Cining Palace

　　The Cining Palace was first built in the 15th year of the Jiajing reign during the Ming Dynasty (1536). In the Ming Dynasty, it housed former imperial noble consorts. The early and mid periods of the Qing Dynasty were the heyday of the Cining Palace. At that time, Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang and Empress Dowager Xiaoshengxian both resided here. Emperors Shunzhi, Kangxi, and Qianlong were all known for their filial piety, and grand birthday celebrations for the dowager empresses were often held at the Cining Palace.

　　In front of the Cining Palace is an east-west, elongated square, with Yongkang Left Gate and Yongkang Right Gate at either end, and Changxin Gate to the south. The Cining Gate is located on the north side of the square, with a raised walkway inside leading to the main hall, the Cining Palace. On the east and west sides of the courtyard are corridors, which bend southward to connect with the Cining Gate and extend northward directly to the east and west wing rooms of the rear sleeping hall (i.e., the Great Buddha Hall). In the middle of the east and west corridors of the front courtyard, there is a door each: the east one is called Huiyin Left Gate, and the west one is called Huiyin Right Gate.

　　The main hall, the Cining Palace, is centrally located, with corridors extending both front and back, and features a double-eaved hip-and-gable roof covered with yellow glazed tiles. It is seven bays wide, with the central five bays each having four double-layered lattice doors. The two side bays have brick parapets, each with four double-layered lattice windows. In front of the hall is a moon terrace, with three steps at the front and one step on each side. On the terrace stand four gilded bronze incense burners. Each of the east and west gables has a hanging flower gate, which leads to the rear courtyard.

　　According to feudal etiquette, the emperor could not live with former imperial concubines from the previous reigns in the Eastern and Western Six Palaces. To accommodate the deceased emperor’s consorts, the Cining Palace was specially constructed for their residence.

　　The Cining Garden was reconstructed in the 34th year of the Qianlong reign (1769 AD) on the site of the early Ming Dynasty building, the Renshou Palace. Inside the Garden’s Lansheng Gate, rockeries are stacked to create a “mountain-at-first-sight” obstructive view. Behind the rocks, flower stands are vibrant with colors, setting off the Linxi Pavilion built over the pond. Around the pond and pavilion are Hanqing Zhai, Yanshou Hall, and matching east and west side rooms, naturally making the Linxi Pavilion the viewing centerpiece of the southern part of the garden. The Xianruo Hall in the northern part of the garden is the main structure of the entire garden. To the north of the hall is the Ciying Tower; the east wing room is the Baoxiang Tower, and the west wing room is the Jiayun Tower, forming a semi-enclosed courtyard.

　　The garden is approximately 130 meters long from north to south and 50 meters wide from east to west, covering a total area of 6,800 square meters. There are only 11 buildings in the garden, occupying less than one-fifth of the total area, concentrated in the northern part, while the southern part has flat and open terrain, planted with flowers and trees, with rockeries and ponds, aiming to provide dowager empresses and imperial concubines with the pleasure of mountain forests without the effort of long walks. The garden entrance, Lansheng Gate, is located on the east wall and is a simple wall gate. Upon entering and looking north, the main hall is the Xianruo Hall, seven bays wide, with a front porch and a yellow glazed tile roof. The ground floor of the Ciying Tower has a small door on the east side bay, connecting to the front square of the Cining Palace. South of the Baoxiang Tower and Jiayun Tower are small courtyards, named Hanqing Zhai and Yanshou Hall, where Emperor Qianlong served his mother’s medicinal needs and also stayed in mourning. The main buildings in the courtyards have gray-tiled, triple-tiered, interconnected hipped roof structures, offering a simple and fresh aesthetic.

　　In the southern part of the garden is a rectangular pond, with a white marble bridge crossing it, and a pavilion built on the bridge, named Linxi Pavilion, facing the Xianruo Hall to the north. On the east and west sides of the pavilion were originally Cuifang Pavilion and Lvyun Pavilion, now replaced by five-bay corridor rooms. The southeast and southwest corners of the garden originally each had a well pavilion, with the stream in Lvyun Pavilion drawing water from the well in the southeast. South of the Linxi Pavilion is a flower stand, one meter high and 6.5 meters square, with a Sumeru pedestal design, symmetrically opposite the northern flower stand. Further south, past the Taihu rockery mound, is the southern entrance of the garden.

　　Due to constraints such as ritual systems, patriarchal codes, and feng shui, the architecture of the Cining Garden is arranged in a symmetrical, primary-and-secondary layout. Though the layout is neat and rigorous, it is somewhat monotonous. It mainly relies on exquisite interior decorations, the pond and rockeries in the courtyards, and a wide variety of plants to enhance the rich garden atmosphere. The garden is dominated by pine and cypress trees, interspersed with parasol trees, ginkgos, magnolia, and lilacs, mostly concentrated in front of the Xianruo Hall and around the Linxi Pavilion, while flower stands are densely planted with peonies and tree peonies. Each season—spring blossoms, autumn fruits, morning and dusk—offers different charms. Within the strictly ritualistic Forbidden City, it is the only relaxing retreat that could bring solace to former imperial consorts.

The Palace Museum

Zhongcui Palace

Hall of Supreme Harmony

Shenwu Gate

Hall of Preserving Harmony

Hall of Imperial Supremacy

Hall of Martial Valor

Palace of Earthly Tranquility

Hall of Heavenly Purity

Studio of the Three Rare Treasures

Hall of Mental Cultivation

Palace of Longevity and Peace

Imperial Garden

Palace of Eternal Longevity

Meridian Gate