Our Capital, Our History, BEIJING, Notre Pékin/Beijing Options

[Elysee]

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This post has been edited by Elysee: Jun 26 2006, 04:15 PM

[Adee]

^The last pic, is that the Olympic stadium?

[ham_let]

do you have pictures of Xi'an? a thread on xi'ain would be cool. *nudge* *nudge* i'm going to shanghai, beijing, and xi'an in july, this pictures really look nice. shanghai looks nicer though.. hmm

This post has been edited by ham_let: Jun 26 2006, 04:17 PM

[Elysee]

^The last pic, is that the Olympic stadium?

Right on~

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/beerchug.gif)

do you have pictures of Xi'an? a thread on xi'ain would be cool. *nudge* *nudge* i'm going to shanghai, beijing, and xi'an in july, this pictures really look nice. shanghai looks nicer though.. hmm

Sorry dude, Xi'an is a great city, was even greater in the past tho....but it's not on my interest list. I don't have any pictures of Xi'an.

However I do find these resources online

http://post.baidu.com/f?kz=18651302

http://post.baidu.com/f?kz=83614149

http://post.baidu.com/f?kz=17093249

http://post.baidu.com/f?kz=107069369

http://post.baidu.com/f?kz=15350992

[supernovasp]

Right on~

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/beerchug.gif)
Sorry dude, Xi'an is a great city, was even greater in the past tho....but it's not on my interest list. I don't have any pictures of Xi'an.

^^ It's not the olympic stadium, it's the brand new opera stadium..

[C.Chen]

You're just tantalizing the rest of us who won't be going back to China until next year, aren't you? *sniff* Such beautiful pictures. I so want to go back there.

[ham_let]

Sorry dude, Xi'an is a great city, was even greater in the past tho....but it's not on my interest list. I don't have any pictures of Xi'an.

However I do find these resources online

http://post.baidu.com/f?kz=18651302

http://post.baidu.com/f?kz=83614149

http://post.baidu.com/f?kz=17093249

http://post.baidu.com/f?kz=107069369

http://post.baidu.com/f?kz=15350992

okay. thanks for the links. ^__^

[LaniKai]

Picture Perfect Indeed . The name " North Kapital " is not as poetic as ... " Soaring Dragon ,* for example " .
The Gate of Heavenly Peace - TianAnMen is poetic when being translated .
*Old Name of Hanoi.

[Anda]

A brief timeline of the history and development of Beijing:

-1000 BCE
Earliest records of settlement. ( NO CLEAR)
There were cities in the vicinities of Beijing by the 1st millennium BC, and the capital of the State of Yan, one of the powers of the Warring States Period, was established at Ji (T: 薊 / S: 蓟), near modern Beijing. It has often been claimed that Ji was the beginning of Beijing but Ji had been abandoned no later than the 6th century AD. The exact location of Ji remains unknown despite much effort in recent decades to identify the site.


-476-221 BCE
During the period of the Yan kingdom, Beijing (then named Ji to reflect the physical geography of the area) ascends to the status of capital.
During the Sui (581-618) and Tang (618-907) dynasties, only small towns existed in this area. Numerous ancient poets came here to mourn the lost city, as testified by their compositions.



-907-1125 CE
In 936, the Later Jin Dynasty (936-947) of northern China ceded a large part of its northern frontier, including modern Beijing, to the Khitan Liao Dynasty in the 10th century. In 938, the Liao Dynasty set up a secondary capital in what is now Beijing, and called it Yanjing.
Beijing (Yanjing) becomes the capital of the Liao Dynasty.
Kidans are Mongol ancestors. Present Daur Mongols are direct link to ancient Kidans


-1125, the Jurchen Jin Dynasty annexed Liao, and in 1153 moved its capital to Liao's Yanjing, calling it Jundu / Zhongdu (中都), "the central capital." Zhongdu was situated in what is now the area centred around Tianningsi, slightly to the southwest of central Beijing. Under the name Zhongdu (中都, "central capital") the city had earlier served as the capital of the Jin Dynasty, however was burned in 1215.


-1215
Genghis Khan, the Mongol warrior, conquers the region.
Mongol forces burned Zhongdu to the ground in 1215 and rebuilt it to the north of the Jin capital in 1267. Virtually everything in sight was destroyed. Under Khan's rule, a new city of Dadu (or Khanbaliq) was constructed on top of the ashes on the site of present- day Beijing.
In preparation for the conquest of all of China, Yuan (Mongol) Dynasty founder Kublai Khan made this his capital as Khanbaliq (Mongolian for "great residence of the Khan") or Dadu (大都, Chinese for "grand capital"). This site is known as Cambuluc in Marco Polo's accounts. Apparently, Kublai Khan, who wanted to become a Chinese emperor, established his capital at this location instead of more traditional sites in central China because it was closer to his power base in Mongolia. The decision of the Khan greatly enhanced the status of a city that had been situated on the northern fringe of China proper and it was the true beginning of contemporary Beijing. Khanbaliq was situated north of modern central Beijing. It centered on what is now the northern stretch of the 2nd Ring Road, and stretched northwards to between the 3rd and 4th Ring Roads. There are remnants of Mongol-era wall still standing.




-1215-1368
Yuan Dynasty under Genghis Khan and his descendants. In 1264, Kublai Khan decided to completely rebuild this city as his new capital, and it officially became the capital of the Yuan Dynasty (which was established in 1271) in 1272. His capital was at Beijing (then Cambuluc or Dadu 大都 lit. big capital). The empire was visited by several Europeans, notably Marco Polo in the 1270s who may have seen the summer capital in Shangdu (上都 lit. upper capital or Xanadu). Marco Polo stayed in the city in the late 1200s.

-1279
Genghis Khan's grandson, Kublai, had gained control of the majority of Asia. Khanbaliq (Dadu/Beijing) was the center of governmental and military control over this vast empire. At one point, Kublai was advised by his astrologer that Khanbaliq had been the birthplace of countless rebels. Kublai acted on this advice and moved the city just to the north. Khubilai khaan ordered to dig lake beside his palace -today's Beihai and Zongnanhai. During the Yuan Dynasty, Taiye Lake was included in the Imperial City. It was also expanded, covering approximately the area occupied by the Northern and Central Seas today. Three palaces were built around the lake. Streets are widened. Chinese word HUTONG is originated from Mongolian word GUDAM- wide street which allow the Imperial Raider go fast.


-1368
A number of natural disasters and China's first inflation of paper currency greatly weakened the Mongol empire. Zhu Yanhang led an uprising to take control of the area. Thus began the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). During the Ming Dynasty Beijing was known as Beiping. The Dynasty's capital was shifted to Nanjing for a significant term during this time.


-early 1400's
The site where the Forbidden City stands today was part of the imperial city during the Yuan dynasty. When the Ming Dynasty succeeded it, the first Hongwu Emperor moved the capital to Nanjing and ordered that the Mongol palaces be razed in 1369. His son, Zhu Li, was created Prince of Yan with seat in Beijing. A princely palace was built on the site. In 1402, Zhu Li usurped the throne and became the Yongle Emperor. He moved the capital back to Beijing, and began planning a new imperial palace which would equal that of his father's in Nanjing.

The construction of the Forbidden City started in 1406 and took 14 years and an estimated 200,000 men. The principal axis of the new palace sits to the east of the Yuan Dynasty palace, a design intended to place the Yuan palace in the western or "kill" position. Soil excavated during construction of the moat was piled up to the north of the palace to create an artificial hill, the Jingshan hill.

Yong Le, Zhu's son, moves the capital back to Beiping and gives the city its modern name of Beijing. Generally, Yong Le is considered to be the ruler who truly designed the present-day layout of Beijing. For instance, this was the period in which the Forbidden City was constructed.


-1644-1911
Qing Dynasty. During this period, Beijing grew greatly in geographical size, many older buildings were restored, and several important new governmental and imperial structures were built.

-1860
Beijing invaded by Anglo-French troops. Significant portions of the city were burned to the ground. Other power struggles were to follow, such as the reign of Empress Dowager Wu Cixi and the Boxer Rebellion.

-1911
The Kuomintang Party establishes the Republic of China. However, private armies and warlords continue to hold much of the control, and foreign powers controlled several economic zones.

-1937
Beijing invaded by the Japanese.


1939
The national capital temporarily moves from Beijing to Chongqing for the duration of World War II.


-1949
Communist leader Mao Zedong takes power and the People's Republic of China is born. A great period of reconstruction of the city began, including massive Soviet influences in the areas of socialist urban planning and increased industry.


-1950
The outer walls of Beijing are torn down to facilitate transportation interests.


-1966
Mao declares the Cultural Revolution. Additional monuments and structures glorifying Communist ideals were constructed, and symbols of China's past, such as temples and non-Communist monuments, were obliterated.

[bumb1ebee]

I'm going there in 2008. it will be the best year ever! ^_^

[mobi3232]

ah, Beijing, I will do what I can to be there on 8PM/8/8/2008!

Beijing's History

Some half a million years ago, Peking man lived in Zhoukoudian, in the southwestern suburbs of Beijing. The climate of that time was warmer and more humid than it is today. Forests and lakes in the area supported large numbers of living creatures. The fossil remains of Peking man, his stone tools and evidence of use of fire, as well as later tools of 18,000 years ago, bone needles and article of adornment from the age of Upper Cave Man are the earliest cultural relics on record in China today.

Some four to five thousand years ago, settlements to the southwest of Beijing were thriving on basic agriculture and animal husbandry. Story has it that the legendary Yellow Emperor (Huang Di) battled against the tribal leader Chiyou in the "wilderness of the prefecture of Zhuo."Zhuolu, a town west of present-day Beijing, is perhaps the site of the first metropolis in the area. Yellow Emperor's successor, Emperor Yao, was said to have established a legendary capital Youdu (City of Quietude) that was where the city of Ji was actually built.

During the Warring States Period (475221BC), the Marquis of Yan annexed the territory of the Marquis of Ji, making the city of Ji his new capital. The approximate location was north of Guang' anmen Gate in presentday Beijing near the White Cloud Temple (Baiyunguan).

Early in the third century BC, the first Emperor of Qin (Qin Shi Huang) set about conquering six states and unifying China. The city of Ji was named administrative center of Guangyang Commandery, one of 36 prefectures in China's first feudal empire. For 10 centuries, through to the end of the Tang Dynasty (618-907), Ji remained a strategic trading and military center and the object of frequent power struggles.

Two emperors during that period -- Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty (581-618) and Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty -- left their mark on the city. Emperor Yang amassed troops and supplies at Ji for expeditions against Korea. Emperor Taizong also used the city for military training. He built the Temple for Compassion for the Loyal (Minzhongsi), which is dedicated to troops who died in battle. This temple was the precursor of the Temple of the Origin of the Dharma (Fayuansi) located outside the old walls of the city.

At the beginning of the Tang Dynasty, Ji was little different from any other large feudal cities. Several centuries later, however, when the Tang was nearing a state of collapse, the Qidans (Khitans) came from the upper reaches of the Liaohe River and moved south to occupy Ji and make it their second capital. They called the city Nanjing (Southern Capital) or Yanjing. Emperor Taizong of the Liao Dynasty (916-1125) carried out reconstruction projects and built palaces, which were used as strongholds from which the Qidans set out to conquer the central plains of China.

In the early 12th century, the Nuzhen (Jurchen) conquered the Liao and established the Jin Dynasty (1115-1234). In 1153, Wan Yanliang moved the Jin capital from Huiningfu in present day Liaoning Province to Yanjing and renamed it Zhongdu (Central Capital) as a challenge to the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279), which had its capital at Lin'an (presentday Hangzhou). Before the ascension of Wan Yanliang to the throne, the city of Yanjing had changed little from the Liao period.

The rebuilding of the new city began in 1151 with expansion to the east, west and south. Palaces were constructed on a scale similar to the Northern Song (960-1127) capital at Bianliang (modern Kaifeng), and many of the actual building materials were transported from Bianliang. The new expanded city, with its splendid buildings in the center measured roughly five kilometers in circumference. The registered population of the Imperial Palace in the center measured roughly five kilometers in circumference. The registered population of Zhongdu amounted to 225,592 households, or approximately one million people.

Mongol armies occupied Zhongdu in 1215. At this time, the city of Kaiping (in presentday Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region) served as the principal Mongol capital (Shangdu), while Yanjing was given provincial status. It was not until 1271 that Kublai Khan formally adopted the new dynasty's name -- Yuan -- and made Yanjing the capital. Kublai Khan rebuilt the city and gave it the Chinese (Han) name of Dadu (Ta-tu) or Great Capital, though in Mongol it was known as Khanbalig (Marco Polo's Cambaluc), the City of the Great Khan. When the Mongols finally eliminated the Southern Song and unified China, Dadu became the political center of the country for the first time in history.

The construction of Dadu began in 1267 and ended in 1293, extending throughout the entire period of Kublai Khan's rule. The magnificent palaces of the Jin capital Zhongdu were destroyed by fire during the dynastic turnover from the Jin to the Yuan. When the capital was rebuilt, the original site of Zhongdu was replaced by a larger rectangular area centered in a beautiful lake region in the northeastern suburbs.

The construction of Dadu consisted of three main projects -- the imperial palaces, the city walls and moats, and the canal. The first stage was construction of the palace buildings, most of which were completed in 1274. The next stage was construction of the mansions for the imperial princes, the government offices, the Taimiao (Imperial Ancestral Temple) and Shejitan (Altar of Land and Grain) to the east and west of the palace, and a system of streets for ordinary residences. In 1293, the strategic Tonghui Canal, connecting the capital to the Grand Canal, was completed.

As the capital city of the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), Dadu enjoyed great fame in the 13th century world. The envoys and traders from Europe, Asia and Africa who paid visits to China were astounded by the splendor and magnificence of Dadu. Marco Polo's description of the palaces of Cambaluc, as the called Khanbalig, us most famous of all:

"You must know that it is the greatest palace that ever was The roof is very lofty, and the walls of the palace are all covered with gold and silver. They are adorned with dragons, beasts and birds, knights and idols, and other such things The Hall of the Palace is so large that 6,000 people could easily dine there, and it is quite a marvel to see how many rooms there are besides. The building is altogether so vast, so rich and so beautiful, that no man on earth could design anything superior to it. The outside of the roof is all colored with vermilion and yellow and green and blue and other hues, which are fixed with a varnish so fine and exquisite that they shins like crystal, and lend a resplendent luster to the palace as seen for a great way around."

The new Dadu was a rectangular city more than 30 kilometers in circumference. In the later years of Kublai Khan's rule, the city population consisted of 100,000 households or roughly 500,000 people. The layout was the result of uniform planning, the broader streets all 24 paces wide, the narrow lanes half this width. The regular chessboard pattern created an impression of relaxed orderliness.

Achievements in stone and plaster sculpture and painting at this time reached great heights. The names of two contemporary artisans have come down to us: the sculptors Yang Qiong and Liu Yuan. The latter was known for the plaster statues he created for temples. Liulansu Lane at the northern end of Fuyou Street in present-day Beijing was named after Liu Yuan.

On August 2, 1368, Ming troops seized Dadu and renamed it Beiping (Northern Peace). Zhu Yuanzhang, the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), however, made Nanjing his first capital. Beginning in 1406, Emperor Yongle of the Ming Dynasty spent 15 years constructing walls 12 meters high and 10 meters thick at their base around the city of Beiping. The construction of palace buildings and gardens began in 1417 and was completed in 1420. The following year, Emperor Yongle formally transferred the capital from Nanjing to Beiping and, for the first time, named the city Beijing (Northern Capital).

Extensive reconstruction work was carried out in Beijing during the first years of the Ming Dynasty. The northern city walls were shifted 2.5 kilometers to the south. Evidence of great advances in city planning is the district known as the Inner (Tartar) City. The Outer or Chinese City to the south was built during the reign of Emperor Jiajing (1522-1566), adding to the rectangular city a slightly wider "base" in the south.

When the Manchus founded the Qing Dynasty in 1644, they began to build suburban gardens, the most famous of which was Yuanmingyuan. Construction over the course of an entire century, the imposing columned palaces and open-air pavilions blended with the serenity of wellplanned gardens to create a masterpiece of garden architecture unrivaled in the history of China.

A city plan was first laid out in the Yuan Dynasty. Yet only after extensive reconstruction during the Ming and Qing (1644-1911), did the city emerge as an architectural masterpiece fit to serve as the capital of the Chinese empire. A north-south axis bisects the city with the Imperial Palace was knows as Danei (The Great Within). In the Ming, it was renamed the Forbidden City (Zijincheng), and more recently it has come to be called the Palace Museum (Gugong Bowuyuan). Designed with thousands of halls and gates arranged symmetrically around a northsouth axis, its dimensions and luxuriance are a fitting symbol of the power and greatness of traditional China.

After the collapse of the Qing Dynasty in 1911, China fell prey to the Northern Warlords and Kuomintang, Beijing suffered the same fate as the rest of China, hobbling along like an old camel without a sense of direction. The Chinese People's Liberation Army formally entered Beijing on January 31, 1949, opening a new chapter in the long history of the city. It was in Tian'anmen Square on October 1st, 1949, that Chairman Mao Zedong proclaimed the establishment of the People's Republic of China, with Beijing as its capital.

The city has changed totally since then. It has expanded from its old confines within the nine gates of the Inner City wall (Zhengyangmen, Chongwenmen, Xuanwumen, Chaoyangmen, Dongzhimen, Fuchengmen, Xizhimen, Andingmen and Deshengmen) to the seven outer gates (Dongbianmen, Guangqumen, Xibianmen, Guang' anmen, Yongdingmen, Zuoanmen and Youanmen) and out into the suburbs, Beijing now covers an area of about 750 square kilometers, which includes a dozen new living districts built on the outskirts of town.

Tian'anmen Square is still the center of Beijing, Chang' an Boulevard now running 38 kilometers from Shijingshan in the west to Tongxian in the east. The palaces and city towers along both sides have been designated cultural relics for national protection. Former imperial residences and gardens have been opened for public viewing.

New buildings like the International Post Office and Bank of China have been built along the Second Ring Road, the former line of the Inner City wall. Old living quarters and blocks of traditional Beijingstyle buildings, such as Liulichang Culture Street, have been restored. Large scale construction has been undertaken along the Third Ring Road and the fourth Ring Road.

Future development in Beijing will continue to preserve the symmetry of the old city layout while integrating modern architectural design into the overall plan.

http://www.china.org.cn/english/features/beijing/30785.htm

[cmn stlyng]

beijing, damn, looks so different from 15 years ago.