tour beijing and China
people say that when you have come to Beijing and want to find a certain place, you must, first of all, find the Gate.
If you know you are in the vicinity of a certain Gate and the place you are seeking is close to that Gate, you will not lose your way in any case. Furthermore, if you ask the way in Beijing, the Beijing inhabitants will often tell you that the place is near a certain Gate or you should go to such and such a Gate. Therefore, though gates are rarely seen as a physical entity in Beijing, they will not be “strangers” to you. On the contrary, you will feel that they are quite close and intimate to you.
The city of Beijing in the era of the Ming and Qing dynasties was a “city of cities”, because it was made up of three layers of city wall or, in other words, three concentric city walls. The innermost circle of this city of cities was what is commonly called the “Forbidden City” or “Palace City”. Its wall was 6 li (3,000 meters) in circumference and has four gates, namely the Front Gate, the Gate of Divine Prowess, the Eastern Gate and the Western Gate. The central or second circle was the wall of the imperial city, which was 18 li (9,000 meters) in circumference and also had four gates, namely the Heavenly Peace Gate (Tian An Men), the Earthly Peace Gate, the Eastern Peace Gate and Western Peace Gate. The outmost circle was the capital city wall, which was a two-layer wall. The inner city wall was 46 li (23,000 meters) in circumference and had nine gates. The central gate was most lofty and magnificent and served only for the emperors to enter and leave the capital. The well-known city of Beijing is in reality made up of these layers of brick walls and ponderous iron gates.
Many interesting stories have been told about Beijing. They are inseparably bound up with the city walls, the gates and Tian An Men. For instance, there is a story about the famous army commander General Nian Gengyao of the Qing Dynasty in connection with Tian An Men. One day General Nian returned in triumph with his soldiers from an expedition. He and all the soldiers were received by Emperor Yongzheng at the Tian An Men square. It was very hot, though there was not much sunlight. In order to show his kindness, the emperor ordered the soldiers to take off their hats. His order was ignored. Then General Nian gave the order for him. At one upward stroke of his arm all the soldiers instantly removed their hats. The emperor was greatly alarmed. For this and for some other reasons, which were also connected with General Nian’s relationship with the emperor and with a drama formerly staged in the Palace concerning the right of succession to the throne, which is well-known to people versed in the history of China, General Nian was stripped of his power by the emperor and demoted step by step to the rank of a common soldier and ordered to commit suicide at last.Related articles:
beijing architectural structure:Quadrangle,SiHeYuan
beijing city guide,Beijing Hutongs culture
History of beijing and some stories of Chinese dynasty
Beijing culture and History of Forbidden city
China Tibet tour-Chat Tibet history and religion
If you know you are in the vicinity of a certain Gate and the place you are seeking is close to that Gate, you will not lose your way in any case. Furthermore, if you ask the way in Beijing, the Beijing inhabitants will often tell you that the place is near a certain Gate or you should go to such and such a Gate. Therefore, though gates are rarely seen as a physical entity in Beijing, they will not be “strangers” to you. On the contrary, you will feel that they are quite close and intimate to you.
The city of Beijing in the era of the Ming and Qing dynasties was a “city of cities”, because it was made up of three layers of city wall or, in other words, three concentric city walls. The innermost circle of this city of cities was what is commonly called the “Forbidden City” or “Palace City”. Its wall was 6 li (3,000 meters) in circumference and has four gates, namely the Front Gate, the Gate of Divine Prowess, the Eastern Gate and the Western Gate. The central or second circle was the wall of the imperial city, which was 18 li (9,000 meters) in circumference and also had four gates, namely the Heavenly Peace Gate (Tian An Men), the Earthly Peace Gate, the Eastern Peace Gate and Western Peace Gate. The outmost circle was the capital city wall, which was a two-layer wall. The inner city wall was 46 li (23,000 meters) in circumference and had nine gates. The central gate was most lofty and magnificent and served only for the emperors to enter and leave the capital. The well-known city of Beijing is in reality made up of these layers of brick walls and ponderous iron gates.
Many interesting stories have been told about Beijing. They are inseparably bound up with the city walls, the gates and Tian An Men. For instance, there is a story about the famous army commander General Nian Gengyao of the Qing Dynasty in connection with Tian An Men. One day General Nian returned in triumph with his soldiers from an expedition. He and all the soldiers were received by Emperor Yongzheng at the Tian An Men square. It was very hot, though there was not much sunlight. In order to show his kindness, the emperor ordered the soldiers to take off their hats. His order was ignored. Then General Nian gave the order for him. At one upward stroke of his arm all the soldiers instantly removed their hats. The emperor was greatly alarmed. For this and for some other reasons, which were also connected with General Nian’s relationship with the emperor and with a drama formerly staged in the Palace concerning the right of succession to the throne, which is well-known to people versed in the history of China, General Nian was stripped of his power by the emperor and demoted step by step to the rank of a common soldier and ordered to commit suicide at last.Related articles:
beijing architectural structure:Quadrangle,SiHeYuan
beijing city guide,Beijing Hutongs culture
History of beijing and some stories of Chinese dynasty
Beijing culture and History of Forbidden city
China Tibet tour-Chat Tibet history and religion
