Women foot-binding in ancient China

The origins of foot-binding are unclear though legends exist that point to possible historical explanations. One of these legends recounts how foot-binding began in the court of the Southern Tang State in Nanjing. The Tang prince ordered Ms concubine to bind her feet with silk to shape them like half moons and to whirl them around to give the appearance of dancing on clouds or over the top of golden lilies. This legend is probably not true because women with bound feet could hardly walk, let alone dance. However, this dancing concubine was renowned for her tiny feet and beautiful bow shoes.
Anyway, it was around the Tang Dynasty (618-907AD) that the practice became the standard for feminine beauty in the imperial court. The custom started with court dancers, and later all the women of the imperial court followed suit. In time foot-binding spread downward from the north to all parts of the country as the lower classes strove to imitate the style of the elite.
In the mid-1600s, with the start of the Qing Dynasty, weak opposition against the foot-binding began to emerge. The Qing nobility, who were ethnically Manchu, attempted to prohibit this custom, but the foot-binding practice nevertheless continued. After over 500 years such a practice was so firmly rooted in Chinese culture that the Qing government Could not prohibit it.
In 1911, the Qing Dynasty was overthrown, and foot-binding was officially made illegal. The social movement responsible for the ban used three strategies. First, a modem education campaign was organized to highlight that the rest of the world did not bind women's feet. Second, another education campaign explained the advantages of natural feet and the disadvantages of bound feet. Third, natural-foot societies were launched that had members pledged neither to bind their daughter's feet nor to allow their sons to marry women with bound feet. These three tactics effectively succeeded in bringing foot-binding to a quick end.
Foot-binding cannot be seen as a simple fashion statement as its roots spring from many parts of Chinese culture. Foot-binding started out as a definition of beauty and ended up crippling Chinese women for centuries. Unfortunately, it took much more than laws and proteststo bring foot-binding to an end.