The Beihai (North Sea) Park and the Round
City are situated in Beijing's downtown, to the northwest of the Forbidden
City.
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Beihai Park |
The present Beihai Park is
one of the earliest imperial palaces extant in China. The park was first
constructed in the Liao Dynasty (907-1125), having a history of over 800 years.
The Liao Dynasty built Yaoyu (Jade Islet) Palace by imitating the Penglai
Fairyland. The lake was enlarged in the Jin Dynasty (1115-1234), using rocks for
piling on the hill and building the Guanghan Palace (Palace in the Moon). In the
Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), the Qionghua (Jade Flowery) Islet was enlarged three
times, and the imperial residence and palaces were built with the islet in the
center. Thereafter, in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1664) and the Qing Dynasty
(1664-1911), people rebuilt and expanded the Beihai Park several times, and the
park finally came to today's scale.
The Beihai Park is about 500 meters to
the northwest of the Forbidden City and the Jingshan Hill. The park is vast in
its water surface, which accounts for half of the park's total area of 700,000
square meters. In the Ming Dynasty, Beihai (North Sea), Zhonghai (Central Sea)
and Nanhai (South Sea) were collectively named as Three Seas or the Taiye Lake,
which was the forbidden garden. At the beginning of the Republic of China,
Zhonghai and Nanhai were merged into an integral whole called Zhongnanhai
(Central and South Sea). Behai was separately built as a park.
The Qiong (Jade) Islet lies on the south of
the lake and is the center of the whole park. It was called Qionghua Islet in
the Jin Dynasty, and renamed the Wanshou Hill in the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368).
Because of the construction of the White Dagoba on the top of the hill, the
Qiong Islet is also called White Dagoba Hill. The architectures on that islet
were constructed in accordance with the shape of the hill, matching with each
other horizontally and vertically. With the White Dagoba as the landmark, the
layout of the islet can be divided into east, south, west and north parts. On
the top of the Qiong Islet, the 35.9-meter-high White Dagoba was first built in
the 8th year (1651) during the reign of Emperor Shunzhi.
On the south of the White Dagoba Hill stands
a main building, Yong'an (Eternal Peace) Temple. Besides the temple, there are
the Falun Hall, the Zhengjue Hall, the Pu'an Hall, the Bell and Drum Towers,
etc. All those buildings are covered with yellow, green, purple and other
colorful glazed tiles. Seen from the top of the hill, those buildings are
colorful and spectacular. To the west of the Yong'an Temple is the Yuexin
(Heart-joyful) Hall where emperors used to receive their officials and deal with
government affairs. Behind that hall is the Qingxiao (Night Parties) Building,
which was the entertainment place for emperors and queens in winters. The
Linguang (Sunshine) Hall and the Yuegu (Reading the Classics) Building sit on
the west of the White Dagoba Hill. The Yuegu Building was the emperors' private
place for book collections. The building takes the shape of a crescent. There
are 25 front pillars on the two floors. A collection of famous calligraphic
works up to the Wei Dynasty (220 -265) and the Jin Dynasty (265-420) were on
stone tablets rubbings, which constitute the Model Calligraphy in the Hall of
the Three Rare Treasures, and amount to 495 pieces. The Three Rare Treasures
referred to the three outstanding calligraphy masterpieces by Wang Xizhi, Wang
Xianzhi, and Wang Xun, three pioneers in Chinese calligraphy.
On the hill slope, there are the Mujian
Chamber, the Yanyun Jintai Pavilion, the Ganlu Hall, the Panqing Chamber, the
Sheshan Pavilion and other ancient buildings, antique and tranquil. On the bank
of the Taiye Lake there are two important building compounds that stand opposite
to each other. One compound lies on the north of the White Dagoba Hill,
including the Yilan Hall, the Daoning Room, the Bizhao Building, the Yuanfan
Pavilion, the Yan Building, etc. The other lies on the north of the Taiye Lake,
including the Wulong Pavilion and the Xitian Fanjing Pavilion. On the east of
the hill there are flourishing woods, rocks, deep caves, stone bridge, memorial
archway, the Zhizhu (Intellectual Pearl) Hall and the Jianchu (vision of spring)
Pavilion, forming the Qiong Dao Chun Yin (Jade Islet's Spring Shadow), one of
the eight beautiful sceneries in ancient Beijing. The tablet, with Qing Emperor
Qianlong's inscription on it, is well preserved till today.
On the east of the Taiye Lake, pavilions and
halls are hidden in green woods and waves. The Huafang Room is exquisite and
graceful, and the Long Corridor winds its way deeply. That place can rival the
wonderful gardens in Southeast China. To the north of the Huafang Room is the
Haopu Mountain Stream, which faces the lake on its three sides. The stream is
surrounded by artificial hills and zigzagging stone bridges, presenting a
special view.
The Jingxin Study is the main building on
the northern shore of the lake, covering an area of one hectare, which was the
place where the princes studied. Emperor Qianlong used to play musical
instruments and read books there, so the Jingxin Study is also called Qianlong's
Miniature Garden. The garden chiefly consists of rockeries and a pond, with
chambers and pavilions sitting inside, displaying various scenic views. Besides
waterfalls, there are the Nine-Dragon Screen, Five-Dragon Pavilions, the Chanfu
Temple, etc, all of which add charms to the study.
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Round City |
The Round City is located
in the west of the south gate of the Beihai Park. It lies to the north of the
east end of the Jin'aoyu (Golden Turtle Jade) Bridge, which is between the
Beihai and Zhonghai. The Round City is not only a part of the Beihai Park but
also an independent garden with its unique style. Together with Beihai, Zhonghai
and Nanhai, it forms the most beautiful scenic area in Beijing City.
Originally, the Round City was an islet in
the Taiye Lake. From the 3rd year to the 19th year (1163-1179) of the Dading
reign in the Jin Dynasty (1115-1234), Emperor Shizong started to build palaces
on the islet. The Round City, with the Qionghua Islet facing each other at a
distance, is a part of the imperial palace. More buildings were constructed in
the Ming and Qing dynasties (1368-1911), such as the Chengguang Hall, the Yuweng
Pavilion, the Gulai Chamber, the Jingji Chamber, the Yuqing Chamber, and the
Jinglan Pavilion, etc. Besides, the walls and crenels were built around the
islet, forming the embryonic shape of the Round City.
The Round City, surrounded by 5-meter-high
walls, has an area of 4,500 square meters. The Chengguan Hall stands in the
middle of the city and is the main building inside. Covered with yellow glazed
tiles, the square-shaped Chengguang Hall looks colorful and magnificent. The
wooden dragon-carved shrine in the hall houses a sitting statue of Sakyamuni,
carved from a block of lustrous jade, a present from Burma to Empress Dowager
Cixi, contributed by a monk named Ming Kuan in the 22nd year (1896) during the
reign of Emperor Guangxu in the Qing Dynasty. Empress Cixi even wrote an
inscription to show her loyalty to Buddhism.
In 1900, the allied forces of eight
powers invaded and occupied Beijing. They plundered the Round City and took
away various treasures and antiques. Up to now, the knife-cut mark can still be
seen on the left arm of the Jade Buddha. A huge jade urn is placed in front of
the hall, weighing 3,500 kg. It was carved out of a whole block of jade, and was
called Ocean of Jade in the Dushan Mountain. The jade block is said to be either
from the Place in the Moon, or left behind by Goddess Nuwa when she sealed the sky. In
the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), Kublar Khan, Emperor Shizu, once used the urn as a
wine vessel to host officials who rendered outstanding service. While in the
Ming Dynasty it was lost in society and used as a food container. In the Qing
Dynasty, Emperor Qianlong found the urn in a visit and bought it at a high
price. It was then placed in the Round City, and preserved in a pavilion. The
emperor composed the Jade Urn Song and the Jade Urn Poem, and had
them engraved on the jade urn.