Tiananmen Gate (Tiananmen of the Forbidden City in Beijing)

Tiananmen Gate (Tiananmen of the Forbidden City in Beijing)

Tiananmen Gate (Tiananmen of the Forbidden City in Beijing) is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

A National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit. Located between Tiananmen and the Meridian Gate (Wumen) of the Forbidden City along Beijing’s central axis. Tiananmen is an important part of the ancient architectural complex of the Forbidden City, also known as the “Outer Gate,” and served as one of the main gates of the Forbidden City during the Ming Dynasty, as well as the main gate of the Imperial City during the Qing Dynasty.

Tiananmen was completed in the 18th year of the Yongle reign of the Ming Dynasty (1420). The Tiananmen tower was used to store the emperor’s ceremonial paraphernalia. During imperial processions, returns, and major ceremonies, ceremonial guards would retrieve various items and arrange them neatly along both sides of the imperial path, while bells from Tiananmen and Wumen towers rang in unison. Stretching over three li from the three halls of the Outer Court to the Daming Gate, this grand layout was designed to display the supreme authority of feudal imperial power. The Tiananmen Square is square-shaped and enclosed, with a moderate and balanced character, serving as a transitional space. On the east and west sides of Tiananmen leading to Wumen, there are 26 ceremonial offices on each side. The central ceremonial office on the east side is the Gate of the Imperial Ancestral Temple, while the central one on the west is the Gate of the Altar of Land and Grain, leading respectively to the Imperial Ancestral Temple and the Altar of Land and Grain. From Tiananmen to Wumen, on the east and west sides, are the offices of the Six Ministries (namely, the Ministries of Personnel, Revenue, Rites, War, Justice, and Works), with the northern part of the east side featuring the Que Left Gate, and south of it the Temple Right Gate leading to the Imperial Ancestral Temple. On the west side, the northern part has the Que Right Gate, and south of it the Temple Left Gate leading to the Altar of Land and Grain. After the Imperial Ancestral Temple and Altar of Land and Grain were turned into parks during the Republican era, the Temple Street Gate, Altar Street Gate, Temple Right Gate, and Temple Left Gate were all closed.

Representative Attractions:

1. The Great Bell of Tiananmen: The twin-dragon knob bell of Tiananmen, weighing over three tons, was rung at Tiananmen while drums were beaten at Wumen during morning and evening court sessions, festivals, or imperial processions and returns. The combined sound of bells and drums could be heard for miles, inspiring awe. In 1900, when the Eight-Nation Alliance occupied Beijing, a group of British Indian soldiers climbed up to the Tiananmen tower, broke into the great hall, and wildly looted the ceremonial items, weapons, and goldware inside. In the end, only the large, heavy bell hanging at the center of the hall—the treasure of the hall—remained. The vicious British Indian soldiers then shot and damaged the dragon claws on the top knob of the bell before leaving resentfully.

2. The Archway Doorways: Beneath the expansive, tall, dignified, and simple city wall platform are five archway doorways, each 40 meters long. The central doorway is the largest, with a height of 8.82 meters, and its center point aligns precisely with the central axis of the Inner City. The other four doorways gradually decrease in size outward, with widths of 4.43 meters and 3.83 meters respectively. The Imperial Path doorway was reserved for the emperor only, the Royal Gate for royalty and nobility, and the outer rank doorways for officials of the third rank and above. Each of the five gateways has two vermilion-painted doors adorned with gilded copper studs arranged in a “nine-by-nine” grid.

3. Red-Lacquered Nanmu Wooden Columns: The great hall features 60 red-lacquered nanmu wooden columns, each approximately 92 cm in diameter. The front 36 doors and windows are designed in traditional Chinese diamond lattice patterns, with carved panel sections at the bottom, giving an elegant and stately appearance.

Attraction Location

Between Tiananmen Gate Tower and the Forbidden City