Beijing Library

Beijing Library

Beijing Library is a protected cultural heritage site in Beijing.

Destination Introduction

Beijing Library is China's national library and one of the world’s top five libraries with collections exceeding ten million volumes.

In the 31st year of the Guangxu reign (1905), the Qing government promoted modern education and abolished the imperial examination system. Hunan established the country’s first library. In the 33rd year of the Guangxu reign (1907), Zhang Zhidong was appointed as a Grand Secretary and concurrently took charge of the Ministry of Education. The following year, in preparation for establishing the Imperial Library of Peking, he purchased private collections such as Yao Jinyuan’s “Zhi Jin Zhai” from Huzhou and Xu Naichang’s “Ji Xue Zhai” from Yangzhou to bring to Beijing. The Iron Qin and Copper Sword Tower of the Qu family from Changshu had several books copied into duplicates, with the originals kept in Peking. In the first year of the Xuantong reign (1909), the Ministry of Education submitted the "Proposal for Establishing the Imperial Library of Peking," which was approved on September 9. Mou Zongsun was appointed supervisor, Xu Fang as deputy supervisor, and Yang Xiongxian as chief administrator. The library was initially housed at Guanghua Temple in Shichahai, and the following year, the Imperial Library of Peking was officially established, becoming the predecessor of the Beijing Library.

When the Imperial Library of Peking was first built, its collection came from the Southern School of the Imperial College and the Grand Secretariat Archives, including books from the Ming Dynasty’s imperial Wenyuan Pavilion and rare editions from the Song Dynasty’s Jixi Hall. It also acquired 8,000 scrolls of Buddhist scriptures from the Dunhuang caves and some renowned private collections, totaling fewer than 100,000 volumes.

In 1912, after the establishment of the Republic of China, Cai Yuanpei became Minister of Education. In May, the Ministry of Education appointed Jiang Han as the director of the Imperial Library of Peking, which remained at Guanghua Temple. On August 27, the Imperial Library of Peking officially opened to the public and began serving readers.

During his tenure at the Ministry of Education, Lu Xun devoted significant effort to the Imperial Library of Peking. As head of the First Section of the Social Education Department and an official of the Ministry, he oversaw matters related to museums, libraries, art galleries, literature, and performing arts. In the early days of the library, to expand its collection, Lu Xun, in the autumn of 1912, used the authority of the Ministry to requisition books printed by provincial official publishing houses for the library. In 1913, he allocated a large encyclopedia printed with bronze movable type, the Gu Jin Tu Shu Ji Cheng (Complete Collection of Illustrations and Writings from the Earliest to Current Times), to the library. In April 1916, with the approval of the Ministry of the Interior obtained through the Political Affairs Yuan, it was officially mandated that all publications registered with the Ministry of the Interior must send a copy to the Imperial Library of Peking for preservation, marking the beginning of the library’s role as a national library. That same year, Lu Xun also acquired the latest locally compiled gazetteers and collected rubbings of famous stone inscriptions and steles for the library. The Yongle Encyclopedia (in fragments) and the Wenjin Pavilion edition of the Complete Library of the Four Treasuries were also moved to the Imperial Library of Peking in 1915 after Lu Xun's persistent advocacy.

In June 1913, due to Guanghua Temple’s remote location, low-lying and damp conditions, with approval from the Ministry of Education, a branch was set up at Qianqingchang outside Xuanwumen while searching for a new main site. In 1914, the branch was relocated to Yongguang Temple Street at the west entrance of Qianqingchang. In October, the Imperial Library of Peking suspended reading services and temporarily moved from Guanghua Temple to the Imperial College. In 1915, it was decided to establish the library at the former site of the Southern School of the Imperial College in Fangjia Hutong, inside Andingmen. On January 26, 1917, the Imperial Library of Peking reopened in Fangjia Hutong. Lu Xun and some colleagues from the Ministry of Education attended the opening ceremony and had a commemorative photo taken. By this time, the library had already begun to take on the scale of a modern library.

In 1928, when the government moved its capital to Nanjing and established a National Library there, the Imperial Library of Peking was renamed the National Peking Library. Its location moved from Fangjia Hutong to Junren Hall in Zhongnanhai, and it opened to the public in January 1929, with Ma Xulun serving as director for a time.

At the time, besides the National Peking Library, there was also a Beijing Library founded in 1926 by the China Foundation for the Promotion of Education and Culture, located in Beihai. It rented spaces such as Qingxiao Lou, Yuexin Dian, Jingqixuan, and Shan’an Dian. Its director was Liang Qichao, who was also the director of the Imperial Library of Peking, with Li Siguang as deputy director. In August 1929, the National Peking Library and the Beijing Library in Beihai merged, retaining the name National Peking Library. Cai Yuanpei served as director until his death in 1940, after which Yuan Tongli, the deputy director, took over. During this period, work began on compiling a national union catalog of books and periodicals, further advancing the functions of a national library.

In 1931, the new library on Wenjin Street west of Beihai was completed, and the library joined the International Federation of Library Associations. Construction of the new library began on May 11, 1929. Some relics were relocated from the Old Summer Palace ruins; a pair of ornamental columns in front of the main building closely resemble the pairs at Tiananmen Gate. There is also a Gui-shaped Kunlun stone inscribed with a poem by Emperor Qianlong. Inside the main gate are two stone stelae, one with Emperor Qianlong’s “Teaching Archery on Horseback” decree, and the other a tree marker from in front of Wenyuan Pavilion—both inscribed in both Manchu and Chinese. A pair of stone lions originally from the east gate of the Changchun Garden stand outside the main gate. The street in front of the library was originally unnamed but was called Wenjin Street because the library housed the Wenjin Pavilion edition of the Complete Library of the Four Treasuries.

Initially, the library housed collections from the Jixi Hall of the Southern Song imperial library and the Wenyuan Pavilion of the Ming imperial library, as well as those from the Grand Secretariat Archives, remnants of the Yongle Encyclopedia from the Imperial College, the Southern School of the Imperial College, and Dunhuang manuscripts, totaling about 100,000 volumes. After the founding of the People’s Republic of China, the collection grew rapidly—from 1.4 million volumes in 1949 to 14 million in 1979, though the book storage area only increased fivefold. In October 1987, a new library was completed on the north side of Zizhuyuan near Shiqiao Road in Haidian District, with a floor space of 140,000 square meters. It includes a 19-story (plus three underground) book storage building, newspaper archive, and audiovisual materials building, capable of storing 20 million volumes. The facilities are advanced and fully functional. The original Wenyin Street library was renamed the branch. By the end of 1990, the collection neared 16 million volumes. It is the largest and most comprehensive library in China and ranks among the top public libraries in the world.

The new library officially opened on July 1, 1931, with the entire collection of the Wenjin Pavilion edition of the Complete Library of the Four Treasuries moved into the new premises. After moving in, the previous ticket-entry system was abolished. The new building's reading rooms featured over 200 seats in a tranquil environment surrounded by greenery, making it the largest and most advanced library in China and even the Far East at the time.

After the founding of the People’s Republic of China, the library embraced a new era. On March 6, 1950, it was renamed the National Beijing Library, and on June 12, 1951, it became known as Beijing Library.

With the growing cultural needs of the public, despite multiple expansions, the Beijing Library on Wenjin Street still could not meet demand. In March 1975, upon the proposal and approval of Premier Zhou Enlai, construction of a new library began on November 18, 1983, at Baishiqiao Road in Haidian District, on the former site of the Yuan Dynasty’s Da Hu Guo Ren Wang Temple. It was completed and opened on October 6, 1987. The new library covers an area of 7.24 hectares, with a floor space of 140,000 square meters. Together with the Wenyin Branch, it totals 170,000 square meters. The new library consists of 13 buildings connected by corridors, featuring ethnic architectural styles. The twin-towered main book storage building has 22 above-ground floors and 19 underground, including three basement levels, reaching a height of 61 meters. The exterior is clad in milky-white ceramic tiles, accented with blue-glazed tiles, giving it a solemn, elegant, and majestic appearance. Its collection is vast and comprehensive, encompassing ancient and modern works from China and abroad, totaling 20 million volumes (items), ranking fifth in the world. Its collection size and building area rank first in Asia. On January 12, 1998, with the approval of the State Council, Beijing Library was renamed the National Library of China.

Location: Behind the back gate of Zhongnanhai, Xicheng District Transportation Information

Transportation: Take bus routes 14, 101, 103, 109, or 814 and get off at Fuyou Street Station, on the north side of Wenjin Street.

Beijing Xicheng District

Further Reading:

· Third Batch of Municipal-Level Protected Cultural Heritage Units in Beijing