INTELLIGENCE REPORT PEKING AND ENVIRONS

• Document Type: SPECIALCOLLECTION
• Collection: The Nixon Collection
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 06928824
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: U
• Document Page Count: 84
• Document Creation Date: February 23, 2022
• Document Release Date: February 11, 2022
• Publication Date: January 1, 1972

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ial
No Foreign Dis
DIRECTORATE OF
INTELLIGENCE
Intelligence Report
Peking and Environs
0
CIA/BGI GR 72-3
January 1972
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WARNING
This documen ontains information affecting the national
defense of the Un d States, within the meaning of Title
18, sections 793 an 94, of the US Code, as amended.
Its transmission or r 'on of its contents to or re-
ceipt by .an unauthorize erson is prohibited by law.
GROUP I
EAcludocl from automatic
downerodtng and
cicclo$tilication
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CONTENTS
Page
Introduction 1
The Geographic Setting 7
Overview of the City 9
General Plan 9
Suburban Expansion 11
Industry 14
Agriculture 14
Transportation 15
Public Services 18
Security 21
Hotel Accommodations 21
Patterns of Life 22
Points of Interest in the City 26
and its Suburbs
Tartar City
Imperial City
Eastern Half
Western Half
Chinese City
Eastern Suburbs
Southern Suburbs
Western Suburbs
Northern and Northwestern
Suburbs
Attractions in the Vicinity of Peking
Appendix: Ming and Manchu Emperors
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26
26
38
45
47
51
53
54
59
66
73
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Figure 1
SSEM
Ch'ih-ch'eng
P'ang-chia-pa
Cho-lu
Hsi Ling..
1-hsien
Yen-ch'ing
Huai-lai
Chii-yung Kuan
Chai-t'ang
Peking.
People's Republic
of China
Ping-ku
Luan-p'ing(
Pan-ch'iao -s.
sien
Ta-an-shan
Ch'ang-hs. Ta-ch'ang
Tz'u-chia-wu
� ang-ho
Fang
Chou-k'
Cho-hsienf
Lai-shui
Hsin-ch'eng
Ting-hsing
Jung-ch'eng
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Wu-ch'ing
hing-hai
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likentsin
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/to
1-1sing-lung
Po-
hai
Wan
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CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
Directorate of Intelligence
January 1972
INTELLIGENCE REPORT
Peking and Environs
Introduction
1. Peking has been the capital of China for
most of the past 700 years, but its political
significance has never been as strong as it is
today. The origins of the city date back much
farther into history, possibly to around 2,000
B.C. Much of Peking's importance is derived from
its site; it was first a northern rampart against
outside invasion and later the fortified home of
the Imperial Court. The basic plan for Peking was
laid out by the Mongol (Yilan) Dynasty about 1268,
and the core of the present city, established during
the early Ming Dynasty, is situated approximately
on the ruins of the Mongol city. Peking had a long
and glorious reign as the Imperial Capital, but
fell into moderate disrepair after the demise of
the Manchu (Ch'ing) Dynasty in 1912. The present
regime has been engrossed in the revival of Peking
-- now at its apex as the cultural, political, and
communications center of China.
Note: This report was prepared by the Office of
Basic and Geographic Intelligence and coordinated
within the Directorate of Intelligence.
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T'utchioolata
Figure 2 �
01(: Walled C
Hsirso-hej-men
Hsloo-ts'un
Ching-ru-on
Shih-mon
Fu.ch'eng n
Viieh ran
(Altar of the Moon)
Flphsina Men 11
T'Ma.
Kuang.
Station
Huotfao-k'ou
Teo-chin-Won
Tiolvohirseripyirigi"'
500757 11-71
rieh-shih-tzution
Huang-hu Fen
�fa7ch'eng (remnants of Mongol city wall
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sio.oung-cmu-eon
Mn-Clan
Huang-nu
T A R T
lisFan Mel
Hain-hue Men
Hstierprou Men
WAI-CH'ENG
Woi�lruon
Confucius Shrine
Chung Lou
(Bell Tower)
Ku Lou
(Drum Tower)
sCITY
-yanj Men
CHINESE CI
lisitchvann
Huo-ytion
Hslen-nung Tan
(Altar of Agriculture)'
Ynnivling Men
Tung.tinvmen Station
Ti Tan
(Altar of Earth)
Yuntplur Kung
NEI-CH'ENG
T'ien ran
(Altar of Heaven)
Hu-chucing
Hurt-chino-Au-
Won
Hun-yiJon
Limo-yarn
0
Tung-lo-yuon
Kuo-yilart
Tooltchi
To
Wong-yeh-fmn
Kung,chu Ling
Jih Tan
r of the Sun)
Chl-ahlo-yiron
Ho-tan-yu
Chtion-chlong
Miles
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2. Much of Peking today is new, but the old
city remains, and its splendid remnants provide
the Communist leaders of China with an impressive
backdrop for the display of their political and
cultural programs. The population has increased
in the last 22 years from about 2 million to more
than 7 million, and the city has burst out of its
original area to spread for miles in every direction.
Much of the population increase is the result of
the annexation of sizable tracts located some
distance from the built-up area. The city is still
in the throes of a construction boom, and the
formerly low silhouette of the city is now sporad-
ically disrupted by multistory apartments, hotels,
and office buildings. Open excavations, casual
large piles of building materials, and throngs of
workers are frequent sights in the area, and
suburban industrial smoke contributes to a small
but growing pollution problem.
3. Travelers have always been strongly
attracted to Peking. Marco Polo spent the latter
part of the 13th century here, when the city was
known as Ta-tu or Khanbalic, before returning to
Europe to spread tales of Peking's fantastic
beauty and richness. His accounts appealed to
the adventurers of that day, and commerical
interests began to look with fondness on the
potentially vast and untapped Chinese market.
Relations with the Chinese developed very slowly,
however, and by the conclusion of the Mongol
Dynasty in the 14th century, Chinese rulers had
begun to look with disfavor on the further expan-
sion of contacts with foreign countries. Although
a few foreigners managed to live or to travel in
China, the Capital City of the legendary Cathay
was inaccessible for most non-Chinese in the
ensuing centuries.
4. The barriers restricting the entrance
of foreigners eventually weakened, and by the 19th
century a sizable body of non-Chinese were living
in Peking. By this time the Empire was in decay,
and Peking's grandeur was deteriorating. Xeno-
phobic inhabitants cowered in semi-seclusion
behind the myriad walls of the hu-t'ung (street
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Figure 3
The history of Peking is the story of at least six
town sites designated by eight place names, and like
most old Chinese things, the city has its true origins
shrouded in the myths and legends of the distant past.
No one can say when the site of Peking was first
occupied, but it seems reasonable to assume that the
area was settled about 2000 B.C.
Chi was the first known town on the site of modern
Peking. Located near the northwest corner of the old
walled city, it became the capital of the Yen state
under the Chou Dynasty in 723 B.C. Chi was destroyed
in 221 B.C. by Shih Huang Ti, founder of the Ch'in
Dynasty. The Peking area was of little importance
until 70 A.D., when a new city, about 3 miles south of
the site of Chi, was built under the Han Dynasty.
Called Yen-ching, it was the capital of the independ-
ent state of Yen. During the Three Kingdom Period
the name was changed to Yu-chou. The city was des-
troyed by the Khitan Tartars (Liao Dynasty) in 936,
and a larger city was built on the same site. The
new town was called Nan-thing (southern capital)
to distinguish it from a northern capital in Man-
churia, but the alternate name, Yen-thing (swallow
capital), was more commonly used.
The Liao were defeated in 1125 by the Chin (Golden)
Tartars, and Yen-ching underwent important modi-
fications. It eventually became the Chin capital,
acquired a new name, Chung-tu (central capital),
and was considerably enlarged.
The magnificence of Chung-tu disappeared in 1215
when it was destroyed by the marauding hordes of
Genghis Khan, In 1260, Kublai Khan became the
Mongol Emperor, and he ultimately moved his capi-
tal to Chung-tu. Some of the city was rebuilt, but
later abandoned as Kublai devised a grandiose plan
for a completely new city just to the north of the site
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The Evolution of Peking
City name
Chi
� Yu-chou
Nan-ching (Yen-chino)
Chung-tu
Ta-tu (Khanbalic)
Peking-1949 walls
Last date
221 B.C.
936 A.D.
1125
1215
1368
of Chung-tu. Work apparently began about 1268.
The new city was named Ta-tu (Great capital), or
Khanbalic (home of the Khan), and was declared to
be the capital of the Yuan Dynasty in 1272. This was
the first time that central control over China was
exercised from what is now Peking, and it was Ta-tu
that greeted Marco Polo, who lived in the court of
Kublai Khan and later wrote vividly of the wonders
of the city.
The Mongols were overthrown by the Ming Dynasty
and driven from Ta-tu in 1368. The new dynasty
stayed in the south at Nanking, which served as its
capital, and changed the name of Ta-tu to Pei-p'ing
(northern peace). Pei-p'ing became the seat of the
very ambitious Prince of Yen, the fourth son of the
founder of the Ming Dynasty. After the death of his
father, the prince usurped the throne and precipi-
tated a civil war for power, with the south divided
against his northern rule. After he defeated the south,
he became the Emperor Yung Lo in 1403. For a few
years he divided his time between Nanking and
Pei-p'ing, but eventually he decided to move the capi-
tal back to the north, and for this move, he began a
lengthy and comprehensive reconstruction program
in Pei-p'ing. By 1421 the program was well underway,
and Yung Lo moved into the new capital, which he
renamed Peking.
Peking was the Imperial Capital of China from 1421
until the end of the Manchu Dynasty in 1912, and it
served until 1928 as the capital of most of the country
under the Republic of China. In 1928 the Nationalists
changed the name of the city back to Pei-p'ing and
moved the capital to Nanking. Peking became the
seat of government again in 1949, when it was pro-
claimed capital of the People's Republic of China.
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or alley) compounds, and the Emperor and his retinue
remained .hidden from view in the Forbidden City.
Foreigners were shocked at the level of filth and
poverty in Peking, but most of them became fond of
the city nonetheless, and in the process learned
to respect the Chinese with whom they came in
contact. Perhaps more than the Chinese, who were
mainly deprived of any contacts with the court,
the foreigners in Peking loved to revel in images
of the city's past pageantry and splendor.
5. In June 1879, President Grant visited
Peking on a round-the-world trip following his
term of office. Denied a visit with the Boy-
Emperor or entrance to the Forbidden City, the
former President was received by the Prince-regent
in the Tartar City. Later, Grant climbed the
Tartar Wall, just south of the buildings then being
occupied by the American Legation, for a better
look at the gracefully sloping roofs of the For-
bidden City. Another former American President,
Herbert Hoover, became familiar with Peking while
he served in China as a mining engineer.
6. The shadow of seclusion that has largely
hidden Peking since 1949 now appears to be lifting.
During most of this period only a few selected
visitors were permitted .to take tightly regulated
tours of the city, and those who were accredited
to the small diplomatic communities lived an
almost contemplative existence within their com-
pounds. Visits and travel by outsiders virtually
ceased during the Cultural Revolution. Since that
time foreigners have been welcomed at an unprec-
edented rate. Travel visas are much easier to
obtain than formerly, and a sprinkling of tourists
are now permitted to visit the city. Movement
within Peking, however, remains carefully controlled.
7. What do visitors see today in Peking?
Certainly some of the, splendor'of the past is
there, but the destruction of the old city walls,
the incongruous new buildings and wide streets,
and the blare of revolutionary propaganda has
eroded the charisma of.the city, which in these
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Figure 4
Ch'ing-lung-
ch'iao
(CNha= Kuaa
Nan-k'ou-chen
Men-l'ou-kou
Fang-sha
Nan-h�yean
500748 11-71
Liang-hsi
Y ng-fang-chen
Western
Hills
Kao-ching
Ku-ch'eng
Ch'ang-hsin-tien
Clang-
thsiang
Ya-men-k'ou
Sh,irran L,ng
Shui-Vu
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+Pehing/Sha-ho-che
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5-""-"""
Airfield " MM.
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Central
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Niu-lan�shan
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Nan-yiian
Airfield
Nan-yaan
Ch'ing-On-hen
Miles
T'ung-hsient
Niu-p'u-l'un-chen
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respects seems strangely shorn of oriental mystery.
Peking resembles any number of other large Asian
cities, but it has fewer shopping centers, little
night life, and a drabness that seems almost
manufactured, as many of the new buildings, like
modern antiques, appear old. But the city today
is cleansed of its filth, and many of the earthy
street smells of the past are gone. Beneath the
revolutionary facade, the regime has taken care
to preserve whatever does not directly clash with
construction plans for the city, and although some
of the shrines, palaces, and relics of yesterday
have disappeared, most of those that remain have
been restored to their best state of repair since
the time of the Manchu Dynasty.
The Geographic Setting
8. Peking occupies a site on the northern
edge of the North China Plain, a few miles from
the mostly barren mountains that wall it in on
the north and west. An oddity among major cities,
it is not located along a stream; the major river
in the area, the Yung-ting Ho, flows across the
plain a few miles to the west. The city occupies
a slightly elevated portion of the plain and is
thus protected from the major floods that have
historically devastated large areas in this part
of China. The predominant soils of the area are
deep, fertile, and of loessial origin.
9. Although the climate of Peking is usually
considered healthful or invigorating because of
its changeability, tourists often complain that
the weather is too hot, cold, wet, or dusty.
Nevertheless the city enjoys nice spells, and if
one stays long enough, he may find the weather
delightful. While Peking and Washington, D.C.,
are at approximately the same latitude, the former
is hotter in summer, colder in winter, and does
not have the equivalent of the US Capital's usually
long and pleasant spring and autumn.
10. The longest season, winter, is dry and
clear, with little snowfall. Cold permeates the
city, which generally lacks central heating, and
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everyone bundles into extra clothing, even when
indoors. Temperatures at this time of the year
may drop below 0�F. The ground and vegetation
dry up, and by late winter, brisk winds begin to
swirl the Peking dust -- fine yellow loessial
silt that seeps into everything. Spring finally
arrives in April, but dust storms are also most
likely to sweep out of Central Asia at this time
of the year. Dust control measures involving
reforestation and the planting of grasslands and
shelter belts have proven only partially success-
ful, largely because of the widespread nature of
the storms. Locally, however, some progress has
been made by planting grass and shrubbery and by
paving streets.
11. A pleasant but short spring gives way
quickly to hot weather, and the normal summer is
characterized by spells of oppressive heat inter-
spersed with periods of heavy rainfall. Temperatures
in the summer occasionally exceed 100�F. Rainfall
is usually insignificant until June, but seasonal
distributional patterns and amounts are highly
vatiable. Sometimes the rains start later in
summer; worse, in some years, it hardly rains at
all. Normally, however, the rains begin in June
and build up to a maximum in July, when almost 40
percent of the total annual precipitation occurs,
much of it in downpours associated with violent
thunderstorms. Most foreigners living in Peking
prior to 1949 made it a habit to flee the city in
early summer and to spend as much time as possible
on the cool wooded slopes of the Western Hills.
12. Probably the best time of the year to
visit Peking is late September and early October,
after the summer rains lose their intensity.
During this short and pleasant period Peking .
remains green and cool, prior to an abrupt tran-
sition into winter.
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(Summer Nue)
Overview of the City
General Plan
13. When the Communists assumed control of
Peking in 1949, the slightly tattered city was
essentially the same Imperial City that served
the Ming and Manchu Dynasties. Most of it was
confined within an imposing outer wall, pierced
by only 13 gates and a few railroad lines. Inside
the walls, the city was divided into two main
sections -- the Tartar City in the north, and the
Chinese City in the south. This division had its
origin during the Mongol period. At that time the
Chinese were not permitted to live inside the
walled city, which was reserved for Mongol princes
and officials. This situation continued even after
the Ming walls were built. The Chinese town re-
mained outside until 1553, when Emperor Chia
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Ching* finally completed the long-planned enclosure
of the Chinese City.
14. The Tartar City contained three walled
enclosures -- the Imperial City (Huang Ch'eng),
the Purple Forbidden City (Tzu-chin Ch'eng), and
the Legation Quarter. The Imperial City, the
housekeeping organ of the palace and the Govern-
ment, was located in the center of the Tartar City
and completely enclosed the Forbidden City, the
seat of the Emperor. High walls and a wide moat
further insulated the Forbidden City, even within
the Imperial City. The newest walled division
within Peking -- the Legation Quarter -- housed
most of the foreign legations and was built in
1901 after the Boxer Uprising. The systems of
walls are now mostly destroyed, and the Forbidden
City, referred to as the Palace Museum, is the
only unit that survives intact.
Suburban Expansion
15. The buildings and streets of the old
city are in sharp contrast with those in the newer
suburbs, although everywhere the street patterns
are square. In the residential sections of the
old city the squat, gray, mostly tile-roofed
buildings are huddled closely together behind
nondescript walls; in the suburbs, on the other
hand, buildings are more widely spaced and taller.
The tremendous suburban growth of Peking has
apparently followed orderly guidelines. New
residential, institutional, and governmental
*Emperors in China had at least three names: a
personal name, a dynastic reign title, and a
posthumous name. The personal name was used before
the ascendency, the reign title during the period
of rule, and the posthumous name after the death of
the emperor. Throughout this text, emperors are
referred to by their best known name -- the reign
title -- a common practice among western writers.
(See Appendix on Ming and Manchu Dynasties on page 73.)
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Growth of Peking Since 1949
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Peking in 1949
FUNCTIONAL AREAS
F71 Commercial-Industrial
Eii,1 Governmental-Institutional-Park
I�I Military
Residential
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RELEASABLE TO UX, CANADA, AUSTRALIA, AND NEW ZEALAND
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Figure 8. West Ch'ang-an Boulevard near the old city
wall. The low buildings (foreground) in the old city
contrast with the taller modern buildings (background)
in the new sections outside the west wall (still standing
in 1966). Peking Broadcast House is to the left just
outside Fu-hsing Men, the opening in the wall. The
spire in the distant center background is that of the
Military Museum.
complexes are generally located either in or
close to the old city, and new industrial plants
and agricultural communes are situated in the
far suburbs. Most universities and research
and governmental institutions are concentrated
in the northern and western suburbs -- a planned
institutional growth that was originally conceived
in the 1930's. The eastern outskirts are heavily
industrial, but the largest major industrial
complex is in the far western suburbs near the
Shih-ching-shan Iron and Steel Plant along the
Yung-ting Ho (River). The scope of development
in the southern suburbs has been relatively limited.
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Figure 9. Cotton textile mills in the east suburbs. A
fourth plant has been added since this photo was taken in
1959. Workers housing is at left.
Industry
16. Industrial growth has placed some emphasis
on the production of communications and electrical
equipment, electronics equipment, and advanced
military weapons. Although industrial development
has been highly diverse, Peking still ranks con-
siderably below such other industrial centers as
Shanghai, Mukden, Dairen, Lan-chou, and Wu-han.
Nevertheless the city is now a significant producer
of textiles and synthetic fibers, petrochemicals,
automotive and agricultural equipment, and light
and heavy machinery. It has a large and growing
skilled labor force, and its position in most
enterprises is supported by the presence of the
nation's leading technical research facilities and
personnel.
Agriculture
17. Peking, like all major cities in China,
must grow most of its own food, and the task is
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Figure 10. Agricultural commune in outskirts of Peking.
These are hothouses for growing winter vegetables.
assigned to large agricultural communes in the
suburbs. The communes are also used to demonstrate
the agricultural advances of China and to experi-
ment with new farming techniques. Many of the
large communes, especially those visited by foreign
dignitaries, are of the "showcase" variety and
probably are not typical of those in other sections
of the country. Impressions of Chinese agriculture
gained from visits to them could be misleading.
One commune, for example, features milk cows, a
rarity in China.
Transportation
18. Although Peking is a very busy city, it
s relatively unencumbered by the traffic jams and
the usual rush-hour patterns of other major cities,
mainly because of the lack of privately owned
automobiles and the absence of a principal central
business district that would concentrate traffic
flow toward one sector of the city. Furthermore,
the distances traveled are reasonably short, and
most people either walk or use bicycles; workers
in Peking's factories usually live in dormitories
or apartments near their work. Still, Peking's
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Figure 11. Peking subway under construction. This view from
the south side of Hsin-chiao Hotel shows subway construction
on the site of the old city wall.
Figure 12. Light traffic in T'ien-an Men Square. Pedicabs
carry a large volume of goods in Peking. lien-an Men and
the reviewing stands for national parades are in the background.
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Figure 13. Street corner in Peking. Pedestrians and bicycles
account for most of the traffic at this intersection. The old
lady with the cane has bound feet.
Figure 14. Peking Central Airport Terminal. Completed
in the late 1950's, the airport handles international traffic
for the Chinese capital.
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streets are filled with a conglomeration of
pedestrians and vehicles -- buses, trolleys, and
bicycles -- and everyone seems to be "on the go."
Few are idle in this city where even mothers of
young children hold full-time jobs, leaving their
offspring in nurseries during working hours.
19. The monumental project of today is the
subway system that will eventually link all of
the major portions of the enlarged city. The
first completed segment connects the main rail-
road station in the eastern portion of the old
city, via 16 subway stations along a 23-kilometer
route, with the Shih-ching-shan Iron and Steel
Plant to the west.
20. The role of Peking as a major trans-
portation center has changed little, except that
the airplane is now more frequently used for
intercity passenger travel and the haulage of
small, light goods. Most intercity transport --
freight and passengex -- is accomplished by train,
and major railroad lines radiate from the city.
Although growing in importance, the truck transport
industry is still in its infancy, there being .a lack
of both good roads and large vehicles. Water
transport, which was formerly a significant
carrier of goods into Peking, especially via the
Grand Canal, is now regaining some of its former
importance.
21. There are a number of airfields in the
Peking area, but most of them are for military
use. Nearly all civil traffic uses the Peking
Central Airport (Capital Airport), one of the
few international airfields in China; it is
located about 10 miles northeast of the city.
The Chinese civil airline is growing, but its
equipment, judged by international standards, is
outdated. Accordingly, flights are programmed to
take advantage of good weather and daylight hours
Public Services
22. Most of Peking's water supply in the
past was derived from wells. This source has
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Figure 15
Water Supply
Kuan-eing
Shui-k'd
Shin-san Ling
Shui-Wo
rung.tingHI
Aqueduct
1,0
500760 11,71
Miles
Huarga
Shui-k`u
proved insufficient in recent years, however, and
water has been increasingly transported to the
city from nearby springs, rivers, and reservoirs.
Two notable water-supply projects completed by
the Communists are the Yung-ting Ho Aqueduct and
theiPeking--Mi-yidn Canal. The Yung-ting Ho Aqueduct
brings water from an intake dam on the Yung-ting
River through a combination canal and tunnel along
a 21-kilometer course. The Peking--Mi-yun Canal
carries water to Peking from the Mi-yUn Reservoir,
about 70 kilometers to the northeast on the Ch'ao-pai
Ho. This wide canal follows a circuitous 110-kilo-
meter route along the base of the mountains to the
north and west of Peking, and reportedly, it can
accommodate vessels of up to 1,000 tons. The
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completion of both of these very impressive projects
undoubtedly required tremendous inputs of labor.
23. Trash is no longer dumped into the
hu-t'ungs (streets or alleys), which are now
carefully swept by the inhabitants, whether paved
or not. Underground sewers have replaced most of
the large open ditches that in the past drained
sewage from the residential sections.
Figure 16. Water Supply Canal north of the Summer Palace.
The canal passes through a typical small agricultural
village in the suburbs of Peking.
24. Air pollution is a concern in Peking,
but it is much less of a problem here than it is
elsewhere in cities of comparable size. Industrial
plants add smoke to the atmosphere, of course, but
most industries are situated in the eastern and
southern suburbs, where the prevailing northwesterly
winds help to move it away from the city. Other
plants, such as those along the Yung-ting River,
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are situated far enough from the city that the
smoke they generate is dissipated somewhat before
it can reach Peking. Home heating systems are the
main polluters of the atmosphere in Peking, where
practically all heating depends on coal. The smoke
of home heaters all over the city can contribute
to the massive pollution of the air during the long
cold winter.
Security
25. Soldiers and military vehicles are in
evidence on the streets of Peking, but only in
small numbers. Military installations in the city
are either so unobstrusive that they warrant little
attention or they are located in remote suburban
sites, protected from the scrutiny of visitors.
Probably the most sensitive military areas are in
the western suburbs -- the site of important state
agency and military headquarters. Certainly, the
Chinese are excessively secretive, and in addition,
they wish to present only favorable images of their
country. Thus the movements of visitors in Peking
have been controlled in an effort to demonstrate
the economic and sociological advances of the
regime, while minimizing the flow of intelligence
to "imperialistic" countries.
26. Large numbers of military personnel move
into Peking's streets during visits by prominent
foreign officials. At these times the street
corners are well patrolled, and the normally
light traffic is completely controlled. Since
1969, Chinese crowds have usually been docile
and friendly -- responsive to the wishes of the
Government. Visitors are permitted considerable
freedom of movement, but only under the watchful
eyes of helpful guides, who provide translation
services and act as buffers to minimize visitor
contact with the Chinese people. Normally, the
Chinese do not like to be photographed without
permission.
Hotel Accommodations
27. Of the major hotels in Peking, only two
predate the present Government -- the Peking and
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the Kuo-chi (formerly Grand Hotel des Wagon Lits).
The Peking has been enlarged and completely
renovated, but the current status of the Wagon
Lits is unknown. Most of the recent foreign
visitors have been accommodated at the Hsin-chiao
Hotel, located near the southeast corner of the
old Legation Quarter. The Min-tzu (Nationalities)
Hotel, on West Chiang-an Boulevard, just west of
the Cultural Palace of the Nationalities, has
usually been reserved for Afro-Asian visitors.
The Overseas Chinese Hotel is located northeast of
the Forbidden City, adjacent to the Museum of Fine
Arts and the nearby Ho-p'ing (Peace) Hotel. The
Ch'ien-men, to the west of the Altar of Heaven, is
the only large hotel in the old Chinese City. Most
of the smaller hotels, hostels, and guesthouses in
the city do not accommodate foreign guests.
28. Foreign dignitaries are usually accom-
modated in their respective embassies or at one of
the better government guesthouses. Some of the
finest guesthouses are located in a parklike
compound in the western suburbs, just east of
Yu-yuan T'an, about a mile west of the old city.
The former site of an Imperial residence known as
Tiao-yu T'ai (Fishing Terrace), this pleasant, .
secluded compound contains some of the finest
modern residences in the Peking area, and it has
been used by only the most distinguished guests.
Patterns of Life
29. Living habits among the Chinese in
Peking have changed only moderately, even though
most of the people may be living in an apartment
or dormitory for the first time. Facilities are
crowded, but crowding is accepted by the Chinese,
who are accustomed to living in small places.
Family apartments often consist of one room, with
toilet and kitchen facilities being shared with
other families. Dormitories usually house four
people to a room.
30. Most people still wear blue clothing as
they always have. While other colors are not un-
common, especially among the women and the young,
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Fifture 17. Apartments in eastern suburbs. These are typical
of the better apartments for workers.
Figure 18. Walled hu-t'ung in old city. Walls or backs of
buildings commonly front the narrow streets and alleys of
old Peking and most homes are hidden from view.
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Figure 19. Narrow hu-t'ung in old city. Small shops
and homes line this improved alley in one of the
poorer sections of town.
Figure 20. Peking backyard barbecue. Chinese women
often cook meals outdoors on charcoal stoves.
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all clothing seems to have a unity of style that
is depressingly austere. Most of the women wear
pantsuits, which are masculine, pajama-style
outfits that do little to identify the sex of the
wearer. Recently, women have been encouraged to
wear clothing that is more feminine.
31. Lacking private refrigeration, the
Chinese buy food on an almost daily basis. They
make many of their purchases in markets and small
shops, however, instead of relying on street
hawkers as they did in the past. The people still
spend much of their time on the streets, particu-
larly when the weather is good, and peddlers
continue to hawk their wares, but at a pace that
is much reduced from that which prevailed when
practically all the necessities of life could be
purchased at the doorstep. The once popular pastime
of haggling is almost unheard these days, and it
is hardly needed as food prices are set low by the
Government. There are no supermarkets or self-
serve stores.
32. Food in Peking is now in better supply
than ever before, and beggars and emaciated
individuals are no longer observed in the streets.
While eating out is a favorite pastime, the average
person cannot afford to patronize the better
restaurants. The Chinese tend to dine in low-
priced cafeterias, and in most neighborhoods small
food shops offer simple meals at reasonable prices.
Food stands and tea shops are also popular. For
those with ample funds, the gustatory delights of
Peking have not changed. Foreign visitors are
usually impressed by the variety and quality of
the food served in Peking restaurants, and are
amazed by the relatively low prices.
33. Recreation in Peking now stresses whole-
some athletics, and the illicit pleasures and much
of the night life of pre-Communist days have
disappeared. The numerous large sports complexes
are in almost constant use, and most organizations
have athletic fields or facilities to accommodate
workers and students. Calisthenics are engaged in
at prescribed times during the working day, often
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with great fervor. Theaters still abound in Peking
although the fare is slim, the dominant theme of
most productions at this time being political.
Points of interest in the City and its Suburbs
Tartar City
Imperial City
34. Although the former significance of
the old Imperial City as home of the Emperor and
seat of the Government is gone, this section of
the Tartar City retains its importance. No longer
existing as an entity, the outlines of the Imperial
City are nevertheless still traceable. Many of the
state and military offices are located here and
political control still seems to emanate from this
quarter of the city.
35. Almost every tour of Peking begins at
T'ien-an Men Square, said by the Chinese to be the
largest square in the world. Comprised of some
100 acres of granite slabs, it is large enough to
contain about 75 American football fields. Tiien-an
Men (Gate of Heavenly Peace), with its portrait of
Mao Tse-tung, overlooks the square on the north,
and during the massive parades and celebrations that
are held here, it serves as a reviewing stand for
the Party hierarchy. At the south center of the
square is the Monument to the People's Heroes, a
pine and cypress park, and a bus station. Flanking
the square on the west is the National People's
Congress Building, and on the east is the building
that contains the Revolutionary and Historical
Museum. Both of these massive stone buildings
were completed in a flurry of construction in 1958.
36. Prior to 1949 the square in front of
T'ien-an Men was much smaller. At that time it
was included within an extension of the walls of
the Forbidden City, the site of the Imperial Palace
which it served as an outer courtyard. Behind
T'ien-an Men, the gracefully curved, yellow-tiled
roofs of :the city peep over the walls, although
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Figure 22. T'ien-an Men Square from Pek
leads westward past Fien-an Men and Tua
Revolutionary and Historical Museum is
People's Congress Building is on the sam
across the square.
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3ek1ng Hotel. Chiang-an Boulevard
Nan Men (at right). The
3 on the left, and the National
3ame side of the boulevard but
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three more gates and courtyards bar entrance to
the former palace of the Emperor.
37. After the fall of the Manchu Dynasty,
the walls of the Imperial City were gradually
removed to facilitate east-west movement, and
today only the southern wall along Ch'ang-an
Boulevard remains standing. While the functions
of the old Imperial City have changed, most of
the original structures remain, and it is still
possible to appreciate their relative role in
Imperial China.
38. Two parks -- Chung Shan (Sun Yat-sen) and
People's Cultural Park -- are located just inside
the walls of the old Imperial City behind T'ien-an
Men. Chung Shan Park, also known as Central Park,
is to the northwest of T'ien-an Men. It was a
palace, playground and the site of the Altar of the
Earth and Harvests (She-chi T'an). Only the Emperor
was entitled to sacrifice at this altar, which he
did on prescribed days in the spring and the autumn.
Near the entrance of the park is a marble p'ai-lou
(commemorative archway), on which is inscribed
characters that transliterate "Kung-li Chan-sheng"
("Right Triumphs Over Might"). This p'ai-lou was
erected by the Chinese Government in memory of
Baron Ketteler, a German killed during the Boxer
Uprising. Following World War I, it was dismantled
and moved from its original location near the
Legation Quarter to its present site; at that time
the new inscription was added. Numerous statues,
small pavilions, a pedestal to Sun Yat7sen, and a
roofed, open-air theater are some of the features
of the park. Shaded walks and peony beds around
the p'ai-lou attract large numbers of people.
39. The People's Cultural Park, formerly
T'ai Miao (Temple of Ancestors), is to the north-
east of T'ien-an Men. Under the Emperors, this
was the most sacred spot in Peking, except for
the Altar of Heaven. The spirit tablets (simple
strips of lacquered wood in which the spirit of
the departed was supposed to reside) of the
Emperors and their consorts were kept here.
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Sacrificial ceremonies were performed periodically
by the Emperors, and homage was paid to the ances-
tors on special occasions, such as weddings or
coronations .� Years ago, prisoners of war were
sometimes marched into the courtyard in order that
they might be viewed by the spirits of the departed
Emperors. The Temple of Ancestors also contained
the spirit tablets of important princes, dukes,
and ministers. Some of the tablets are those of
Manchu ancestors who were canonized as Emperors
with posthumous honors.. Today the temple is used
as a place of recreation and amusement, and
cultural and industrial exhibitions have sometimes
been held here. Table tennis is often played in
the buildings. The beautiful gardens and the
cypress trees add to its general appeal.
40. A small, man-made hill (Ching Shan or
Prospect Hill) dominates the northern edge of the
Forbidden City. This hill has traditionally been
called Mel Shan (Coal Hill), but during the
Cultural Revolution, the name was officially
changed to Red Guard's Park. The hill was con-
structed for geomantic reasons to guard the
Forbidden City against evil influences that might
blow in from the north. It is recorded that during
the Liao Dynasty a large amount of coal and
charcoal was stored here for emergency use; this
fuel laid the foundation for the present hill,
hence the name Coal Hill. Recent excavations have
not -fevealed any evidence to verify the story.
Ching Shan was a place of rest and recreation for
the Emperor, and a system of paths leading to five
pavilions are laid out among the trees on its
slopes. Until the recent addition of high buildings
in Peking, Ching Shan provided the best vantage
point for observation of the city.
41. On West Ch'ang-an (Hsi-ch'ang-an)
Boulevard, about 1 kilometer west of T'ien-an Men,
is a two-story building usually identified as the
official residence of Mao Tse-tung. This is the
Hsin-hua Men (Gate of New China), the front
entrance to what is probably the most beautiful
part of the Imperial City -- the area around the
three "seas" (lakes) -- Nan (South), Chung (Central)
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Figure 23. Hsin-hua Men. This is the building usually
identified as the office of Mao Tse-tung.
and Pei (North). The building was constructed
originally as a pavilion by Emperor Ch'ien Lung
for his Mohammedan concubine, known as Hsiang Fei
(Fragrant Concubine), but more commonly referred
to as K'o Fei (Stranger Concubine).
42. Inside the wall, to the north of the
Hsin-hua Men, the three "seas" provide the setting
for beautiful buildings that were known in Imperial
times as the Sea Palaces. This area was a resort
for most of the Emperors and it served as a source
of relief from the formalized ceremonial living
that prevailed inside the walls of the Forbidden
City.
43. The lakes date back to the 12th century,
when one of the Chin Emperors diverted water into
the Pei Hai (North Sea) from a spring near the
present Summer Palace. Kublai Khan enlarged the
lake and the park, built the hill on which the
White Dogoba (Pai T'a) now stands, and planted
trees from various parts of the country so the
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hillside would be green throughout the year. The
Ming Emperor Yung Lo dug out all three lakes and
added considerably to the parks and buildings.
Succeeding rulers continued the work, but none was
as energetic as the Empress-dowager Tz'u Hsi, who
spent much of her time in the Sea Palaces and
loved the winter carnivals that were held here.
44. The areas adjacent to the Central and South
lakes are traditionally more secluded and restricted
from public use than the Pei Hai, which is now a
public park. Most of the Imperial residences and
audience halls were located around Chung and Nan
lakes. When the Chinese Republic was founded in
1912, the area was selected by President Yuan
Shih-k'ai as his home and executive offices. Later
presidents and some of the warlords also stayed
here. Mao Tse-tung's official residence, if not
in the Hsin-hua Men, is probably somewhere near the
Nan Hai. Some visitors have been told that Mao
lives on the Ying T'ai, the island in the middle
of the Nan Hai. This small compound of beautiful
Chinese-style buildings was the prison home of
Manchu Emperor Kuang Hsu' during the last years of
his reign.
Figure 24. The Peking National Library. The White Dagoba
in Pei Hai Park is visible over the trees at right.
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Figure 25. Pei Hai. The lake is used for boating in summer
and ice-skating in winter. This northwest view from one of
the restaurants in the area is toward the Ministry of National
Defense (left) and the Five Dragon Pavilion.
Figure 26 White Dagoba Island, Pei Hai. Built to commemorate
the Dalai Lama's first visit to Peking in 1651, the dagoba
crowns the hilly island on which it stands and serves as a
vantage point for views of the Forbidden City and the North,
Central, and South Lakes. In the left background of this
eastward view is Ching Shan.
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45. The park and shrines around the Pei Hai
probably comprise the most popular recreation area
in the Imperial City. Boating, swimming, ice
skating, and basketball are among the most common
sports enjoyed in the park. The long promenades
and the restaurants and refreshment stands accom-
modate large numbers of people who flock to the
park on weekends. Some of the shrines and
pavilions are very old, but most are relatively
new or have been rebuilt. The White Dogoba dates
to 1651, when it was built to commemorate the first
visit to Peking of the Dalai Lama. The ,wall that
encloses the Circular City (T'uan Ch'eng) dates to
1417, but the present buildings were erected in
1746. _The. marble arch bridge (Imperial Canal
Bridge, Yu-ho Ch'iao) that marks the boundary
between Pei Hai and Chung Hai was built in 1956
to replace a similar bridge that proved much too
narrow for the current heavy volume of traffic.
A very prominent complex of multistoried buildings
.just to the west of Pei Hai Park is occupied by
the Ministry of National Defense.
46. On the north side of the road just west
of the marble Imperial Canal Bridge is the National
Library (Peking Library). It was built on the old
site of a temple and of a palace in which the
Emperor Hung Chih was born in 1486. The library
is a popular place for study and is the repository
of many cultural works.
47. A few blocks west of the library, and on
the same side of the street, is the land that leads
to the North Cathedral (Pei T'ang). On of the last
relics of the RoMan Catholic faith in Peking, it
is still open to the public. The cathedral was
originally situated just outside the wall to the
west of the Central Lake on a site presented to
the Jesuits in 1693 by Emperor K'ang Hsi. The
cathedral was closed and demolished in 1827 during
a period of persecution under the Emperor Tao
Kuang. The property was given back to the Catholic
missions in 1860, and a new church was built in
1867. In 1885, however, Empress-dowager Tz'u Hsi
moved into her new palaces on the Central Lake and
objected to the cathedral that overlooked her
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residence. Negotiations led the Jesuits to accept
the present site, well to the northwest of the
palace, for a new church. The existing cathedral
was completed in 1887.
48. Within the Imperial City is the Forbidden
City, first opened to the public on August 28, 1900,
after the Boxer Uprising, when the allies* staged
a victory parade across the main courtyards. The
Forbidden City was closed again in 1902 when the
Emperor resumed his residency. Royal occupation
of the palaces finally ceased on November 5, 1924,
when Emperor Hstian T'ung (Henry P'u-i) was sum-
marily evicted from the palaces by Feng Yu-hsiang,
the "Christian General." The palaces were later
opened to the public, and visitors were permitted
to visit parts of them until 1966, when they were
closed. Today much of the Forbidden City is open
again to the public.
49. The Forbidden City is surrounded by a
moat 160 feet wide and by walls more than 35 feet
high. Covering a 250-acre expanse in the geo-
graphical center of Peking, it comprised about
one-sixth of the former Imperial City, which
housed the administrative and maintenance organi-
zations, graneries, stables, orchards, parks,
residences of officials and princes, and some of
the palaces and pleasure gardens of the Emperor.
50. The fabled magnificence and inaccessi-
bility of the Forbidden City has promoted interest
in it for centuries, but the palace proves a mild
disappointment for many visitors. Unquestionably,
the concept and layout of the palace is very
impressive, but it is difficult for people today to
appreciate Imperial accommodations in these some-
what crude buildings. The Palate consists of a
large number of detached single-storied buildings,
one behind the other; they are separated by
*British, French, Russian, German, Japanese, and
Americans.
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Figure 27. The Forbidden City.
the Court of the Golden River, th
the palace, is toward the Gate of
marble bridges across the Golden
are known as the "Five Arrows."
the Emperor could use the center
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This northward view over
-le second largest court in
F Supreme Harmony. The
River (canal in foreground)
In Imperial China, only
path and gate.
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Figure 28. Rear entrance of Forbidden City. Southward view
from Ching Shan.
immense paved courtyards, along the sides of which
are the former residences of servants and attendants.
The outer pavilions are a series of throne rooms in
which audience was given according to the 'rank of
the individual admitted. The room nearest the gate
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sufficed for the reception of lesser mandarins or
envoys of petty states, and the rooms farther into
the palace were used for the higher nobility and
representatives of greater nations.
Eastern Half of Tartar City
51. Most of the buildings in the old
Legation Quarter remain almost intact, although
the foreign delegations have been moved to the
eastern suburbs. The Chinese have constructed a
few large modern buildings, especially on the old
glacis*, now studded with buildings, except for
a space in the east that has been reserved as the
Tung-tan Park. The American Embassy is intact,
and some new buildings have been erected on the
former military drill ground northeast of Ch'ien
Men. The International Club in the eastern part
of the old Legation Quarter is still in use.
52. The Russian Embassy occupies a 400-yard
square compound (Pei Kuan, or North Hostel) in the
northeast corner of the old walled city; at this
time it is the only embassy in the old Tartar City.
Its site has been utilized by Russian clerics and
diplomats for almost three centuries beginning in
1685 when Emperor K'ang Hsi allowed a large group
of Cossack prisoners taken at the seige of Albaiin,
on the Amur River, to settle here. Later on,
additional priests were permitted to reside in the
compound, and after the Treaty of Kiakta in 1727,
the Orthodox ecclesiastical mission was officially
recognized and given semi-diplomatic powers. This
mission established a cloister (Nan Kuan; South
Hostel) in what was to become the Legation Quarter.
In 1858 the mission gave up Nan Kuan to the Russian
Legation and moved to Pei Kuan. Nearly every
building in the Pei Kuan was destroyed and their
occupants murdered in 1900 by the Boxers. The
monks later rebuilt the mission and considerably
*A grass-covered plain that formed a buffer between
the Tartar City and the walls of the Legation
Quarter.
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enlarged it. After World War II the mission's
land was taken over by the Soviet Embassy.
53. just to the northeast of the Peking Hotel
is a large hospital compound that was formerly known
as the Peking Union Medical College. Originally
built, equipped, and maintained by Rockefeller
Foundation funds, it is still one of the most
modern and best-equipped hospitals in China. Most
of the original green, tile-roofed hospital build-
ings are still in use, and some new and larger
buildings have been added. The complex was known
as the Anti-Imperialist Hospital in 1970, but
later that year it was renamed Friendship Hospital.
54. Near the hospital is Peking's main shopping
center; it is concentrated along a few blocks of
Wang-fu-ching Ta-chieh (Street). Among shops and
stores of note are the Peking Department Store and
the Tung-an People's Market.
55. Diagonally northwest of the Overseas
Chinese Hotel is the Museum of Fine Arts, a striking
example of traditional Chinese architecture. Built
by the present regime, it has a wide range of
Chinese works of art on exhibit.
56. The ancient Peking Astronomical Observatory
(Kuan-hsiang T'ai; Watching the Luminaries Terrace),
just south of East Ch'ang-an (Tung-ch'ang-an Chieh)
Boulevard, is a unique institution. It was first
established in the late 13th century by Mongol
Emperor Kublai Khan on the southeast corner of the
Tartar Wall. When the last wall was razed, the
observatory, along with a portion of the wall, was
preserved. Most of the instruments in the observ-
atory date to 1674; they were made by the Jesuit
priest, Ferdinand Verbiest, on orders from Emperor
K'ang Hsi. Considering their vintage, they are
remarkably precise. The Germans looted the obser-
atory in 1901 and took most of the instruments to
Potsdam, but they were returned to Peking in 1919
following the Treaty of Versailles.
57. The new Peking Railway Station occupies
a large area in the southeast corner of the old
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Figure 29. Side street in main shopping area. This view is
of an alley off Wang-fu-ching Street near the Peking Department
Store. Some buildings of the Friendship Hospital (formerly
Peking Union Medical College) are at the end of the street.
Figure 30. Peking Astronomical Observatory on a remnant of
the old east wall of Peking. These are some of the ancient
instruments that were fabricated in the 17th century.
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Figure 31. The Peking Railroad Station. The subway now
traverses the area beneath the square in front of the station.
Tartar City. A large and gaudy building graced
with a Chinese-style roof, it is operated with
efficiency, but the bustle that characterizes
stations of similar size in other countries is
lacking.
58. The Temple of Confucious (Klung Miao),
the Lama Temple (Yung-ho Kung), and the Hall of
Classics (Kuo-tzu Chien) are three important
features of the northeastern part of the old
Tartar City. The Lama Temple (more properly
a monastery or gompa) is one of the oldest and
best preserved temples in Peking. It was the home
of Manchu Emperor Yung Cheng, and in accordance
with ancient custom it could not be used by his
descendants after he ascended the throne. His
son, Emperor Ch'ien Lung, therefore converted the
palace into a temple in 1745. It developed great
religious and political importance, serving as
the former residence of a living Buddha and the
home of approximately 1,500 priests. Although the
temple has been renovated, only a few priests remain.
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Figure 32. Escalator in the Peking Railroad Station. Bound
feet, such as those of the two old women shown, are an in-
frequent sight in Peking.
59. Just west of the Lama Temple is the
former Temple of Confucius, also known as the Civil
Temple (Wen Miao) or Altar of the Master Teacher
(Hsien-shih T'an). This temple served the ancient,
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Figure 33. Lama Temple (Yung-ho Kung). This is one of many
beautiful buildings on the temple grounds.
although nonreligious, practice of honoring the
great teacher with certain rites of worship,
especially on the anniversary of his birth. The
temple was built by the Mongol Emperor Chih Cheng
toward the end of the 13th century, and its last
major rebuilding occurred in 1737. It follows the
general design of other Confucian temples in China,
and its main hall, the Hall of Great Perfection
(Ta-chreng Tien), is a masterpiece of classical
Chinese design. The temple is now being used as
an educational facility; it reportedly houses
schools of drama and printing and is not open to
visitors.
60. The Hall of Classics adjoins the Temple
of Confucius on the west. It was originally a
private school under the Mongols, but it was en-
larged and converted into a national university
by the Emperor Yung Lo. The present buildings
date from 1783. At that time the Emperor Chtien
Lung had a complete text of the classics carved,
with 80,000 characters, into 300 stone tablets.
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Figure 34. Northern part of Tartar City. Looking northward
from Ching Shan over the children's playground and young
people's dormitories. Drum Tower is in the background.
He did so to guard against the recurrence of a
disaster -- such as the burning of the books under
the Ch'in Emperor Shih Huang Ti in 213 B.C. In
recent years the hall has been converted into a
municipal library, and the stone tablets are
stored in an annex.
61. Due north from Ching Shan and the For-
bidden City are two historic landmarks, the Bell
Tower (Chung Lou) and the Drum Tower (Ku Lou).
These two dissimilar buildings are less than 500
feet apart, and they dominate the skyline about a
mile north of Ching Shan.
62. The oldest of the two, the 90-foot Bell
Tower, was built during the Mongol Dynasty and
moved to its present site in 1420, when Ming
Emperor Yung Lo built the Drum Tower. The Bell
Tower was later destroyed by fire and rebuilt again
in 1745. Its 10-ton bell tolled the curfew each
night until early in this century, but now it has
been removed to a site near the Drum Tower. The
tower became a movie theater under the Republic,
and it now serves as a children's library.
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63. Drum Tower is the more imposing and the
taller of the two. At 99 feet it is on a level
with the highest guard towers in Peking. In old
China, it was believed that the fiercest kinds of
demons flew at heights of about 100 feet; there-
fore most buildings and guard towers were built
just short of that level. The Drum Tower is
constructed of materials salvaged from an older
Mongol drum tower that stood about 100 yards west
of the present site. In Ming times, the drum beat
in Drum Tower would precede the tolling of the bell
in Bell Tower. At that time there was in Drum
Tower a unique water clock, or clepsydra,
that calculated the quarter hour divisions, at
which intervals a large cymbal was sounded. The
clepsydra disappeared after the Boxer Uprising,
but the drums continued in use to sound the watch.
Later the tower was used by the Kuomintang as a
propaganda headquarters; it now houses a cultural
center.
Western Half of Tartar City
64. In the western part of Tartar City
there are fewer points of interest than in the
eastern part. The Central Telegraph Building and
the Cultural Palace ot the Nationalities are
located on the north side of Ch'ang-an Boulevard,
west of T'ien-an Men. The former occupies a neat
functional building, quite in contrast to the
lavish, Chinese-style architecture embodied in the
latter. The Cultural Palace of the Nationalities,
a spreading, white building crowned with a blue-
tiled roof and a central tower of 13 stories, is
probably one of the tallest structures in Peking.
It contains a museum in which the achievements of
various nationalities are exhibited; a library
and auditorium; a dance hall; and sports and
recreation rooms. The library concentrates on the
history and culture of the minority peoples of
China to whom the palace is dedicated.
65. In the northwest less than a mile west
of Pei-t'ang, is one of the oldest monuments in
Peking, the White Pagoda Temple (Pai-t'a Ssu). A
prominent landmark, this bell-shaped stupa was
originally built in the 11th century, but it was
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Figure 35. The Cultural Palace of the Nationalities. The
Forbidden City and Tien-an Men Square are in the background
to the east along Ch'ang-an Boulevard. The tower in the
distance is on the Peking Telegraph Office.
repaired and considerably improved by Kublai Khan
late in the 13th century. Almost a twin of the
White Dagoba in the Pei Hai Park, it is sometimes
called the White Dagoba. Fairs were formerly held
on the temple grounds.
66. East of the White Pagoda is the Temple
of Broad ,Charity (Kuang-chi Ssu). It dates to the
Chin Dynasty and is more than 800 years old. Over
the years the temple has been repaired or rebuilt
a number of times and large portions of it were
destroyed by fire in 1932. Currently it is the
repository of some ancient Buddhist writings, and
it also serves as the home of the Chinese Buddhist
As
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67. The Lu Hsun Museum is a popular shrine
situated near the White Pagoda. Named for an early
Communist leader who lived here, the museum contains
copies of his writings and exhibits that depict his
travels and experiences. His home has been care-
fully preserved and is an important part of the
museum. It is an excellent example of a typical
Peking home.
Chinese City
68. The mile-square Altar of Heaven (T'ien
T'an), the most sacred spot in Imperial Peking,
probably remains the most important temple in
China to this day. A grandiose structure of immense
proportions, it contains majestic temples, halls,
gates, and gardens. The culminating feature within
it is the altar, which in former times only the
Emperor could ascend; this he did annually to offer
sacrifices to the Supreme Being.
69. The current regime has kept the Altar of
Heaven in good condition and uses it mainly as a
park. Although some of the grounds have been
excavated in recent years, the Chinese have re-
planted and landscaped work areas in order to retain
the temple's integrity. Some of the western annexes
now house a hospital and a medical research center.
Just to the north of the entrance to the temple is
the Museum of Natural History, a modern building
in which exhibits in zoology, botany, and paleon-
tology are displayed.
70. West of the Altar of Heaven is the site
of the former Altar of Agriculture (Hsien-nung
T'an). Each spring the Emperor came here to make
sacrifices designed to obtain rain; he would also
plow the first furrows in plots set aside for the
growing of ceremonial grain. Other officials
finished the plowing and then planted the crop.
The grain harvested from these plots was stored in
a special granary and used at sacrificial ceremonies.
During this century the Altar of Agriculture declined,
and the buildings comprising it fell into disrepair.
Under the present regime the temple area has been
converted into a sports playground that features
a 30,000-seat stadium and a large swimming pool.
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Figure 36. The Altar of Heaven. This northward
view from a point near the main altar looks over
the Temple of the God of the Universe (center)
to the gateway of the Hall of Annual Prayers
(background
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Figure 37. Tao-jan-ting Park. The pleasant atmosphere of the park has
made it one of the most popular places for visits in the southern part
of the city.
Figure 38.
Commercial alley
in the old
Chinese city.
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Figure 39. Main Street in the old Chinese city. This is
Ch'ien-men Ta-chieh, the main north-south street in the old
Chinese City. View is north toward Chien Men, one of the
few gates that are still standing.
71. West of the Altar of Agriculture is the
Joyous Pavilion Park (T'ao-jan-t'ing Kung-yuan).
This large park was established prior to the Mongol
Dynasty, which built the Temple of Mercy here. In
1695 the Joyous Pavilion was erected near the
temple. A very popular meeting place for scholars
and officials for many years, the park fell into
disuse in the 19th century. Early Communists used
some of the temple annexes for their meetings in
the 1920's, and the park now has a special sig-
nificance to the Government. The lakes have been
dredged since 1949, and the park has been expanded
and improved.
72. To the east of the Altar of Heaven is
another large sports complex. It includes the
Peking Gymnasium, an indoor swimming pool, and a
tall parachute tower. A seven-story pagoda,
Fa-t'a Ssu (also designated by legend as the
"Little Tired Pagoda"), is located next to the
railroad.
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Fi_gure 41. Diplomatic Compound south of the Altar of the
Sun. These are typical living quarters. In the center
building facing the garden is a store.
73. The north-central part of the old Chinese
City, south of Ch'ien Men, contains what used to be
known as the amusement district of Peking. In
addition to the theaters, restaurants, and public
baths, many of which are still in operation, it
included opium dens and houses of prostitution.
The shops, restaurants, and theaters of this old
district still create a festive atmosphere, but
the illicit pleasures are gone, and so far as the
foreigner can determine their passing is not mourned.
Eastern Suburbs
74. A new residential-industrial area has
been developed immediately east of the old city
walls. In it are to be found worker's apartments,
two diplomatic compounds, a large sports complex,
and a number of other buildings of interest.
75. Nearly all of the foreign legations are
now housed in the diplomatic compounds here. One,
the Jih T'an Compound, is on the main east-west
extension of East Ch'ang-an Boulevard, just to the
south of the Altar of the Sun (Jib T'an), for which
it is named. The other compound is farther to the
northeast at San-li-t'un, between the National
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Agricultural Exhibition Center and the Peking
Worker's Sports Complex. Both compounds are marked
by rather drab modern buildings, typical of Chinese
apartment houses in the Peking suburbs.
76. The Altar of the Sun has been slightly
increased in size and now functions as a park and
recreation area. Although the park enclosure has
been squared off and numerous trees and walks
added, many old buildings remain. The altar, a
low, square terrace, with steps on each side, is
surrounded by a circular wall of red brick. It
was formerly used each spring to make sacrifices
in worship of the sun. The Emperor appeared at
this temple every other year, and appointed
officials represented him on alternate years. The
temple dates to 1330, when the grounds were given
to the Emperor.
77. One of the most impressive sights in the
eastern suburbs is the large Peking Worker's Sports
Complex, about three-quarters of a mile north of
the Altar of the Sun. A huge, elliptical stadium,
witha seating capacity of over 80,000 people,
dominates the park, and it is flanked by a circular
15,000-seat gymnasium and by indoor and outdoor
pools. A small lake extends across the grounds
between.numerous playing fields. In addition to
major sports events, the complex occasionally hosts
large political rallies.
78. The National Agricultural Exhibition
Center is immediately east of the San-li-t'un
Diplomatic Compound. Opened in January 1959, the
center presents comprehensive agricultural, .
forestry, and fishery exhibits. It is also used
to propagate the Party's agricultural plans and
policies and to present its progress reports. The
center has at least 11 exhibit halls in the main
building, which sprawls across the front of the
large complex. Numerous other structures, including
research buildings and exhibition halls, are
dispersed on the grounds.
79. On the north side of Chao-wai Ta-chieh
(Street), just south of the Peking Worker's Sports
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Complex, a beautiful wooden triple-arched pai-l'ou
is flanked by two stone lions. This is the
entrance to one of the most interesting places in
Peking, the Taoist Temple of the Eastern Peak
(Tung-yueh Miao),more commonly known as the
Temple of 10,000 Punishments. This temple is
dedicated to Huang Fei Hu, the legendary character
who rebelled against and killed the infamous
tyrant Chou Hsin, the last ruler of the Shang
Dynasty. The Tung-yueh Miao was completed after
8 years of construction by the Mongol Emperor Yen
Yu in 1329.
80. The temple was formerly very popular with
the Chinese because it was designed to minister to
almost any need. People with bodily ailments,
mental ills or anxieties, debts, lack of heirs or
a marriage partner, and numerous other troubles
could visit the shrine of the proper diety, where
presumably their particular entreaties were heard.
One gallery of statuary graphically portrayed, in
horrible manner, the punishments to which evil
individuals would be subjected in the numerous
Taoist underworlds. Another gallery depicted the
rewards for the good and the just. The temple
offered something for nearly everyone.
81. The buildings of the Tung-yueh Miao still
Stand and are apparently in use as a school.
Visitors have not been permitted on the grounds
in recent years, however, and the present status
of the idols and statuary is not known.
Southern Suburbs
82. Peking's suburbs to the south have
experienced the least growth in recent years.
With the exception of a small built-up area just
to the south of the Temple of Heaven, expansion
is mainly confined to. an industrial area around
Ta-hung-men, about 2 miles south of the Yung-ting
Men (gate), and, to the military complex around the
Nan-yilan Airfield. Feng-t'ai, southwest of the
city, contains the largest railroad yards and
storage facilities in the Peking area. The
remainder of the area consists mostly of cultivated
fields, many of which are worked by large communes
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whose mission, next to providing food for Peking,
is to demonstrate the efficiencies of the Chinese
Communist agricultural system.
83. Nearly all of the southern suburbs were
once a part of the vast Imperial hunting grounds,
the Nan-hai Tzu (Southern Hunting Park). The
Manchus, however, preferred to use either the
Hunting Park (Hsiang Shan) in the western hills
or the grounds near the palace at Ch'eng-te (Jehol)
and hardly any trace of the old hunting grounds
remain. Nan-yuan Airfield is located at about the
center of the old park, and the rest of the tract
is cultivated.
Western Suburbs
84. Suburban Peking has grown principally
toward the west in a discontinuous pattern, almost
to the Yung-ting River. Much of this growth was
planned prior to 1949, by which time many of the
streets had already been laid out. Since then the
Communists have constructed numerous multistory
residential and governmental buildings, particularly'
along West Ch'ang-an Boulevard, the route of the
new subway line. That wide throughfare has been
completely repaved, following a long period of
disruption caused by the subway construction,
which currently continues north of Fu-hsing Men
(Gate of Rejuvenation), along the site of the old
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85. On the south side of West Ch'ang-an
Boulevard, just outside of Fu-hsing Men, is the
headquarters of Radio Peking. It occupies the
site of an old British cemetery, which was once
restored after its complete desecration during the
Boxer Uprising. Fu-hsing Men is not a real gate,
but merely an opening that was hacked in the old
city wall to accommodate traffic in 1941. Radio
and television programs are beamed from the broad-
cast center, although the television industry in
China is still in its infancy.
86. Southwest of the broadcast center, on
the south bank of the aqueduct and adjacent to the
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Figure 42. The western suburbs. The multistory buildings
in this section near the Peking Broadcast House (lower right)
are typical of the newer sections of Peking. The old city
walls at right have been removed to make room for the subway.
old railroad line, is the former mother temple and
headquarters of the Taoist sect in North China, the
Temple of the White Cloud (Pai-y-Un Kuan). This
temple, unlike the Tung-yueh Miao, has a small
complement of priests and is still operating. The
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Figure 43. Peking Broadcast House. The building is one of
the most impressive of the modern structures in the city.
oldest part of it stands on the site of a T'ang
Dynasty structure that lay inside the walls of the
old city of Chung-tu. Extensive repairs have
periodically been made to its numerous buildings.
The temple formerly attracted large numbers of
visitors, especially to the annual 20-day festival
a celebration that marked the arrival of the Eight
Immortals who supposedly descended from heaven on
the 20th day of the first lunar month. The high-
light of this festival was the foot and cart races,
which precipitated a veritable orgy of gambling,
an activity dear to the Chinese. Even Manchu
princes and nobles participated in some of the
races, which often led to violent brawls and clan
fights. Eventually the racing was abandoned in
favor of an ordinary temple fair.
87. The ancient pagoda of the Temple of
Celestial Peace (T'ien-ning Ssu) rises majestically
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Figure 44. The T'ien-ning Pagoda. Cropland now surrounds
the pagoda, situated in the western suburbs. Small remnants
of the temple remain at its base.
about a half-mile to the south of the P -yun
Kuan. It is one of the largest pagodas in the
Peking area, rising to 190 feet. The temple that
housed the pagoda was first built in 472 A.D. and
underwent the usual repair and rebuilding cycles,
but it is now largely destroyed and only a few
buildings near the base of the pagoda remain. The
origins of the pagoda are obscure, but most
sources agree that it was erected sometime in the
late 12th or early 13th century under the Liao
Dynasty. The octagon-shaped, 13-story structure,
covered with more than 2,000 bas-relief images of
Buddha, houses a colossal Buddha. Formerly, over
3,000 little bells were suspended from the eaves
of the pagoda, and when the wind was in the right
direction, they could be heard a mile away. Nearly
all of the bells are now gone.
88. The Altar of the Moon (Hs yue ''an)
is
near the Children's Hospital, aboutthree-quarters
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of a mile north of the broadcasting center. It was
erected at the same time as the Altar of the Sun in
the eastern suburbs (1530), on an almost identical
plan, except that the wall around the Altar of the
Moon was square and the symbolic color was white.
The autumn sacrifices to the moon were celebrated
in alternate years by the Emperor, as was the case
in the sacrifices to the sun. Today the temple is
used as a public park and school. A tall television
tower juts into the sky from the central area near
the old altar.
89. A little over a mile west of the Altar
of the Moon is the Jade Abyss Pool (Yu-yuan T'an),
also known as the Fishing Terrace (Tiao-yu T'ai).
During the Chin Dynasty this pool was used by the
Imperial family. Emperor Ch'ien Lung enlarged the
lake in 1773 and rebuilt the palace, which was
used by later Emperors during fishing expeditions
on the lake. By the 20th century the lake had
silted up, and the palace was crumbling. In 1956
a new gourd-shaped lake was dug and a dam and
hydro-electric facility was built as part of the
Yung-ting River aqueduct system. Trees were
planted along the shores of the mile-long lake to
create a park, which is very popular. A guest
house compound for distinguished foreign visitors
is located at the eastern edge of the lake.
90. The Military Museum of the Chinese
People's Revolution is located on the north side
of the westward extension of Ch'ang-an Boulevard,
just south of Yu-yuan T'an. It consists of a large
white,. stone building, topped by a spire and a red
star. Opened in 1959, the museum attempts to
portray the armed struggle of the Chinese people,
under the leadership of the Communist Party, during
various stages of the Chinese Revolution. It also
traces the growth of the People's Liberation Army,
and it exhibits various types of military equipment,
ancient and modern. The Chinese have put a number
of U-2 and pilotless drones of US manufacture on
display in the courtyard of this museum.
91. The Peking Zoo, outside the northwest
corner of the old city, is one of the finest in
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the world. Next to it is the Peking Exhibition
Center, an elaborate Russian-style building that
was opened with a Soviet exhibition in 1954. The
center has hosted Chinese as well as numerous
foreign exhibits. Its extensive layout includes
a cinema and a restaurant.
92. The Peking Planetarium (T'ien-wen Kuan),
across the street from the zoo, was opened in 1957.
It is small and has very modest facilities.
Northern and Northwestern Suburbs
93. The importance of Peking as the nation's
educational and scientific center has been under-
lined by the establishment there of the Academia
Sinica, the largest research body in the country.
More than 40 of the 80-odd research institutes of
the Academy are now in the city, and many of them
are located in the area north of the old wall. Of
the 66 learned societies in China, 58 have their
headquarters in Peking, where the most important
universities and colleges of the country are also
concentrated. Ch'ing-hua University, the best
engineering school, and Peking University, the
institute used to train the Communist rank and
file, are located near the site of the old Summer
Palace (Yuan-ming Yiian), adjacent to the head-
quarters of Academia Sinica. About two dozen new
professional colleges have been established in
Peking to train skilled personnel in critical
trades and professions. Among those that are
located in the northern and northwestern suburbs
are the institutes for iron and steel, geology,
aeronautics, petroleum, mining industry, forestry,
mechanized agriculture, railroads, and music.
94. Ch'ing-Hua University was originally
established from funds provided by the US Govern-
ment out of the Boxer indemnities it received from
China. It was designed to prepare young Chinese
students for study in Western universities. Over
the years its curriculum gradually changed, and by
,the time of its closing during the Cultural
Revolution, it had become the best engineering
school in the country. After 3 years of inactivity,
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it was reopened in 1969 as a quasi-military school
of technology. At one time physically remote, the
college is now surrounded by other buildings in
the northern suburbs.
95. In addition to educational institutions,
the northern suburbs contain some distinctive
cultural sites. A short distance outside of
An-ting Gate is the Altar of Earth (Ti T'an), which
complements and was only slightly less sacred than
the Altar of Heaven. The Altar of Earth was
erected in 1530, in the same year that the Altar
of the Sun and the Altar of the Moon were built.
It is square, reflecting the then-prevailing
Chinese belief that this was the shape of the earth.
In 1860 it was occupied by French and British troops,
who used it as a barracks and campgrounds. It has
been used in a similar fashion on other occasions
since then, and. parts of it have fallen into dis-
repair. The grounds surrounding it now serve as
a park.
96. ,The Yellow Temple (Huang Ssu), located
next to a military barracks, is a lama temple with
a long and colorful history. Built originally by
the Ming, it was destroyed in 1643 by the rebel
leader Li Tzu-ch'eng and rebuilt in 1651 by the
Manchu Emperor Shun Chih as a temporary residence
for the Dalai Lama. The most magnificent part of
the temple is the Tibetan dagoba; of Indian design
it includes four octagonal pagodas. The dagoba
was added by Emperor Ch'ien Lung in 1780 to serve
as a tomb for the Panchen Lama, who died of small-
pox while visiting Peking. Ch'ien Lung returned
the body of the Panchen Lama to Tibet in a gold
coffin and buried only his clothes under the
dagoba. The temple later fell into disrepair,
but it was used as the residence of the Dalai Lama
on his visit to Peking in 1908 -- an unwelcome
visit in the eyes of the Empress-dowager, who had
been warned by astrologists that her death would
coincide with his visit. Both she and the Emperor
died during the stay of the Dalai Lama in Peking.
In 1949, the temple was partly in ruins; some of
it has now been replaced by modern buildings, but
the western part, which contains the dagoba, is
still standing.
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97. About 3 miles to the southwest of the
Yellow Temple, just north of the zoo, is another
temple of Indian design, the Five Pagoda Temple
(Wu-t'a Ssu). It was built during the early Ming
Dynasty to house five golden Buddhas, presented
to the Emperor by an Indian monk, along with a
model of the Diamond Throne Temple in India. This
model was used to design the temple, in which the
five Buddhas were placed in separate pagodas.
Today, the grounds are still preserved, but of
the temple proper, only the central building with
the five pagodas remains.
98. Probably the main attraction in the
northern suburbs is the Summer Palace (I-,ho Yuan),*
now called People's Park (Jen-min Kung-yUan).
*In spite of the variety and extent of the residential
quarters in the Forbidden City and the Sea Palaces,
the Emperors found the sultry air of the city un-
healthy during the summer months. By custom they
moved out of Peking to summer palaces in the vicinity.
This custom reached its highest point under the
Manchus, when Emperor Ch'ien Lung expanded the
summer palaces (Yuan-ming Yuan), situated about 5
miles north of Peking. The best architects and
artisans were employed, including some skilled
Jesuit missionaries to the Court. Ch'ien Lung had
seen pictures of the palaces at Versailles, and he
ordered the construction of similar European-style
palaces in one section of the park.
Most of the succeeding Emperors spent much
time at the summer palaces, which they continued to
embellish. Despite occasional attempts at simplicity,
great sums of money were expended to make and keep
them as exquisite as possible.
Regrettably, the summer palaces were demolished
in 1860 at the hands of the British and French
military forces during the last phase of the Second
Anglo-Chinese War (Arrow War). The Chinese had
caused the deaths of some prisoners, who had
appeared under a flag of truce. In retaliation,
the British- destroyed the palaces, directing their
ire at the Emperor rather than the Chinese people.
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Fi_gure 45. The Summer Palace. The most prominent buildings
in the palace face K'un-ming Lake. The large octogonal
building is the Fo-hsiang Ko (Buddha's Fragrant Incense
Pavilion).
99. The present summer palace was built in
the late 19th century by the Empress-dowager.
Lacking funds, she appropriated money that had
been allocated to the Chinese Navy -- estimated
at $50,000,000. The greatest feature of the
Summer Palace is its setting. Low hills and
surface undulations have been well utilized as
sites for palaces and temples, and the grounds are
impressively laid out. In 1914 the grounds were
first opened to the public, but many of the buildings
remained closed. The Summer Palace has been maintained
moderately well through the years, and it is now a very
popular recreational spot, frequented by the Chinese and
foreigners alike.
100. Rising from the flat plain to the west
of the Summer Palace and Krun-ming Lake is the low
rounded, twin-peaked hill of the Jade Fountain
(Yu-chtuan Shan, or Jade Springs Hill). Two clear
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water springs on the hill, the largest on the
southwest slope, formerly supplied the Imperial
City and its lakes with water. The springs are
still in use, and they provide some of Peking's
water supply. The use of this hill as a pleasure
park predates the summer palaces. The Chin Emperor,
Chang Tsung (1190-1208 A.D.), had a hunting lodge
on the crest, where the Jade Peak Pagoda (Yu-feng
T'a) now stands. In the south another pagoda at
a lower level adds to the beauty of the hill.
Visitors have not been permitted to approach the
hill in recent years.
101. The Western H. (Hsi Shan) overlook
Peking from the northwest These mostly barren
rugged outliers of the T'ai-hang Shan have been long
used as a haven from Peking's summer heat. Temples,
palaces, and tombs are spotted along lower slopes,
which in recent years have experienced considerable
population growth, mainly at the eastern edge.
Figure 46. View eastward from Hunting Park (Hsiang Shan).
The twin peaks of Jade Spring Hill, located to the west of
the Summer Palace and K'un-ming Lake, rise sharply from
the flat, crop-covered plain.
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Among the numerous cultural sites in the Western
Hills, on the slopes facing Peking, are the Temple
of the Sleeping Buddha (Wo-fo Ssu), the Temple of
the Azure Clouds, (Pi-yUn Ssu), the Northern
Hunting Park (Hsiang Shan, or Fragrant Hills) and
the Eight Big Places (Pa-ta Ch'u).
102. The Temple of the Sleeping Buddha is
nestled in the foothills about a half-mile from
the main road and 2 miles to the west of Jade
Springs Hill. It has a very long history, dating
back to the T'ang Emperor Chen Kuan (627-649 A.D.),
but numerous repairs and alterations over the years
have changed it considerably. The present temple
dates from 1734. The principal building on the
grounds contains the 50-foot figure of a sleeping
Buddha, originally built of wood, but recast in
bronze in 1465. A smaller sandalwood figure of
Buddha, also in a reclining position, dates from
the temple's earliest period. In the past, many
of the buildings in the temple were rented during
the summer season by Peking residents.
103. The Temple of the Azure Clouds lies in
the next valley, about a mile to the west of Wo-fo
Ssu and a mile into the mountain valley from the
main road. It is easily the most beautiful temple
in the western hills, not only because of its
buildings, but also because of its magnificant
woodland setting. It demonstrates how Buddhist
Monks chose sites that enhanced the beauty of their
religious architecture. The dominating "stupa" of
the temple, like a mirage in the forest, is visible
from the main road at the foot of the valley, but
the visitor must traverse a mile of roaa through a
cluster of trees in order to obtain a close-up view
of the shrine.
104. The temple dates from the late Mongol
Dynasty (1366); reconstructed and enlarged many
times, it has been supported at various times
by wealthy eunuchs. It consists of two parts:
the temple, which contains most of the buildings,
including the Hall of the 500 Gods, and behind
it, the six-towered, Indian-style Diamond
Throne Pagoda (Chin-kang T'a); the beauty of which
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has been compared favorably with that of the Taj
Mahal. The pagoda was built in 1748, following
the same design as that of the Five Pagoda Temple
north of the zoo. It is constructed of marble-
like stone, the famous Ta-li-shih, or natural
colored stone, from Yunnan Province. After Sun
Yat-sen died in Peking in 1925, his body was
brought to Pi-yun Ssu, where it lay in a niche
under the pagoda from 1926 to 1928. It was then
removed, first to Central Park in Peking, and
finally to the Purple Mountain Tomb in Nanking.
105. The Hunting Park is a wooded enclosure
just south of Pi-yan Ssu. About half a square
mile in area, it was a game preserve used by
Emperors from about 1170 to 1850. The game has
long since gone but the wooded area and many of
the buildings have been used at times as an
orphanage, a sanitarium, and for summer residences.
106. Circular City (Yijan Chleng) is an inter-
esting structure on the edge of the plain to the
southeast of the Hunting Park. An enormous oval
fort with 15-foot-thick walls, it was built by
Ch'ien Lung in 1749 to commemorate a victorious
campaign in Tibet and also to provide a place where
he could watch his troops maneuver on the plain.
This former military training ground contained
numerous military barracks, forts, and blockhouses,
but they all deteriorated. The fields are now
cultivated and the fort is being used by horti-
cultural services. The Emperor also built a
number of queer-looking structures designed to
train soldiers to climb the Tibetan walls. These
rough stone buildings, with terraced roofs and
false windows about 20 to 45 feet high, were
scattered about the plain and on the hillslopes,
but most have now disappeared.
107. Located about 2 miles southwest of Yuan
Ch'eng (4 miles by car) in a long, rather steep
valley that opens to the south are the Eight Big
Places; these are eight temples, situated one above
the other on the valley slopes. They are ancient
-- the oldest dates back to the reign of Sul
Emperor Jen Shou (601-604 A.D.) and the newest to
1442 A.D. Each has a different story and each has
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undergone considerable rebuilding and repair. The
temples at one time were very popular with the
residents of Peking in summer, and the buildings
were rented out as vacation homes. During the
Boxer Uprising, they were reported to be a Boxer
base, and they suffered some retaliatory damage
at the hands of the allied forces. A beautiful
white octagonal. pagoda in back of the Temple of
Spiritual Light; (Ling-kuang Ssu), the second
temple from the plain, was destroyed by Indian
troops. A new pagoda has been built there by the
present regime.
Attractions in the Vicinity of Peking
108. Almost every tourist in Peking visits
the Great Wall, probably China's most famous
attraction. Restored portions of it are best
viewed from a tourist center situated about 35
miles north of Peking, at Chu-yung-kuan, the site
of the main gate and guard post north of Nan-ktou.
Visitors to this area are permitted to climb up
and walk along the top of the Great Wall as it
snakes across the barren ridges of the rugged
Pa-ta Ling (Mountains).
109. Dating to about the 5th century B.C.,
the Great Wall was originally constructed as a
defensive barrier to ward off attacks from the
north. It extended from the Gulf of Chihli (Po
Hai) to western Kansu. Largely ineffective
against determined attacks, it did provide an
excellent communications system in frontier
regions, permitting news, men, and supplies to
move rapidly along its wide top. It also provided
a barrier that prevented the intrusion of nomadic
peoples into Chinese farmland. Parallel or
reinforcing walls were occasionally built in
critical areas, and in some sectors a whole system
of secondary walls was developed.
110. Much of the Great Wall was restored
under the Ming Dynasty, but the Manchus let it
fall gradually into disrepair. Under the Communists
each end of the wall and the portion near Peking
have been maintained, but the rest of it has fallen
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Figure 47. The Great Wall at Chu-yung-kuan. The restored
portion of the wall is in as good condition as in centuries
past. A tourist center is in the old gate compound in the
background.
into various stages of disintegration. Crumbling
guardtowers or eroded mud remnants mark large
sections, and some portions have disappeared
completely.
111. A statue of Chan Tien-yu, the first
successful Chinese railway engineer, stands at
Ch'ing-lung-ch'iao Railroad Station. Under his
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direction a railroad line was constructed from
Peking to Kalgan in 1909 -- a difficult project
because of the intervening mountainous terrain.
This line was the first important railway to be
built in China without foreign capital or
technical help.
112. The Ming Tombs (Shih-san Ling, or
Thirteen Tombs), about 2 miles to the north of the
highway near Ch'ang-p'ing, are also popular
tourist attractions. The scattered tombs are
nestled in carefully chosen sites along the foot-
hills of the semicircular mountain range that
protects the valley on the north. All of the Ming
Emperors who ruled from Peking except one are
buried here. The one who is not, Ching T'ai,
assumed the throne during the period 1449-57,
while his brother, the rightful Emperor, was a
prisoner of the Mongols. Ching T'ai died shortly
after being deposed; denied burial in the Ming
Tombs, his remains were deposited in a modest tomb
near Jade Springs Hill, west of the Summer Palace.
113. The tombs were originally protected by
a long wall in the valley and by guard posts on
the hill tops, and only those who were in charge
of their physical upkeep could enter the enclosure.
The guards were garrisoned in Ch'ang-p'ing. The
wall around the cemetery has long since disappeared
and most of the trees in the valley, except for
those around each tomb, have been cut to provide
land for cultivation.
114. The entrance and approaches to the Ming
Tombs are spacious and majestic. The gateway, an
impressive five-arch, marble p'ai-lou built in
1541, is more than 4 miles from the largest and
grandest tomb, the Ch'ang Ling of Emperor Yung Lo.
The other tombs are situated mainly behind and on
the flanks of Ch'ang Ling. Almost a mile down
the road and inside the gateway is the Ta-hung Men
(Great Red Gate), formerly the main gate in the
old wall and the official entrance to the burial
grounds. Everyone in Imperial China, including
the reigning Emperor, was forced to dismount and
walk from here along the "sacred way." Today,
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K'ang Lin
(Cheng-te, 1505- 21)
FIU SHAfi
(Tiger fain)
Hsi-shan-k'ou
(Five-
5 11-71
T'ai lJn
nyhi
14E37 0
Mu Ling
(Ch'eng-hua,
1464-1487)
Hs en
Hung-hsi, 1
Ting Ling
(Wan-li, 1572-1619)
Shihiipai-fang
hed Stone Portico)
Chao Ling
chirugn 566-1572)
9/
Pei Ting
Stele Pavilion)
T 4ning Men
(Great Red Gate)
LUNG SHAN
(Dragon Mountain)
Yil Ling
Cheng-t'ung, 1435-1454)
Ch'ing Ling
1620
4-1425)
Figure 48
Ching Ling
Hsuan Te, 1425-1435)
Yung Ling
chine, 15214560
CO
Te Ling
(r(en-chi, 1620-1027)
Chang Ling Tomb name
(Yung-lo,
1402-1424)
Emperor's reign title,
years of reign
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automobiles and buses drive unceremoniously up the
road past the Stele Pavilion (Pei T'ing) and
between the rows of stone animals and other statuary
that flank the road leading up to Ch'ang Ling.
115. Although the tombs resemble each other,
they vary in size and grandeur. Most of them
consist of a tumulus -- a round artificial burial
mound, under which the remains are secreted in a
vault -- and a rectangular compound of gates, court-
yards, halls, and pavilions so situated to resemble
a giant keyhole. Vaults are carefully hidden and
sealed in such a way that they are difficult to
find or open. In 1956, archeologists received
permission to open Ting Ling, the tomb of Emperor
Wan Li, situated about a mile to the west of
Ch'ang Ling. It proved a challenging task, but
the tomb was eventually opened with minimal damage.
Next to the Ch'ang Ling, it is the most popular
tomb to visit, largely because the interior of the
tumulus is available for viewing.
116. An earthen dam containing the small
multipurpose Ming Tombs Reservoir (Shih-san Ling
Shui-ku) was built about 3 miles south of Ch'ang
Ling in 1959. At one end of the dam a monument to
the workers was constructed, and for a few years
the place was very popular with visitors. More
recently, however, the dam has leaked, and water
levels are nearly always low.
117. Attractions that probably have not been
viewed by foreigners in many years include the
Manchu Tombs and the Summer Palaces at Ch'eng-te.
Reaching them would involve overland travel --
about 75 miles to the tombs and 135 miles to
Ch'eng-te -- but their beauty and historic sig-
nificance add to their appeal. In the past, only
a few people are known to have toured the sites,
ostensibly because of their inaccessibility from
Peking, but now better transportation facilities
are available. As far as is known, however,
visitors have not been permitted in recent years.
118. The Eastern Tombs (Tung Ling), the
burial sites of early Manchu Emperors who ruled
from Peking, are located in the western end of a
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Figure 49. Pei Ting (Stele Pavilion) on the "sacred way" in
the Ming Tombs. The 13 tombs are nestled in the foothills
of the mountains in the background.
Figure 50. One of the Ming Tombs. This is the entrance to
the underground vault of Ting Ling -- the only tomb open to
the public.
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large valley northeast of Chi-hsien, about 70 miles
from Peking. At one time the entire enclosure was
forested, but most of the trees have been removed,
and the tombs now stand out on the plain.
Magnificently wrought, they are very similar to
the Ming Tombs, with courtyards, towers, marble
monuments, and other features of impressive Chinese
architecture. Five Emperors are buried here,
including the great K'ang Hsi and Ch'ien Lung.
119. The Western Tombs (Hsi Ling) are located
in a hilly valley at the eastern edge of the
Ta'i-hang Shan, about 65 miles southwest of Peking.
Sizable stands of forest mantle the slopes of the
foothills that compartment the.individual tombs,
which are scattered about the vast complex. The
majestic site was selected by the Emperor Yung
Cheng, an innovator who was dissatisfied with the
Eastern Tombs. Yung Cheng intended that succeeding
Emperors be buried near him, but his son, Ch'ien
Lung, fearful that the first two Emperors buried
in the Eastern Tombs would be left alone, changed
this plan, suggesting that burial sites should be
alternately chosen in the two locations. Four
Emperors are buried here, and a fifth Imperial
Tomb was built for the last Manchu, Henry P'u-i.
Architecturally, the Western Tombs differ slightly
from the Ming Tombs in that each mausoleum has its
own avenue of stone animals and tablet house.
120. The old Summer Palaces at Ch'eng-te
are located about 110 miles northeast of Peking.
Begun in 1703 by Emperor K'ang Hsi, they were used
as an Imperial summer residence until 1820, when
Emperor Chia Ch'ing was killed by lightning while
staying there. This was considered an ill omen,
and the palaces were abandoned until 1860; at
that time Emperor Hsien Feng, fleeing from the
British and French forces that had captured the
newer summer palaces at Yuan-ming Yiiian, returned
to Ch'eng-te. Bad luck is said to have prevailed,
however, as the Emperor died there, within the
year, at the age of 30. His death convinced the
Imperial clan that their previous conclusions
regarding evil influences in the place were correct,
and the court never returned. The palaces are still
preserved, but they are now somewhat deteriorated
and their current use is uncertain.
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Appendix
Ming and Manchu Emperors
Ming Dynasty (1368-1644)
Hung Wu (1368-1398)
Chien Wen (1398-1402)
Yung Lo (1402-1424)
Hung Hsi (1424-1425)
Hsuan Te (1425-1435)
Cheng T'ung (1435-1449)
Ching T'ai (1449-1457)
T'ien Shun (1457-1464) [previously ruled as
Emperor Cheng T'ung, 1435-1449]
Ch'eng Hua (1464-1487)
Hung Chih (1487-1505)
Cheng Te (1505-1521)
Chia Ching (1521-1566)
Lung Ch'ing (1566-1572)
Wan Li (1572-1619)
T'ai Ch'ang (1620)
T'ien Chi (1620-1627)
Ch'ung Cheng (1627-1644)
Manchu Dynasty (1644-1912)
Shun Chih (1644-1662)
K'ang Hsi (1662-1723)
Yung Cheng (1723-1736)
Ch'ien Lung (1736-1796)
Chia Ch'ing (1796-1821)
Tao Kuang (1821-1851)
Hsien Feng (1851-1862)
T'ung Chih (1862-1875)
Kuang Hsi (1875-1908)
Hsian T'ung (1908-1912)
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Figure 51
CENTURY CITIES AT SITE OF PEKING
B. C.
1000
900
800
700
600
500
400
300
200
100
A. D.
1
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
800
900
1000
0
1200
1300
1400
1500
1600
1700
1800
1900
DYNASTIES
(Non-Chinese Underlined)
INTERNAL DEVELOPMENTS
WEST CHOU
Bronze and Iron Ages
Earliest writing
Chi
(Became capital of state
EAST CHOU
Rise of philosophic schools:
of Yen in 723 (ICJ
Confucianism, Taoism,
Mohism, Legalism
WARRING STATES
Coinage and money economy
CHIN
China united and Great Well built
Peasant revolts
WEST I-IAN
Estabishment of a civil service
bureaucracy
Confucianism as a state cult
Yen-ching
EAST HAN
Peasant revolts
Yu-chou
THREE KINGDOMS
Political decline of North China and
WEST CHIN
growth of the South China.
BARBARIAN STATES
EAST CHIN
WE (To-pa)
FOUR CHINESE
Buddhism flourished
BARBARIAN STATES
DYNASTIES
SUI
Canal to Sian
TANG
Government and Civil Service
examination system perfected
Golden Age of art and literature
Invention of Printing
Nan-ching
(Yen-ching)
Peasant revolts
Widespread use of paper money
Li AO
FIVE DYNASTIES TEN STATES
(Khitans)
NORTH SUNG
Chu ng-tu
CHIN urchen)
SOUTH SUNG
Neo-Confucianism
Ta-tu
(Mongols)
(Khanbalic)
YUAN
Grand Canal completed,
linking with Hangchow
Pei-ping
Peking
MING
Peasant revolts
CH'ING (Manchus)
Musltm and T'ai-p'ing Rebellions
Pei-p'ing
Modernization and Reform
Revolution of 1911
REPUBLIC
Peking
Nationalist government
PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC
Communist goverment
51275E3 1-72
gh ig
s of Chinese History
STRONG UNITY� CENTRALIZATION
WEAK UNITY�DECENTRALIZATION
DIVISION
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Con i tia
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