Tiananmen Square

Tiananmen Square is the heart and symbol of Beijing and is the largest city square in the world of 440,000 square meters. Tiananmen Square can hold about one million people for public celebration or gatherings.

Overview of Tiananmen Square
Tiananmen Square holds the Monument of the National Heroes, the Great Hall of the People, the National Museum of China and the Mausoleum of Mao Zedong. To the north is the Forbidden City and to the south the Temple of Heaven. 

Tiananmen Gate
Tiananmen Gate (Gate of Heavenly Peace) was built in the 15th century and restored in the17th. The tower has five doors and in front of it are seven bridges spanning a stream. On the top of the central door is a portrait of Chairman Mao Zedong who on October 1, 1949 proclaimed the founding of the new China.

The magnificent gate has five openings. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the passage in the middle leading to the Forbidden City was reserved for the emperor himself. The emperor went through the central passage on the way to the altars for rituals and other religious activities. High-ranking government officials and the empresses, concubines, princess and princesses could only enter the Forbidden City through the side passages, while ordinary subjects were absolutely forbidden to go inside the Forbidden City, hence its name.

Tiananmen Rostrum
Tiananmen Rostrum is 33.7 meters high, standing to the north of the Tiananmen Square, on the south–north central axis of Beijing, was the main gate of the royal palace of both the Ming and Qing Dynasties. It was initially called Chengtianmen (Carrying Heaven Gate), which means to bear the edict and divine power of Heaven itself, as the Emperor, who used this gate, was believed to. In the eighth year of emperor Shunzhi's administration (1652), the gate was refurbished and called Tiananmen (the Gate of Heavenly Peace). From then on nearly all important imperial celebrations and events, such as: the enthronement of an emperor, imperial weddings, the rite of the emperor going to battle, the famous "Imperial Edict Issued by the Golden Phoenix", the worship of Heaven and Earth and the worship of the five grains; all involved passing through this gate. There are 60 huge and towering columns on the rostrum where floor is paved with gold brick. There are chestnut lattice fan gate on south and north.

Tiananmen Square
Come out of Tiananmen, and then enter into the largest city-central square of the world Tiananmen Square. It is 500 meters wide, 880 meters long and the ground is paved with light granite slate disposed through special technology treatment. The flag-raising ceremony at sunrise and flag-lowering ceremony at sunset are the most magnificent rites.

West of Tiananmen Square
On the west of Tiananmen Square it is the Great Hall of the People, the meeting place of national people's congress of the People's Republic of China. The Great Hall with huge and complicated engineering was built within ten months, possessing central hall, great hall, banqueting hall with 7000 square meters, office building of people congress standing committee and hall named with all provinces and autonomous region. The whole area is 172.000 square meters and there are 25 huge columns at the front of frontispiece.

East of Tiananmen Square
On the east of Tiananmen Square is The National Museum of China, and visiting the exhibition is like reading concise China General History. Here is state special museum of collecting, exhibiting and researching China ancient and neoteric cultural relics.

South of Tiananmen Square
There are Monument to the People's Heroes and Chairman Mao's Mausoleum on the south.

Monument to the People's Heroes
Monument to the People's Heroes's external design adopts the session of China People Politics Consultative Conference in 1949. Its external design adopts the project made by Professor Liang Sicheng. Monument is composed of 413 granites and monument base is paved of 17.000 granites and white marbles. There are eight white marble sculptures on the monument seat: including a series of important history events, Such as Opium burning in Humen, Jintian Uprising; wuchang uprising; war against Japan and Successful Crossing of the Changjiang River. Design of the tower represents perfect quintessence of socialism practical art and symbolizes Chinese revere and memory for revolution martyr.

Chairman Mao's Mausoleum
Chairman Mao's Mausoleum started to construct in November 1976 and completed in May 1977. The area is 2000 square meters and it is composed of north hall ( the place holding memorial activity), viewing hall (crystal hall special for Chairman Mao relique) and south hall. In addition, there are Mao Zedong, Zhou Enlai, Liu Shaoqi and Zhu De revolution achievement memorial rooms.