took on a drawn and tired appearance. In other
respects her health seemed fairly good; certainly her vigour of
speech remained unimpaired, and she continued to devote
unremitting attention to affairs of State. She was wont frequently to
declare her ambition of attaining to the same age as Queen Victoria,
a ruler for whom she professed the greatest admiration; she would
say that she could trace, in the features of the English Queen, lines
of longevity similar to those in her own. The Taoist Abbot, Kao,
whom she used to receive in frequent audiences, and who
possessed considerable influence over her, had prophesied that she
would live longer than any former Empress of the Dynasty; but his
prophecy was not fulfilled, for she died younger than three of her
predecessors.
In the summer of 1908 the Old Buddha took a keen interest in the
impending visit of the Dalai Lama, which had been arranged for the
autumn. The chief eunuch, Li, begged her to cancel this visitation on
the ground that it was notoriously unlucky for the “Living Buddha”
and the Son of Heaven to be resident in one city at the same time.
Either the priest or the sovereign would surely die, he said.[126] To
this Tzŭ Hsi replied that she had long since decided in her mind that
the Emperor’s illness was incurable, and she saw no reason,
therefore, to stop the coming of the Dalai Lama. Nevertheless, in
July, she summoned certain Chinese physicians, educated abroad,
to attend His Majesty, who had become greatly emaciated and very
weak. They reported that he was suffering from Bright’s disease.
Their examination of the august patient and their diagnosis of his
symptoms were necessarily perfunctory, inasmuch as etiquette
prevented the application of the proper tests, but they professed to
have verified the fact that the action of the heart was very weak. On
the other hand, writers in the newspapers of the south did not
hesitate to assert that the whole medical performance was a farce
and that the death of the Emperor would undoubtedly take place so
soon as the powers about the Throne had made up their minds that
the Empress Dowager was not likely to live much longer.
 According to the general consensus of opinion in the capital, the
relations between the Old Buddha and His Majesty were not
unfriendly at this period. It was said that shortly before his illness
became acute the Empress Dowager had encouraged him to take a
more active part in affairs of State, and to select candidates for
certain high offices: she certainly renewed the practice of showing
him Decrees for the formality of his concurrence. When the reformer
Wang Chao returned from flight, and gave himself up to the police,
she, who had vowed the death of this man in 1898, invited His
Majesty to decide what punishment should now be inflicted upon
him. The Emperor, after long reflection, suggested that his life be
spared. “By all means,” replied the Old Buddha, “I had fully intended
to forgive him, but desired to hear your opinion. Full well I know your
sincere hatred of fellows like K’ang Yu-wei and his associates, and I
was afraid, therefore, that you might insist on the immediate
decapitation of Wang Chao.” She evidently believed that she had
completely eradicated from His Majesty’s mind all opposition to her
wishes.
As the Emperor’s health grew worse, the eunuchs were instructed
not to keep him waiting when calling upon the Empress Dowager
and he was also excused at the meetings of the Grand Council from
awaiting her arrival and departure on his knees. A Manchu holding a
high position at Court testifies to the truth of the following incident.
One morning, after perusal of a Censor’s Memorial, which contained
several inaccurate statements, His Majesty observed to the Grand
Council, “How little of truth there is in common rumour. For instance,
I know myself to be really ill, yet here it is denied that there is
anything the matter with me.” The Empress Dowager here broke in:
—“Who has dared to utter such falsehoods? If caught, he will
certainly be beheaded.” Kuang-Hsü then proceeded to say:—“I am
really getting weaker every day, and do not see my way to
performing the necessary ceremonies on the occasion of Your
Majesty’s approaching birthday.” Compassionately the Old Buddha
replied: “It is more important to me that you should recover your
health than that you should knock your head on the ground in my
honour.” The Emperor fell on his knees to thank her for these
gracious words, but collapsed in a fainting fit. Prince Ch’ing
thereupon advised that a certain doctor, Chü Yung-chiu, trained in
Europe, should be called in, but his advice was not followed till later.
On the following day His Majesty enquired of the Court physicians in
attendance, whose medical training is the same as that which has
been handed down since the days of the T’ang Dynasty, whether his
disease was likely to be fatal. “The heart of your Emperor is greatly
disturbed,” said he. Dr. Lu Yung-pin replied:—“There is nothing in
Your Majesty’s present condition to indicate any mortal disease. We
beseech Your Majesty to be calm: it is for us, your servants, to be
perturbed in spirit.”
After Tzŭ Hsi’s stroke of paralysis, the wildest rumours were
circulated as to her condition, so much so that, realising the excited
state of provincial opinion, and its relation to the question of the
Constitution which was to have been granted, Her Majesty decided
to carry out without further delay the promise she made in 1906. On
the 1st of the 8th Moon, she therefore promulgated a Decree,
showing signs of the same spirit of lofty statesmanship as was
displayed by the rulers of Japan, and evidently based on their
example, whereby it was promised that a constitutional form of
government would be completely established within a period of nine
years. At the same time it was decreed that every branch of the
government should institute the changes necessary to facilitate the
introduction of the new dispensation. On issuing this Decree she
expressed her hope of living to witness the convening of the first
Chinese Parliament, and added that if Prince Tuan’s son had proved
himself worthy, and had remained Heir Apparent, he would by now
have been of age to carry on the government after the Emperor’s
death. Age was creeping upon her, and she would be glad to retire to
the Summer Palace for her declining years. As long as matters
remained in their present state, it would be necessary to refer
important questions for her decision, but she greatly wished that the
period of her Regency should not be indefinitely prolonged.
In September occurred the fiftieth birthday of the ex-Viceroy of
Chihli Yüan Shih-k’ai, while the Court was still in residence at the
Summer Palace. The Old Buddha showered costly gifts upon her
trusted Minister, and almost every high official in Peking attended the