Idea # 197: Visiting the Forbidden City in Beijing
The construction of Forbidden City, the imperial palace of Beijing, was ordered by Yongle, the third emperor of the dynasty Ming, in 1406. This palace which extends over 72 hectares is of an unequalled scale, and been one of the oldest and best kept palaces by China. According to the historians, it required the mobilization of 1 million workers during 14 years. Between 1420 and 1911, twenty four emperors lived there. The palace was opened to the public in 1924, to the eviction of last emperor Puyi, by the nationalist general Feng Yuxiang.
The palace is a real city in the imperial City, in which the Emperor of China and its circle of acquaintances lived in a quasi-autarcic way. The palace is closed by a quadrangular surrounding wall, by 960 meters on 750 meters, 10 meters high, encircled with 52 meters wide moats, opened by four gates. The city counts, according to the legend, 9 999 rooms. The outside courtyard in the South, established the official and administrative part of the city, where the sovereign received his Secretaries and chaired the big official ceremonies. The inner courtyard, in the North, formed the private part, and served as well as study for the emperor, that of apartments to the imperial family and to the common law wives. These detached houses were respectively also surrounded by them ” six east pavillons” and ” six western pavillons “. Behind was held the hill of Coal, built from lands rejected by moats, and allowing to respect a principle of defense of the North, been imperative by Feng Shui. Come on, it’s high time we visited !
Some Pictures
Where is it ?
Forbidden City, Beijing, China
