The Forbidden City
The History of the Forbidden City
In1368,after the first emperor,Zhu Yuanzhang,established the Ming Dynasty,he made Nanjing as his capital.But after the third emperor,Zhu Di,came to the throne in1402,he decided to move the capital from Nanjing to Beijing.Upon the decision of moving the capital,a large-scale construction of the Forbidden City started in1406.230,000artisans and one million civilians were involved in building the Forbidden City.The construction took14years and was completed in1420.In the following year,1421,the capital of the Ming Dynasty was moved from Nanjing to Beijing.
When the Qing rulers took over Beijing,they just stayed in the former Imperial Palace but rebuilt and renovated most of the buildings.
The Qing Dynasty was overthrown by the1911Revolution led by Dr.Sun-Yat-Sen (1866-1925).But according to the19articles of the preferential treatment for the Qing court,after 1911,the last emperor Pu Yi and his royal family were still allowed to live in the inner court of the Forbidden City.They spent another13years in the Forbidden City,until1924,when they were driven out of the Palace.
After1924,the Republic Government set up a Check-up Committee for the historical relics in the Forbidden City.One year later,on October10th1925,the whole complex was converted into a museum and opened to the public.
In1931,because of the Japanese War,there were13,000boxes containing the Forbidden City’s historical relics shipped to the southern part of China.In1949,2,972boxes,the best selection from those boxes,were shipped to Tai Wan.
After the founding of the People’s Republic of China,especially since1952,our government spent a large amount of money on the renovation of the Forbidden City.We set up the drainage system inside the Forbidden City,installed the lightning arresters on the buildings and also made the fire-resistant pipelines there as well as setting up a professional fire brigade for fire prevention.
In1961,the Palace Museum was listed as one of the important historical monuments under special preservation by the Chinese Government,and in1987,it was listed as a world cultural
heritage site by UNESCO.
Now,the Palace Museum holds a great number of historical and cultural relics as well as precious wo
rks of art.Therefore,it is the largest museum of culture and art in China and one of the famous museums in the world.The Palace Museum is of great value for scientific research as well as for the tourism industry.It has already become a famous tourist attraction,and every day there are thousands and thousands of tourists coming to visit the Forbidden City.
General Information of the Forbidden City
The Forbidden City covers an area of72hectares(178acres)with a total floor space of about 163,000square meters.It is rectangular in shape,960meters long from north to south,and750 meters wide from east to west,surrounded with a10-meter high city wall and encircled by a 52-meter wide moat.At each corner of the surrounding wall,there is a magnificent watchtower, which was heavily guarded in the old days.Each of the four watchtowers has9beams,18pillars and72ridgepoles.All the numbers are related to the number9or multiples of9,and the three numbers added together equal99.What a magnificent structure we Chinese people created!
The Forbidden City can be divided into two parts:the Outer Court and the Inner Palace.The Outer Court consists of three main buildings in the front part of the Forbidden City.This was the place where the emperors attended the grand ceremonies and conducted state affairs;while the Inner Pala
ce is composed of the rear three main buildings and the six eastern palaces and six western palaces,and was the place where the emperor used to handle daily affairs and it was the living quarters for the emperor,empress and imperial concubines.
Meridian Gate(Wumen午门)
It is called Meridian Gate because the emperor believed that the meridian line went right through the Forbidden City and his imperial residence was the center of the whole universe.In addition,according to the ancient Chinese compass,the Meridian indicates the south.So the Meridian Gate also served as the south gate of the Forbidden City.
Function
There were mainly two functions of the Meridian Gate:the festive activities and the official ceremonies.The festive activities mainly were popular festivals held in front of the Meridian Gate during the Ming and Qing dynasties,such as:Spring Festival,Lantern Festival,Dragon Boat
Festival,Double-nine Festival and some other different Chinese folk festivals in the lunar month every year.The official ceremonies took place at the Meridian Gate,where mainly there were the ceremony of announcement of the new lunar year calendar and the ceremony of“Accepting Captives of War”.
Every year,at the Meridian Gate,the new lunar year calendar was announced on the first day of the10th lunar month.
When a general returned from battle,his captives would be“offered”in a ceremony here, which was known as the victorious ceremony of“Accepting Captives of War”.
“Court Beating”also took place in front of the Meridian Gate,which is a kind of punishment to punish those offending officials by beating them on their buttocks with sticks.Any officials who had incurred the emperor’s disfavor or went against the emperor’s wishes would be taken out of the Meridian Gate and beaten in this way.
During the Ming and Qing dynasties,the central passageway was exclusively for the emperor, and apart from the emperor,the empress could use the central passageway only once in her whole life,that is when she got married on the day of the imperial wedding ceremony.On that day,the empress was permitted to enter the Forbidden City through the middle doorway on a sedan chair. However,on the day the imperial palace examination results were announced,the first top three outstanding scholars were allowed to go through the central gate here in the Forbidden City.The high-ranking civil and military officials went in through the side gate on the east,and the royal family
members went in through the west.The two smaller ones on both sides at the corner were for the low-ranking officials.
During the Palace Examination,all the candidates went in from these two side-gates according to their numbers.The candidates with odd numbers went through the right side-gate and the even numbered candidates used the left.
The Gate of Supreme Harmony(Taihemen太和门)
The Gate of Supreme Harmony is the front gate of the three main halls in the outer court of the Forbidden City.During the Ming and early Qing dynasties,here was the place where the emperor held his imperial audience,accepted documents from his ministers and made decisions at the gate.The reason for the emperor holding his audience here is that,the three main halls behind the Gate were burnt down by lightning less than100days after their completion,and the emperor
didn’t dare rebuild them again because he was afraid that it might be the punishment given by the God of Heaven,as he usurped the power from his nephew.Until1439,the three big halls were rebuilt by the sixth Ming Emperor Yingzong.
The Hall of Supreme Harmony(Taihedian太和殿) The Hall of Supreme Harmony actually is the“Throne Hall”,commonly known as the“Hall of Gold Throne”.It was first built in1420,but was burnt down several times.The present one was rebuilt in1695,and it was the most important building in the whole Imperial Palace.
It was here where the emperor exercised his rule over the country,and it was here where the emperor had grand ceremonies as well as the important festival celebrations during the Ming and Qing dynasties.
The Hall of Supreme Harmony actually is the“Throne Hall”,commonly known as the“Hall of Gold Throne”.It was first built in1420,but was burnt down several times.The present one was rebuilt in1695,and it was the most important building in the whole Imperial Palace.
It was here where the emperor exercised his rule over the country.During the Ming and Qing dynasties here was the place where the emperor had grand ceremonies as well as the important festival celebrations.故宫导游词
The grand ceremonies were held here,such as the emperor’s enthronement ceremony,the emperor’s wedding ceremony,the emperor’s dispatching of generals on an expedition to the battles,as well as t
he emperor receiving the successful candidates of the imperial palace examination,etc.
It was also the place to celebrate important festivals on three big occasions,such as:the emperor’s birthday,the Winter Solstice and the Chinese Lunar New Year.
The Palace Exam,the highest ranked examination,was held here in the Ming and early Qing dynasties,and was later moved to the Hall of Preserving Harmony.
The Hall of Middle Harmony or the Hall of Complete Harmony
(Zhonghedian中和殿)
This was the place where the emperor would take a short rest before he went to the Hall of Supreme Harmony for grand ceremonies.The emperor received members of the cabinet and the officials of the Ministry of Rites as well as made his last minute preparation here.Sometimes the
dress rehearsals for ceremonies also took place here.
Every year,before the emperor went to the altars and temples,the emperor would receive and read the sacrificial address in the Hall of Middle Harmony.
Before the emperor went to the Altar of Agriculture for offering the sacrifice,the seeds intended for spring sowing and the ploughs were examined here,just to show the emperor’s concern for agriculture.
According to the rule,the imperial genealogy should be revised every ten years.The ceremony of presenting the genealogy to the emperor for revision and approval would also be held here.
The emperor’s throne is in the middle with the incense burners in front of it.There are two braziers on both sides burning the best quality of charcoal for heat in winter.
The Hall of Preserving Harmony(Baohedian保和殿) This is the last hall of the three main halls in the outer court.The name of the building indicates maintaining the harmonious relationship between things.
In the Ming Dynasty,before going to the Hall of Supreme Harmony for a grand ceremony such as:conferring the title on the empress and the crown prince,the emperor would change into full ceremonial dress in this hall.It was also the place to have banquets to entertain the civil and military officials.
In the Qing Dynasty,the emperor gave a banquet on Chinese Lunar New Year’s Eve to entertain the princes and envoys of the Mongolian nobles and other nationalities.
When the princesses got married,the emperor would invite the bridegroom and his father,as well as their relatives who served for the imperial court,and high-ranking officials to the banquet.
During the Qing Dynasty,the Imperial Palace Exam was held here once every three years.In the feudal society,the highest-level examination for the scholars was the Palace Exam.The place for the Palace Exam changed many times,but at last,after1789,during the emperor Qianlong’s reign in the Qing Dynasty,the palace exam was held here in this hall.There were four levels of the exams:the Prefectural Examination;the Provincial Examination;Metropolitan Examination and the national level--Palace Examination.The Palace Exam was presided over by the emperor.Three hundred scholars from all parts of our country came to Beijing and took part in the exam,which lasted for three days.The Palace Exam was under the supervision of the emperor himself.Those
who passed the exam would get honorable titles and become high-ranking officials.The top three scholars who passed the exam would not only get the honorable title but also were allowed to go through the Forbidden City from the central doorway and would also have the honor to be received in
audience by the emperor.After that,in order to be known to the public,the scholars would ride down the street on a walking horse.This was considered the greatest honor for the scholars in the past.
The Gate of Heavenly Purity(Qianqingmen乾清门) This is the main gateway leading to the inner court.It was first built in1420,but was burnt down several times and this one was rebuilt in1655,in the Qing Dynasty.
During the Qing Dynasty,a throne was placed at the gate for the emperor to give the imperial audience to the government officials.This showed the personal style of the Qing emperors in administration and the emperor’s great concern over state affairs.Emperor Kangxi,the second emperor of the Qing Dynast,was the most diligent emperor who gave the imperial audience frequently,but after the seventh emperor Xianfeng,there was no imperial audience at all.
The Palace of Heavenly Purity(Qianqinggong乾清宫) This is the largest building of the three rear palaces.It was first built in1420,and the present one was rebuilt in1797.
During the Ming and early Qing dynasties,the emperors used to live here and handle the daily affairs and sometimes held private audiences here.
In the Qing Dynasty,after the third emperor Yongzheng moved his living quarters to the Hall of Mental Cultivation,this building was used as an audience chamber for receiving envoys from vassal states who presented their tributes to the emperor.Foreign ambassadors were received here too.
Here was also the place for holding the mourning service for the deceased emperor,because after the emperor died,the deceased emperor’s coffin would be placed here for a period of mourning.
In the Qing Dynasty,the imperial family banquet was held here during festivals.The famous “banquet of thousand aged people”was held twice here in the Qing Dynasty,and all the attendants were above the age of60and65.