The Forbidden City

Located in the heart of Beijing, China, the Forbidden City is a palace complex that was built between 1406 and 1420 during the Ming Dynasty. The construction of the palace was to serve the imperial palace for the Chinese emperor and his family alongside being the political centre of the Chinese government. This is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is generally agreed to be one of the most important cultural sites in China.
This establishment is a vast complex! The Forbidden City consists of over 980 buildings (consisting of 9,271 rooms in total), 70 large palaces and small palaces and 180 acres are occupied by the site. There are two parts to the palace: the Outer Court and the Inner Court. Ceremonies were held in the Outer Court while the Inner Court was used by the Imperial Chinese family as a private place of familial affairs. Alongside these courts, there are also the following notable structures (just to name a few):
• The Hall of Supreme Harmony: the Forbidden City's largest hall and served as the venue of paramount ceremonies such as the coronation of an emperor or an imperial wedding.
• The Hall of Central Harmony: this smaller hall was utilised by the emperor to prepare for any of the ceremonies to be held in the aforementioned Hall of Supreme Harmony.
• Similar to the Hall of Supreme Harmony, the Hall of preserving Harmony is another large important hall that was used for paramount ceremonies like imperial banquet and examinations. • Should the Chinese emperor seek a peaceful, private and local retreat from his duties, the Imperial Garden served this purpose. Following the 1912 fall of the Chinese Empire and its monarchy in favour of republicanism that while initially democratic soon became communist, the Forbidden City was opened to the public for the first time in 1925 and receives millions of visitors every year! To preserve its historic beauty and significance, the palace has had numerous and extensive renovations in recent years.