英文介绍紫禁城Forbidden City

Forbidden City Overview Served as the Chinese Imperial Palace from the mid- Ming Dynasty to the end of the Qing Dynasty. Location: Middle of Beijing, China The Complex consists of 800 buildings with 8,886 rooms. Largest collection of preserved ancient wooden structures in the world. The Palace Museum in the Forbidden City should not be confused with the National Palace Museum in Taipei. Names “the Forbidden City”=Zijing Cheng Manchu Language=Dabkūri dorgi hoton ZI = “purple” = Polar Star Jin = “forbidden” Cheng = walled city Today―Gugong = “Former Palace” Conception Zhu Di son of Hongwu Emperor named Prince of Yan with seat in Beijing 1402 Zhu Di usurped the throne and became Yongle Emperor Construction of the palace that would become Forbidden City began in 1406 Construction Fourteen Years 200,000 men Important Hall Pillars = whole logs of Phoebe zhennan wood. Grand terraces and large stone carvings = quarries near Beijing. Major Halls = “golden bricks” Soil excavated during construction used to create Jingshan Hill. Ming Dynasty Zhu Di moved to Beijing prior to completion of the palace under the name of “touring and hunting” 1420 = Palace Completed = Zhu Di moved to new palace. Nine Months after completion the three main halls including the throne room burnt down. 23 years passed before these buildings were rebuilt/ Ming Dynasty 1420 to 1644 April 1644, Li Zicheng captured Forbidden City. Chongzhen, the last emperor of the Ming Dynasty hung himself on Jingshan Hill. Li Zicheng proclaimed himself emperor of the Shun Dynasty. Qing Dynasty October the Manchus take the North Regent Dorgon proclaimed Qing Dynasty legitimate successor of Ming. Ceremony at the Forbidden City proclaimed the Shunzhi Emperor ruler of all China. Qing Dynasty Qing Dynasty maintained the Ming Dynasty scheme with a few changes. Changed name of the principal buildings Ming favored names meaning “supremacy” or “extremity” Qing preferred names meaning “peace” and “harmony” Huangji Dian vs. Taihe Dian All Signs and name plates were now bilingual Qing Dynasty Forbidden City center of power of Qing Dynasty as it rose and fell. 1860―Second Opium War = Anglo-French forces occupied the City until the end of the war. 1900―Empress Dowager Cixi fled the city during the Boxer Rebellion. Occupied by forces of the treaty powers until the next year. Qing Dynasty Forbidden City served 24 emperors 14 Ming Dynasty Emperors 10 Qing Dynasty Emperors 1912―Puyi, last emperor of China, adicated the throne and power over China to the Republic of China Puyi was required to remain within the palace. 1914―museum established in the outer court. After the Revolution 1923―Puyi announce an audit to determine if palace treasures were

being stolen. Fire destroyed evidence. 1924―Feng Yuxiang took control of Beiji ng and Puyi was removed from the Palace. October 10, 1925 the Palace Museum was established in the Forbidden City. People’s Republic 1949―People’s Republic of China proclaimed at Tiananmen. The Palace Museum continued to work to restore the palace and its collections, over the next two decades. Various proposals were made to raze or reconstruct the city to create public park, a transport interchange, or “place of entertainment.” People’s Republic Proposals all failed but: Throne in the Hall of Middle Harmony was dismantled Several name tablets removed from buildings and gardens Demolition of minor gates and structures. 1966―Hall of Worshipping Ancestors was modified and some artifacts destroyed due to cultural revolution. Today From 2005―a 16 year major res toration project will seek to repair and restore all of the Forbidden City to their original state prior to 1912 While great effort has been made to prevent the commercialization of the palace, a variety of commercial enterprises exist, such as souvenir shops and photography stands. Description Rectangular in shape, the Forbidden City is today the world's largest surviving palace complex. It measure 961 meters from north to south and 753 meters from east to west. The complex is surrounded by a six-meter deep, 52-meter wide moat, and an eight-meter high wall. Collections 340,000 pieces of ceramics and porcelain from several dynasties. The Palace Museum holds close to 50,000 items of paintings. Of the almost 10,000 pieces held, about 1600 are inscribed items from the pre-Qin period (to 221 BC). The Palace Museum has one of the largest collections of mechanical timepieces of the 18th and 19th centuries in the world, with more than 1000 pieces Collections Jade has a unique place in Chinese culture. The Museum's collection, mostly derived from the imperial collection, includes some 30,000 pieces. * Grounds cover 720,00 square metres.= Approximately 177.92 acres 1987 UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) declared the Forbi dden City a World Heritage Site as the “Imperial Palace of the Ming and Qing Dynasties.” Both museums derive from the same institution but they were split after the Chinese Civil War. Literally translated “Purple Forbidden City.” Forbidden Palace Manchu=“l