Page 12 - Martin Downs Bulletin - October '21

Page 12, Martin Downs

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The Forbidden City: Beijing’s The Mongols ruled China from an
imperial palace located in Beijing in the
Former Imperial Palace latter portion of the 14 century during the
th
Yuan Dynasty. When Emperor Hongwu
By Don Kiselewski, MCC, established the Ming Dynasty, he moved
D.S., Palm Beach Gardens the palace to Nanjing in the south and
Travel Leaders ordered the Mongol palace razed. When
A little more than 600 Hongwu’s son Zhu Dii became the
years ago, in 1406, ground Yongle Emperor in 1402, he ordered the
was broken for the world’s construction of a new imperial palace in
largest palace complex Beijing (the Forbidden City).
– known today as the For 224 years, the Forbidden City was
Forbidden City. the seat of the Ming Dynasty. In 1644 the
It was the fifth year city fell to Li Zicheng, who proclaimed
of the reign of the third himself emperor of the Shun Dynasty.
emperor of the Ming His reign was short-lived because of a
Dynasty. The walled area that is now in the heart of counterattack by the combined forces of
Beijing, China, took only 14 years to build. This seems the Ming and Manchu armies. By the end
like an astronomical feat considering that the complex of the year, the Manshu force had claimed
consisted of 9,999 buildings contained within a 20-foot- supremacy in northern China. In the fall of
high wall that encapsulated some 72 hectares (178 acres). that year, Shunzi was proclaimed emperor
The wall that encloses the city is 2,300 feet from east of all China. “Supremacy” was replaced
to west and 2,900 feet from north to south. It is 26 feet with “Harmony” as the theme of the
wide at the base sloping to a width of 20 feet at the top. A dynasty, changing many of the building
moat that is 20 feet deep and 60 feet wide surrounds the names accordingly.
city, further buffering the interior from the outside world. There were other changes in ownership
Records indicated that more than a million workers, of of the city. Anglo-French forces took
which around 100,000 were artisans, worked around the control of the city in 1860, during the
clock to complete the construction of the complex. Second Opium War, and held it until
Designed and constructed as the “Imperial Palace,” the the end of the war. It was then that the
complex has been bestowed with numerous names over Empress Dowager Cixi began to hold
the course of its history. The “Forbidden” aspect of the court, which lasted until 1900 when
name stemmed from the fact that no one could enter or she fled the palace during the Boxer
leave the city without the permission of the emperor. Other Rebellion.
names associated with the palace throughout time were the The last emperor of China, 2-year-old
“Forbidden Palace,” “Purple Forbidden Palace,” “Layered Puyi, then controlled the city until his
Inner City” and the “Purple Forbidden Walled City.” abdication in 1912. Before his departure,
he sold many of the artifacts to finance his
extravagant lifestyle. Puyi lived in a small
section of the palace until he was evicted
by a coup in 1924. Hall of Preserving Harmony
When Japan invaded the area in 1933,
the national treasures in the museum were divided and sent The “Imperial Palace of the Ming and Qing Dynasties” was
to various areas of the country. A small but very valuable the official name given to the Forbidden City in 1987, when
portion of the treasures were sent to Taiwan under orders of it was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
Chiang Kai-shek. These were not returned and kept hidden The Outer or Front Court is found on the south end of
until 1965, when they reappeared at the core exhibit of the the complex. The great open space was used for ceremonial
National Palace Museum in Taipei. purposes. The Inner Court, or Black Palace as it is often called,
In 1949 when the People’s Republic of China was lies to the north; this was the residence of the emperor and
established, there were several confrontations and damage where the day-to-day affairs of the state were carried out.
was inflicted upon portions of the palace. Further destruction The three tiered terraces further elevate the Hall of Supreme
A water container used in fire fighting was thwarted during the Cultural Revolution when Premier Harmony, which dominates the Outer Court. Odd numbers,
Zhou Enlai stationed a battalion of army troops in the city
to stabilize the situation. Travel on page 13

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