Grounded in the patrilineal family system in presocialist China, this study explores the intersection between generation and gender dimensions of family patriarchy in influencing marital power relations. Data come from the life stories of 80 elderly married individuals, collected during the 2000-2001 period in the city of Beijing. Patterns of male dominance in marital relations were found to be incomplete, inconsistent, and even countervailing in the presence of generation patriarchy. Consequently, women's experience with family patriarchy was mixed over the life course. They were particularly disadvantaged as daughters-in-law, but their lives were improved as they became fully integrated into the patrilineal system through reproduction and their husband's growing reliance on their contributions to family continuity.