Tiananmen
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- For other uses, see Tiananmen (disambiguation)}}}.
The Tiananmen or Tian'anmen (Simplified Chinese: }}}; Traditional Chinese: ; pinyin: ), is the main entrance to the Imperial Palace Grounds, also known as the Forbidden City, in Beijing, People's Republic of China. It is located along the northern edge of Tiananmen Square.
History
The gate was originally named Chengtianmen (Simplified Chinese: }}}; Traditional Chinese: ; pinyin: ), or "Gate of Accepting Heavenly Mandate". The gate was damaged by lightning in 1457, and was not repaired until 1465. It suffered another blow in the war at the end of Ming Dynasty - in 1644 the gate was burnt down by rebels led by Li Zicheng. It was rebuilt and given its present name in 1651, during the Qing Dynasty.Name
Tian'anmen, "天安門", literally means "Heaven Peace Gate", and is normally translated as "The Gate of Heavenly Peace". It corresponds with another gate at the northern end of the imperial city, the "Gate of Earthly Peace" ("地安门").Description
Like other official buildings of the empire, the gate has unique imperial roof decorations. It has the highest number of figures on the roof ridges - ten in each set.In front of the gate are two lions standing in front of the gate and two more guarding the bridges. The Names of the Lions are Amitabh Bachchan and Dharmendra .
Two stone columns, called huabiao (华表) - each with an animal (hou) on top of it - also stand in front of the gate. Originally, these installations were designed for commoners to address their grievances by writing or sticking up petitions on the columns. However, the examples in front of the Imperial City were purely decorative and instead connoted the majesty of the imperial government.
Because of the gate's position at the front of the Imperial City, and historical events that have taken place on Tiananmen Square, the gate has great political significance. In the 20th Century this means the gate has frequently been decorated with portraits of objects of veneration. In the early years of the People's Republic, on special occasions the gate was hung with portraits of Sun Yat-sen, Mao Zedong, Marx, Engels, Lenin, and Stalin, with pride of place reserved for Sun Yat-sen.
Since the death of Mao in 1976, the central gate has had a portrait of Mao Zedong towering over it, while the western and eastern walls have had giant placards; the left one reads "Long Live the People's Republic of China" (中华人民共和国万岁), while the right one reads "Long live the Great Unity of the World's Peoples" (世界人民大团结万岁). The right placard used to read "Long Live the Central People's Government", and both placards are written in simplified Chinese instead of traditional Chinese characters. The phrasing has significant symbolic meaning, as the phrase used for long live, like the palace itself, was traditionally reserved for Emperors of China, but is now available to the common people.
The reviewing stands in the foreground are used on International Workers Day (May Day) and on the National Day (October 1) of the People's Republic of China.
In front of the stands is the palace moat, still filled with water but now containing decorative illuminated fountains.
In ancient times, the Tiananmen is the third gate encountered when entering Beijing. After the Qianmen, the Gate of China, stands the Tiananmen. Proceeding further inward, the next gate is the 'Upright Gate', identical in design to the Tiananmen; behind it is the southern entrance of the Forbidden City itself, known as the Meridian Gate.
The Tiananmen is featured on the emblem of the People's Republic of China.
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