Forbidden City 故宫   The Forbidden City is a large imperial palace located in Peking China. Many of the emperors and their families lived in this massive palace. The city was the main home to the emperors, but there was also a summer palace (Fessler 33). Now that emperors no longer rule China, the Forbidden City is open to the public. It is believed that the palace was completely constructed in the year 1420 (Bird eye view 1), and the construction was believed to have lasted sixteen years (MacFarquhar 77). The construction marked the move of the Nanjing Capitol to Beijing (Bird eye view 1). In the year 1403 the current Emperor Yongle, of the Ming Dynasty, made the decision to move the city to the winter retreat of the Mongol Emperor Kublai Khan (Intel History 5). Yongle decided to name this city Northern Capital. In Chinese the city is called Beijing (Intel History 6). The Forbidden City is also known as the Purple City. The palace is not purple, but the color is symbolic of the buildings the Chinese citizens believe were in Heaven (The Forbidden 2). The massive Forbidden City palace takes up 74,000 square meters (Bird eye view 3). The area was encompassed in tall walls and by a large moat (The Forbidden 1). The large walls and moat protected many dynasties over the years.ForbiddenCityLearnmore...      故宫是位于北京的一个很大的皇宫，许多皇帝和他的家人曾经在这所巨大的宫殿里面住过，该宫殿主要是皇室家族居住，另外还有一个很大颐和园。现在皇帝将不再统治中国，故宫也对外开放。该宫殿竣工于1420年，后来又持续了16年的时间，后来首都从南京移到北京.在1403的明时期的永乐年间，永乐决定命名这座城市为北方之城。在中国被称为北京，紫禁城同时也被成为紫色的城市，这个宫殿不是紫色的，但是宫殿的颜色对人们来说是天堂的象征。大规模的紫禁城占地面积74000平方米，面积涵盖了城墙和护城河，城墙和护城河在多年内保护了很多的朝代。   Home to the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the Forbidden City was rampaged by an army of peasants in 1644. Besides the theft of a few material goods no major damage was done to the city. China was left to the wind when the final emperor of the Ming Dynasty committed suicide in the Imperial Garden (Intel History 8). Despite the treaties that were made after the Opium Wars, the westerners still continued to harass the Chinese. The Emperor and his court fled the city to avoid the British troops that entered the city on the thirteenth of October in 1860. Thankfully the British avoided burning the sacred city, since the British were pleased with the destruction of Yuanmingyuan (Intel History 9). The Chinese would not return to the beloved home until the Emperor Puyi was forced into enthronement (Intel History 10). Over many attacks such as the Republican Revolution in 1912, and the sole ariel bombing in 1917, the City has remained in incredible shape and has suffered little destruction (Intel History 11,13). The final invasion in 1924 marked the city’s most important change. When the National Army demanded entrance to the Forbidden City, the Emperor Puyi was forced to leave the palace. The National Army opened the doors of the city to the public. This was the first time that any person, who was not a member of the Emperor's family, or the royal court, was allowed to enter the city. Eventually it would be open to all Chinese citizens and tourists when it became a museum. The palace officially became a museum in 1925 (Intel History 15,16). The reason visitors are inclined to visit the palace is because of the unique architecture and building layout.ForbiddenCityLearnmore...      是明清时期的居住地，故宫在1644年被农民军横扫，除了少数没有的没有被损坏，其他的都被很大程度上损坏。当明朝最后一个皇帝在皇家园林中自杀的时候，中国的命运就已经岌岌可危了。尽管这是鸦片战争后签署的条约，西方人仍然打搅者中国人的生活。在1860年10月13日，皇帝带着他的家庭逃离出了该城，以此避免英国军队对他们的入侵。值得庆幸的是英国避免烧神圣的城市，因为英国人高兴的是圆明园的破坏（英特尔历史9）。中方不会再回到心爱的家中，直至皇帝溥仪被迫即位（英特尔历史10）。过去，如在1912年辛亥革命许多攻击，并在1917年唯一的阿里尔轰炸，城市一直在令人难以置信的形状和遭受破坏（英特尔史11，13）。在1924年最后的入侵标志着城市最重要的变化。当国民军要求入口到紫禁城，皇帝溥仪被迫离开王宫。国民军开了城市的大门。这是第一次，谁是不是皇帝的家庭，或王室成员，被允许进入该城。最终它会开放给所有中国公民和游客时，它成为一个博物馆。这座宫殿在1925年正式成为博物馆（英特尔历史15,16）。原因是游客参观宫殿倾向是由于独特的建筑和建设 。    There are many gates that lead to the interior of their Forbidden City such as The Tiananmen Gate, The Meridian Gate and The Gate of Supreme Harmony. The Tiananmen Gate was also known as the gate of Heavenly Peace. From this gate many important announcements such as engagements were made (Intel 3). The massive Meridian Gate stood tall over all other structures in the Forbidden City. While the three halls in this gate were beautiful, many barbarian prisoners were sentenced to cruel executions within their walls. In the middle of the three entrances was the emperor’s entrance. Only the emperor was allowed to pass through it. On a rare occasion the Empress or a high scorer on the Imperial Exam were allowed to pass through the center hallway (Intel 4,5,6). The Gate of Heavenly Purity leads into the inner court. To pass through this gate all people must have entered on foot, because it was considered holy ground. Only the emperor’s father was allowed to be carried through this gate in his old age (Intel 13,14). The City had many large and small gates. The most important purpose of the gates was to act as doorways to the halls.   有许多入口可以进入紫禁城里边，如天安门城楼、午门和太和门。天安门城楼也被称为天安门，许多重要的文件和批文都是从这个门出去的，如订婚。庞大的承天门矗立在紫禁城外，虽然在这门内的三个大厅都很漂亮，许多囚犯也是囚犯判处酷刑也是在这个门外。中间的出口是皇帝的出口，只有皇帝可以通过它，难得的是皇后和科举的高分的可以通过。通过清宫的门可以进入内院，通过这个门所有人必须徒步进入，因为这个是圣地，只有皇帝父亲老年的时候可以被抬进去。这座程由许许多多大大小小的门，这些门最重要的目的就是扮演进入大厅的角色。   There were many halls in the Forbidden City, each with a special purpose, and rules one must obey while in the hall. The Chinese took great care in the placement of buildings in the city. The placement of the buildings was  organized and symmetrical. Often the grandest halls were reserved for the emperor, his concubines, and his family. The Hall of Supreme harmony was the grandest hall in the Forbidden City. This hall had the finest décor because many significant ceremonies were held in the Hall of Supreme Harmony. Mythical creatures adorned the walls, in hopes that the emperor would be protected from evil by their great strength (Intel 12). Also cranes can be spotted by the halls in the Forbidden City. The Cranes symbolize long life and strength(Fessler 36). Often lions guarded the edifices in the city and alerted the emperor of any mistakes made by his bureaucrats (Fessler 35). The Hall of Preserving Harmony was the party room. This is the hall where emperors hosted foreign ambassadors, dignitaries, and top scholars (Intel 12). The Palace of Heavenly Purity was home to the emperors of the Ming Dynasty. This palace was known for being a residential area. The hall of Mental Cultivation was known for being a multi-purpose room, the most important of it’s uses was being the home to Emperor Puyi (Intel 15,16,25). In the Hall Of Celestial Purity the emperor and his bureaucrats met and discussed issues. This hall was one of the three large halls in the inner courtyard (Forbidden 7). These halls were each in a special designated section of the city.   故宫内有许多大厅，每一个大厅都有它特定的目的，在大厅内的人必须服从大厅的规则，中国人民在后边的城市建筑时对这个地方非常的谨慎。这个位置的建筑必须是有组织的对称。最宏伟的大厅是皇帝和他的妾，还有家人专用的，太和殿是紫禁城内最宏伟的殿堂，因为有许多重要的会议在这个大殿内举行，所以倍感华丽，神话动物和墙壁装饰是希望用这些东西来保护来自邪恶的伟大力量，通常有石狮守卫在城楼上，以此来提醒皇帝他们的那些大臣犯的任何错误。保和殿是举行宴会的地方，这个地方是皇帝接见外国大使、贵宾和知名学者的地方，清宫是明代皇帝的家，这个宫殿是以居住区为名。养心殿是以多用途出名，最重要的是它是皇帝溥仪的家，皇帝和他的大臣们经常在这个宫殿内共商国事，这个宫殿是内院三个最大的宫殿之一，每一个宫殿都有其特定的独特的意义。   The Forbidden City is divided into the Front Palace and the Inner or South Palace (Bird eye view 3). The hall of Preserving Harmony, The Hall of Supreme Harmony and the Hall of Central Harmony make up the Front Palace of the Forbidden City. The three halls in the Front Palace were used in significant ceremonies. When a man became an emperor or an emperor had a wedding, the ceremony would be conducted in the Front Palace (Bird Eye View 3). The Inner Palace consisted of many halls that were used by the residents of the Forbidden City (Bird Eye View 3). Also a stream ran through the city. Five bridges constructed of marble crossed the Golden River. The five bridges had spiritual significance, and each stood for a virtue. This beautiful stream was constructed with great care specifically for the city (MacFarquhar 76).                     紫禁城分为前宫和内宫。太和殿、养心殿和保和殿组成了前宫了重要部分，这三个宫殿通常都是用来举行重大仪式的，当一个人将要成为皇帝的时候或者某个皇帝要举行婚礼，这些仪式就会在这个地方举行。内院是由紫禁城内许多居住部分组成的。一个小溪流过这座城市，，五座大理石桥会横跨小溪，五座桥都有其精神寓意，每一座都代表一种美德。这些美丽的小溪构建了美丽的城市。   All the Halls and Gates make up the magnificent Forbidden City.  The Emperors of China lived in great splendor, but the citizens of China did not, because no person other than an imperial resident could enter the city (The Forbidden 2). Even though the palace had a turbulent and diverse past, the styles of all the past emperors have made it a wonderful preservation of Chinese art and culture. The ornate decorations and the precise uses of all the halls and gates show the amount of respect the citizens of China showed for their emperors. Ornate possessions and large homes surrounded the Emperors that lived in the Forbidden City, while many Chinese peasants lived with hardly a roof over their heads.ForbiddenCityLearnmore...      所有的宫殿和大门组成了意义非凡的紫禁城。中国的皇帝生活在伟大之中，而中国的人民却不是这样的，因为没有一个人可以比过皇室家族的人进入这座城市，即使这座宫殿比起以往动荡不安，过去的皇帝都以它是中国的艺术和文化的象征，极力去维护。华丽的装饰和所有大门和宫殿的准确用途都展示出了中国人民对他们的皇帝的尊重。大量的居民围绕这皇帝的紫禁城居住着，而许多中国人民却没有一个栖息之地。    

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Attractions nearby Tiananmen Square Beihai Park Jingshan Park Zhongshan Park Beijing Working People's Culture Palace (The Altar of Ancestor)

Opening time Open daily all year. April 1st_October 31 8:30—17:00 Last Entry at 16:10 Tickets sold until 16:00 November 1st|_March 31 8:30—16:30 Last Entry at 15:40 Tickets sold until 15:30

Ticket Price From November 1 through March 31, admission is 40 rmb From April 1 through October 31, admission is 60 rmb