Details of Tiananmen Square

Tiananmen is the main entrance to the imperial city of the Ming and Qing Dynasties. It was built in the 15th year of Yongle in the Ming Dynasty (1417). It was originally called "Chengtianmen" to show that the emperor "carried his destiny and received his orders from heaven".

The original Chengtianmen was a three-story wooden archway.

In the first year of Tianshun (1457), the archway was destroyed by thunder and fire. It was not until the first year of Chenghua (1465) eight years later that it was rebuilt into a gatehouse with five rooms wide and three rooms deep.

In the seventeenth year of Chongzhen (1644), Li Zicheng's army invaded Beijing, and Chengtianmen was once again destroyed by war.

In the eighth year of Shunzhi in the Qing Dynasty (1651), large-scale reconstruction was carried out on the original site in accordance with the emperor's will, and it was renamed "Tiananmen" (Manchu: abbai elhe obure duka), symbolizing the emperor's "mandate from heaven". , govern the country in peace and stability."

Large-scale renovations were carried out during the Kangxi period, creating the magnificent appearance we see today.

After liberation, Tiananmen Square was renovated twice in 1952 and 1970 with the concern of relevant departments. It basically maintained its original appearance during the Shunzhi period, but was 83 centimeters taller than before.

Tiananmen faces north and faces south. The original height was 33.7 meters. After reconstruction in 1970, the height increased to 34.7 meters.

The main building of Tiananmen Square is divided into two floors.

The bottom of the building is a Xumizuo carved in white marble, 1.59 meters high.

The city platform is built on the base, covering an area of ??4800 square meters.

There are horse paths leading to the city on both sides of the city platform, and city towers are built on the platform.

The Tiananmen Gate Tower is decorated with the number "Nine Five", which is nine rooms wide (57.14 meters) and five rooms deep (20.97 meters), indicating the emperor's "Nine Five".

The tower has double eaves and a mountain-style roof.

The main and vertical ridges of the roof are decorated with chi kisses, immortals and animals.

A national emblem with a diameter of 1.7 meters is fixed on a pulley between the two main eaves, which closely coincides with the central axis of Beijing.

There are 17 red palace lanterns hanging under the eaves, of which the main lantern weighs 450 kilograms and the auxiliary lanterns also weigh 350 kilograms each.

The entire roof is supported by 60 large redwood columns, each of which is about 2 meters in diameter.

There are 36 diamond-shaped doors and windows on the front and back of the tower, and the highest-grade "Golden Dragon and Seal" paintings are painted on the ceiling, brackets and beams.

The building is surrounded by corridors, which are about 3 meters deep.

There are white marble railings and railings around the base of the city, engraved with lotus vase patterns.

Most of the wood used in the tower is nanmu, and 60 giant red-painted columns are arranged neatly.

The floor is paved with gold bricks, covering an area of ??about 2,000 square meters.

The lower level is a 13-meter-high vermilion city platform, surrounded by a low wall capped with glazed tiles. The lower part is a 1.59-meter-high beautifully carved white marble Xumizuo platform.

The total area of ??the city platform is 4,800 square meters. There is a hundred-level staircase on the east and west sides for going up and down the city tower, commonly known as the horse path.

There are also 5 arched door openings, the middle door opening is the largest, 8.82 meters high and 5.25 meters wide. During the Ming and Qing dynasties, only the emperor could enter and exit.

In front of the city tower is the Waijinshui River, on which there are seven white marble stone bridges with carved railings. The widest one in the middle is called the "Yulu Bridge", which was specially designed for the emperor. When the queen got married, and The top three in the imperial examination can also pass through here once as an exception to show their noble status and the emperor's grace.

To this day, the guard of honor who raises and lowers the flag comes in and out of this bridge every day, highlighting the solemnity of the national flag and the people's ownership of the country; on both sides of the Royal Road Bridge are the "Wanggong Bridge" where royal relatives and relatives pass; on the left and right of the Wanggong Bridge The "Grade Bridge" is for officials above the third rank to walk; officials below the fourth rank, soldiers and servants can only walk on the farthest "Gongsheng Bridge".

Gongsheng Bridge is erected in front of the Ancestral Temple (Working People’s Cultural Palace) and Shejitan (Zhongshan Park).

In addition to similar strict grade regulations, the five inner Jinshui Bridges also mean "all directions come to Korea".

There are four Chinese watches in the front and back of the Tiananmen Gate Tower, built in the Yongle period.

Everyone is familiar with the shape of Huabiao. Today’s Huabiao is carved from white marble. A long time ago, it is said that wooden Huabiao was produced in the Yao and Shun era of primitive society. People use it to mark roads.

Thinking about it now, in that primitive time, there were not so many buildings as there are now. Most areas were probably in a primitive state with few people living there. People used Chinese watches as signs to avoid getting lost, which is not a bad idea. A great way to do this.

There were also postal booths that came into being later, and Chuanshe also used this logo.

Initially, it was called "Huanmu" or "Biaomu", and later it was gradually read as "Huabiao".

People inscribed opinions on this wooden pillar for the reference of clan leaders.

In modern times, Huabiao was made of stone and the exquisite carvings no longer allowed people to write pictures at will, but it still served as a reminder to the monarch to work diligently and love the people.

The "Tiananmen" plaque was originally hung on the Tiananmen gate. During the Republic of China (before 1949), a portrait of Chiang Kai-shek was hung. After 1949, a huge portrait of *** was hung.

The portrait is drawn on a whole fiberglass plate and must be replaced every year before the National Day.

On both sides of the portrait are giant slogans "Long live the Republic of China" and "Long live the great unity of the people of the world."

Since November 1987, Tiananmen has been officially open to Chinese and foreign tourists.

The entire Tiananmen Gate Tower is magnificent and majestic. After hundreds of years of ups and downs, it is still powerful, like the cry of history, so profound and so shocking.

This is the essence of China, and we will always be proud of it.

Bus route: Bus No. 1, 4, 52, Tiananmen Station or take subway line 1 and get off at Tiananmen East Station

Attraction level: 5A

Attraction phone number: 010-63095745

Location: Located in Dongcheng District, Beijing, in the center of the city

Tickets: Adults: 15 yuan/person; students: 5 yuan/person , Seniors over 70 years old: 5 yuan/person, active military personnel are free.

Opening hours: 9:00-17:00 (ticket sales stop at 16:30)

Note: When visiting the tower, you are not allowed to bring bags, drinks and dangerous goods, which are slightly larger Bags must be stored at the bag depository, and photography is prohibited in the lobby of the tower.

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