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    IMPERIAL GARDENS OF THE MING AND QING TIMES

    Written by: Lou Qingxi
    Posted on: November 26, 2013 | | 中文

    Beihai Park

    Imperial gardens of the Ming Dynasty were mainly built inside the Imperial City and the Forbidden City of present day Beijing. Inside the high walls of the Forbidden City, there lie the Imperial Garden at the north end of the axis and the Garden of Creating Happiness Palace at the northeast. Within the range of the Imperial City, the Longevity Hill stands to the north of the Forbidden City, while the Rabbit Garden and the West Gardens lie scattered in the west, and the East Gardens in the southeast. Among all these gardens, the West Gardens are considered as the most important.

    Qingyan Boat

    With a location close to the west of the Forbidden City, exploitations of the West Gardens date back to the early years of the 11th century. As early as 1151, the Jin Kingdom, founded by the Northern Nuzhen people, set up its capital in the Yanqing area, and named it the Middle Capital. Located in the northwest outskirts of the capital, the site of the West Gardens was originally an area of lake marsh that connected to the Gaoliang River. Taking advantage of the excellent natural environment, the rulers of the Jin built the Great Tranquility Palace as their imperial resort by transforming the marsh into a lake and making a man-made islet. This islet in the lake was named the Jade Flower Islet. The Guang Han Hall (Severe Coldness Hall) and huge rockeries were built afterwards.

    In the 13th century, the Mongols reunited the then China and the Yuan Dynasty was founded. In 1272, the Yuan rulers decided to build their capital on the former site of the Middle Capital of the Jin kingdom. Though most buildings were severely damaged, the Great Tranquility Palace was still well preserved; therefore the Yuan emperor began to plan and build the new national capital--the Grand Capital--with the Great Tranquility Palace as the center of the city planning. The Great Tranquility Palace was walled inside the Imperial City and the lake was redesigned and renovated. Renamed as the Tai Ye Pond, the lake was located to the west of the Forbidden City inside the Imperial City layout. Imperial water resources in the northwest outskirts of the Grand Capital flowed into the lake through the Jin River. Large numbers of trees and shrubs were planted along the banks of the pond, and two more islets, the Yuan Di Islet and the Screen Mountain Islet, were formed. The former Jade Flower Islet was renamed the Longevity Hill. Water between these two "seas" was called the Middle Sea. A new layout with the North, the Middle and the South Sea was formed on the site of the former Tai Ye Pond. Since then, the West Gardens had become the most important imperial gardens inside the Ming Imperial City. With painstaking efforts and elaborate design, the Tai Ye Pond was transformed into an imperial garden full of the charm and appeal of nature inside the Imperial City.

    Jade Belt Bridge

    In 1422, following the moving of the capital to Beijing, the rulers of the Ming Dynasty settled in the newly-built Forbidden City. The spatial relationship between the Forbidden City and the Tai Ye Pond was not changed, but large scale renovation was undertaken for the Pond. More buildings were constructed at the north bank and man-made landscapes were added without losing the natural beauty of the Tai Ye Pond. Along the east bank of the Yuan Di Islet, earth was piled so that the islet was changed into a "peninsula" that stretched to the east. Walls were built surrounding the earth platform and this newly-formed place was named the "Round City." The Tai Ye Pond was enlarged further down south resulting in a large increase of the area of water surface. The newly formed water body was called the South Sea and the water on the north of the Round City was founded. After the Qing military troops came to Inland China through the Great Wall borderline and entered Beijing City, their rulers took the Forbidden City as their dwelling place. Original imperial gardens inside the Forbidden City were kept, and structures scattered in gardens around the three seas (the North, Middle and South Sea) were built, rebuilt or enlarged. Examples were the White Pagoda, several Buddhist buildings on the north bank of the North Sea, the Jing Qing Meditating Room inside the north yard, the natural scenery area and several architectural groups along the east bank of the North Sea, the Ying Platform in the South Sea and the Qin Zheng Hall on the north bank of the South Sea. With these new constructions, both the type and the number of architecture were increased inside the West Gardens. The strengthening of cultural flavor in the gardens displays the typical style of imperial gardens--magnificent, luxurious and splendid. This kind of scale, style and feature was maintained for a long time afterwards.

    Longevity Hill

    After 1949, the buildings of the Middle and South Sea Garden are now the office buildings of the Chinese central government, and the North Sea Garden is open to the public as a park. Today, these gardens are still the models and examples of planting and afforesting in Beijing City.


    As the new year begins, let us also start anew. I’m delighted to extend, on behalf of the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and in my own name, new year’s greeting and sincere wishes to YOULIN magazine’s staff and readers.

    Only in hard times can courage and perseverance be manifested. Only with courage can we live to the fullest. 2020 was an extraordinary year. Confronted by the COVID-19 pandemic, China and Pakistan supported each other and took on the challenge in solidarity. The ironclad China-Pakistan friendship grew stronger as time went by. The China Pakistan Economic Corridor projects advanced steadily in difficult times, become a standard-bearer project of the Belt and Road Initiative in balancing pandemic prevention and project achievement. The handling capacity of the Gwadar Port has continued to rise and Afghanistan transit trade through the port has officially been launched. The Karakoram Highway Phase II upgrade project is fully open to traffic. The Lahore Orange Line project has been put into operation. The construction of Matiari-Lahore HVDC project was fully completed. A batch of green and clean energy projects, such as the Kohala and Azad Pattan hydropower plants have been substantially promoted. Development agreement for the Rashakai SEZ has been signed. The China-Pakistan Community of Shared Future has become closer and closer.

    Reviewing the past and looking to the future, we are confident to write a brilliant new chapter. The year 2021 is the 100th birthday of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Pakistan. The 100-year journey of CPC surges forward with great momentum and China-Pakistan relationship has flourished in the past 70 years. Standing at a new historic point, China is willing to work together with Pakistan to further implement the consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries, connect the CPEC cooperation with the vision of the “Naya Pakistan”, promote the long-term development of the China-Pakistan All-weather Strategic Cooperative Partnership with love, dedication and commitment. Mohammad Ali Jinnah, the founding father of Pakistan said, “We are going through fire. The sunshine has yet to come.” Yes, Pakistan’s best days are ahead, China will stand with Pakistan firmly all the way.

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    Last but not least, I would like to wish all the staff and readers of YOULIN a warm and prosper year in 2021.

    Nong Rong Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of
    The People’s Republic of China to the Islamic Republic of Pakistan
    January 2021