Gate of Heavenly Peace

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Gate of Heavenly Peace at night

The Gate of Heavenly Peace ( Chinese  天安門  /  天安门 , Pinyin Tiān'ānmén ) on the north side of Tian'anmen Square is the main entrance to the Forbidden City , the Imperial Palace in Beijing . It is the place from which Mao Zedong proclaimed the People's Republic of China on October 1, 1949 . That is why the gate appears in the national coat of arms of the People's Republic of China.

Originally the gate was called Chéngtiānmén ( Chinese  承天 門  /  承天 门  - "gate that carries heaven").

The inscriptions to the right and left of the central passage read as follows:

Left: 中华人民共和国 万岁
( Zhōnghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó wànsuì "Long live the People's Republic of China!")
Right: 世界 人民 大 团结 万岁
( Shìjiè rénmín dà tuánjié wànsuì "Long live the great unity of the peoples of the world!")

The gate was built during the construction of the palace complex in 1417 under the third Ming Emperor Yongle and burned down by the rebels under Li Zicheng at the end of the Ming Dynasty . It was rebuilt during the Qing Dynasty . In December 1969, the original, dilapidated gate was completely demolished under the pretext of renovation work in an operation that was kept secret until 2000, and until April 1970 it was faithfully reproduced with the exception of a few details. It has a total height of 33.7 meters and plays a central role in Chinese history. The emperor's proclamations were read at the Gate of Heavenly Peace and it was here that the emperor made sacrifices when he left the palace.

gallery

Commons : 天安門  - album with pictures, videos and audio files

Coordinates: 39 ° 54 '26.1 "  N , 116 ° 23' 29.1"  E