A Chinese palace is an imperial complex where the royal court and the civil government resided. Its structures are considerable and elaborate. The Chinese charactergong represents two connected rooms under a roof. Originally the character applied to any residence or mansion, but it was used in reference to solely the imperial residence since the Qin Dynasty. A Chinese palace is composed of many buildings. It has large areas surrounded by walls and moats. It contains large halls for ceremonies and official business, as well as smaller buildings, temples, towers, residences, galleries, courtyards, gardens, and outbuildings.
Xianyang Palace, in Xianyang, now 15 km/9 miles east of modern Xianyang, Shaanxi province: this was the royal palace of the state of Qin before the Chinese unification, and then the palace of the First Emperor when China was unified. Burnt down by Xiang Yu after the fall of the Qin Dynasty.
Epang Palace, 20 km/12 miles south of Xianyang, now 15 km/9 miles west of Xi'an, Shaanxi province: the imperial palace built by the First Emperor in replacement of Xianyang Palace. Traditionally said to be burnt down by Xiang Yu, but may not have been completed at the fall of the Qin Dynasty.
Weiyang Palace, in Chang'an, now 7 km/4 miles northeast of downtown Xi'an, Shaanxi province: imperial palace of the Western Han Dynasty for two centuries. This is the largest palace ever built on Earth, covering 4.8 km², which is 6.7 times the size of the current Forbidden City, or 11 times the size of the Vatican City. Used after the Han Dynasty, rebuilt in the Tang Dynasty.
Taiji Palace, also known as the Western Apartments, in Chang'an, now downtown Xi'an, Shaanxi province: imperial palace during the Sui Dynasty and in the beginning of the Tang Dynasty. Area: 4.2 km², imperial section proper: 1.92 km².
Daming Palace, also known as the Eastern Apartments, in Chang'an, now downtown Xi'an, Shaanxi province: imperial palace of the Tang Dynasty after A.D. 663, but the Taiji Palace remained in use for major state ceremonies such as coronations. Area: 3.11 km².
Forbidden City, now known in China as the Beijing Gugong, in Beijing : imperial palace of the Ming Dynasty and Qing Dynasty from 1420 until 1924. Area: 720,000 m² .
Other Places
Apart from the main imperial palace, Chinese dynasties also had several other imperial palaces in the capital city where the empress, crown prince, or other members of the imperial family dwelled. There also existed palaces outside of the capital city called "away palaces" where the emperors resided when traveling.
The habit also developed of building garden estates in the countryside surrounding the capital city, where the emperors retired at times to get away from the rigid etiquette of the imperial palace, or simply to escape from the summer heat inside their capital. This practice reached a zenith with the Qing Dynasty, whose emperors built the fabulous Imperial Gardens, now known in China as the Gardens of Perfect Brightness, and better known in English as the Old Summer Palace. The emperors of the Qing Dynasty resided and worked in the Imperial Gardens, 8 km/5 miles outside of the walls of Beijing, the Forbidden City inside Beijing being used only for formal ceremonies. These gardens were made up of three gardens: the Garden of Perfect Brightness proper, the Garden of Eternal Spring, and the Elegant Spring Garden ; they covered a huge area of 3.5 km², almost 5 times the size of the Forbidden City, and 8 times the size of the Vatican City. comprising hundreds of halls, pavilions, temples, galleries, gardens, lakes, etc. Several famous landscapes of southern China had been reproduced in the Imperial Gardens, hundreds of invaluable Chinese art masterpieces and antiquities were stored in the halls, making the Imperial Gardens one of the largest museums in the world. Some unique copies of literary work and compilations were also stored inside the Imperial Gardens. In 1860, during the Second Opium War, the British and Frenchexpeditionary forces looted the Old Summer Palace. Then on October 18, 1860, in order to "punish" the imperial court, which had refused to allow Western embassies inside Beijing, the British general Lord Elgin- with protestations from the French - purposely ordered the torching of this massive complex which burned to the ground. It took 3500 British troops to set the entire place ablaze and took three whole days to burn. The burning of the Gardens of Perfect Brightness is still a very sensitive issue in China today. Following this cultural catastrophe, the imperial court was forced to relocate to the old and austere Forbidden City where it stayed until 1924, when the Last Emperor was expelled by a republican army.
Summer Palace
Empress dowager Cixi built the Summer Palace or Yiheyuan near the Old Summer Palace, but on a much smaller scale than the Old Summer Palace.
