介绍:
Located in Beijing's Haidian District, the Old Summer Palace is surrounded by some of the most well-known places in Beijing. It lies just outside the west gate of Tsinghua University and north of Peking University, two of most prestigious academic institutes in China. Just a few blocks away is the Summer Palace, one of the most visited tourist sites in the city.
The Old Summer Palace was the biggest imperial residence covering an area of 860 acres. It's almost five times the size of the Forbidden City and eight times the size of Vatican City. The palace ground is made up of three imperial gardens: Garden of Perfect Brightness, Garden of Eternal Spring and Elegant Spring Garden.
Accompanying me on my journey through the gardens is long-time tourist guide, Wang Daoming.
"During the reign of Kangxi and Qianlong emperor, Kangxi built the palace to escape from the heat. In summer, he would stay here and welcome dignitaries from minority cultural groups."
The palace continued to expand under the reign of successive emperors. But in 1860, the Old Summer Palace was looted and burned down by the British and French expeditionary forces in the Second Opium War. To explain why it was destroyed, here's one of the history consultants in this park, Zhang Yilin.
"One explanation is they want to get rid of the evidence of their looting so nobody would know what was stolen. But this is funny. If you think about it, they have planned the looting and burning. Afterward, they even held an auction for the items they have looted. They have nothing to cover up. I think one of the reasons is the British and French wanted to punish the Chinese officials who executed the envoys sent to negotiate a peace treaty for the war."
The actions of the British and French military have left the once grand and beautiful palace in rubbles. The most visible architectural remains of the Old Summer Palace is in the 'Western mansions' section, which was the location of 18th century European-style palaces, fountains and waterworks, and formal gardens. These structures were designed by Jesuit missionaries Giuseppe Castiglione and Michel Benoist.
Castiglione and Benoist were also the architectural genius behind the St. Joseph Catholic Church at Wangfujing. The two buildings are quite different. The church is built in the gothic style with pointed arches, the ribbed vault and the flying buttresses. The palaces here were far grander and more luxurious. It reminds me of the Palace of Versailles in France.
The layout of the palace ground is similar to European palaces as well. There's a labyrinth here and in the middle sits a European-style circular pavilion. The emperor is said to have sat in this pavilion to watch his concubines competing in a race with yellow lanterns through the maze during the Mid-Autumn Festival.
Located at the centre of this area is a large building with a central archway supported by tall white marble pillars. This is the only structure that is still intact today here among the ruins. It's unbelievable how much destruction was done to this place over 150 years ago by the British and French troops. Only a few columns here and there still remain standing, acting as a reminder of the rich and luxurious imperial gardens that it once were.
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