Historical Overview of Tian'anmen Square -- Beijing Destination Guide

Historical Overview of Tian'anmen Square - Beijing Destination Guide


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Historical Overview of Tian'anmen Square

Tian' anmen Square is one of the largest city center squares in the world. It is truly the heart of Beijing. People all over China dream of having the chance to one day visit the capital city and its famous square. Most of you are probably already familiar with Tian'anmen Square, you've seen it on TV, but pictures can't do justice to its immense size. You have to See it to believe it.

That's brief historical facts about Tian'anmen Square and the surrounding area. Tian'anmen Square actually gets its name from the huge gate that stands on the north side of the square. The Chinese word for "gate" is "men", so the name Tian' anmen can be translated into English as the Gate of Heavenly Peace. Tian'anmen was built in 1417 and served as the entrance gate to the Imperial Palace, or as you might know it, the Forbidden City. Originally the gate had a different name. It was called "the Gate of Heavenly Succession", or "Chentianmen" in Chinese.

In the past, every traditional Chinese home had a small courtyard in front of the main building. Of course, the courtyard of the royal family had to be much larger, but the actual dimensions of the square have gone through a succession of changes over the years. in the Tang Dynasty, more than a thousand years ago, the first open space was cleared in front of the main entrance. Later it was converted into the "Thousand Step Long Walkway". When the capital of the Yuan Dynasty was moved to Beijing, the square took on the same shape that it has now, but it was still much smaller. During the Ming Dynasty, the square was enclosed by red walls, with gates on both of the eastern and western sides. The ground was paved with slabs of stone.

In 1949, the year the People's Republic of China was founded, major renovation work began at Tian'anmen Square. Three subsequent renovation projects in 1958, 1976 and 1981 have transformed the square into the major landmark it is today. Tian'anmen Square now stretches 880 meters from north to south and 500 meters from east to west, making for a total area of 440,000 square meters. That's about the size of 60 soccer fields, spacious enough for half a million people to all stand on the square at one time.

When China was still ruled by an emperor, the gate on the northern edge of Tian'anmen Square played an important role in the governing of the country. Whenever the emperor made a new law, the imperial edict was written down and placed in a gilded box in the shape of a phoenix. The actual scroll was placed in the mouth of the phoenix. Then the phoenix box was lowered down from the top of the gate to the officials waiting below. Once a year, when the emperor went to the Temple of Heaven to offer sacrifices to the gods and his ancestors, he and his party left the palace via the gate. And in times of war, the imperial guards would march out to battle through the Gate of Heavenly Peace. Today, it is where visiting heads of state view the guards of honor and pay tribute to fallen Chinese heroes at the Monument to the Heroes of the People in the center.

In addition to its political importance, Tian'anmen Square is also a place where the average citizen can go and relax. On clear days, the sky above the square is often filled with doves, eagles, butterflies and even dragons more than 20 meters long. Of course, the animals aren't real, they're only kites. Watching all of the colorful kites bob around in the wind is a lot of fun, and thanks to the vendors selling kites right on the square, you can even try your hand at it. On summer evenings, when it's too dark for flying kites, local residents congregate on the square to enjoy the cool breeze and catch up on the neighborhood gossip.

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Beijing Tiananmen Square Tours

Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City, Temple of Heaven & Summer Palace Bus Tour --- from US$ 30
Classic City Bus Tour, visit Beijing's highlight attractions to touch the face of the metropolitan city on this one-day tour. Departure: daily.

Badaling Great Wall, Forbidden City & Tiananmen Square Bus Tour --- from US$ 41
Not have much leisure time, but eager to catch the highlights of Beijing, join this, enjoy the three most popular scenic spots in a one-day bus tour. Departure: daily.

Tiananmen Square, Lama Temple, Confucius Temple & Beijing Zoo Private Day Tour --- from US$ 41
Visit Tiananmen Square, Lama Temple, Confucius Temple and Beijing Zoo, enjoy this one day private tour package.

Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City & Temple of Heaven Private Day Tour --- from US$ 45
This 1 day private highlight city tour covers the trip to Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City and the Temple of Heaven, enjoy your own car or van with your own tour guide and driver.

Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City & Summer Palace Private Day Tour --- from US$ 46
Highlight one day private tour covers the trip to 3 of the 6 major sites in Beijing. Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City and Summer Palace.

Badaling Great Wall, Tiananmen Square & Forbidden City Private Day Tour --- from US$ 50
This 1 day private tour covers the trip to the most popular sites of Badaling Great Wall, Tiananmen Square and Fobidden City, enjoy your own car or van with your own tour guide and driver.

Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City, the Bird's Nest & Water Cube Private Day Tour --- from US$ 60
This 1 day private tour covers the trip to iananmen Square, Forbidden City and Olympic Venues: the Bird's Nest & Water Cube.

3-Day Beijing Private Tour Package --- from US$ 71
3-day private tour package covers airport transfer & the trip to the attractions: Badaling Great Wall, Summer Palace, Peking Duck Dinner, Tiananmen Square & Forbidden City.

4-Day Beijing Private Tour Package --- from US$ 92
4-day private tour package covers airport transfer & the trip to the attractions: Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City, Temple of Heaven, Badaling Great Wall, Ming tombs & Peking Duck Dinner

Special 4-Day Private Tour Package --- from US$ 105
Attractions: Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City, Summer Palace, Beijing Mongolian Hot Pot, Chinese Acrobatics Show, Great Wall, Ming Tombs, Wangfujing Walking Street, Donghuamen Cuisines Street, Temple of Heaven, Imperial Court Food.

5-Day Beijing Private Tour Package --- from US$ 112
5-day private tour package covers airport transfer & the trip to the attractions: Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City, Temple of Heaven, Chinese Kungfu show, Badaling Great Wall, Ming tombs, Peking Duck Dinner, Summer Palace & Beijing Hutong by rickshaw

Popular 5-Day Private Tour Package --- from US$ 126
Attractions: Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City, Summer Palace, Peking Roast Duck, Acrobatics Show, Great Wall, Ming Tombs, Temple of Heaven, Imperial Court Food, Beihai Park, Jingshan Park, Wangfujing Walking Street, Donghuamen Cuisines Stree.

4-Day Kaichuang Golden Street Business Hotel Coach Tour Package --- from US$ 151
Pick up from airport to hotel, join 2-day Beijing Badaling Great Wall & Forbidden City Coach Tour & Including 3-night Kaichuang Golden Street Business Hotel(3 star, including breakfast) accommodation & Pick up from hotel to the airport.

4 Day Beijing LuSongYuan Hotel Tour Package --- from US$ 187
Stay in the most distinctive courtyard, Beijng LuSongYuan Hotel. Pick up from airport to hotel, join 2-day Beijing Badaling Great Wall & Forbidden City Coach Tour & Including 3-night hotel accommodation, then pick up from hotel to the airport.

4 Day Jianguo Garden Hotel Tour Package --- from US$ 220
Pick up from airport to hotel, join 2-day Beijing Badaling Great Wall & Forbidden City Coach Tour & Including 3-night Jianguo Garden Hotel (5 star, including breakfast) accommodation & Pick up from hotel to the airport.

4-Day Beijing Wangfujing Grand Hotel Tour Package --- from US$ 224
Pick up from airport to hotel, join 2-day Beijing Badaling Great Wall & Forbidden City Coach Tour & Including 3-night Beijing Wangfujing Grand Hotel (5 star, including breakfast) accommodation, then pick up from hotel to the airport.

Beijing to Xingang 4-Day Beijing LuSongYuan Hotel Coach Tour Package --- from US$ 247
Pick up from Beijing airport, stay in the most distinctive courtyard, Beijng LuSongYuan Hotel 3 nights and 2-day Beijing Badaling Great Wall & Forbidden City Coach Tour, then transfer to Xingang Port in Tianjin.

Beijing to Xingang 4-Day Wangfujing Grand Hotel Coach Tour Package --- from US$ 288
Pick up from Beijing airport, stay in Beijing Wangfujing Grand Hotel 3 nights and 2-day Beijing Badaling Great Wall & Forbidden City Coach Tour, then transfer to Xingang Port in Tianjin.

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