The Forbidden City is a palace complex in Dongcheng District, Beijing, China, at the center of the Imperial City of Beijing. It is surrounded by numerous opulent imperial gardens and temples including the 22 ha (54-acre) Zhongshan Park, the sacrificial Imperial Ancestral Temple, the 69 ha (171-acre) Beihai Park, and the 23 ha (57-acre) Jingshan Park. It is officially administered by the Palace Museum.
The Forbidden City viewed from Jingshan Hill
The Forbidden City as depicted in a Ming dynasty painting
A depiction of the Forbidden City from the German magazine Die Gartenlaube (1853)
Aerial view of the Forbidden City (1900–1901).
A Chinese palace is an imperial complex where the court, civil government, royal garden and defensive fortress resided. Its structures are considerable and elaborate. The Chinese character gong represents two connected rooms (呂) under a roof (宀). Originally the character applied to any residence or mansion, but it was used in reference to solely the imperial residence since the Qin dynasty.
Hall of Supreme Harmony within the Forbidden City of Beijing
Model of Xianyang Palace (1st millennium BCE); with architectural styles typical of pre-imperial China
Games taking place in Northern Song palace gardens (c.10th century). These imperial 'backyards' often came with grand artificial lakes and man-made islands.
Linde Hall of Daming Palace, used for recreational purposes and the entertaining foreign embassies.
