Photographs: Tiananmen

Right after walking the huge Tiananmen Square, Sunny, our tour guide, guided us to Tiananmen or the Gate of Heavenly Peace.

Tiananmen

Tiananmen Gate

Gate of Heavenly Peace

Widely used as a national symbol, Tiananmen (Tian’anmen or Gate of Heavenly Peace) was originally named Chengtianmen or Gate of Accepting Heavenly Mandate. It has been destroyed and rebuilt several times before it was given its present name in 1651.

Located to the north of Tiananmen Square, Tiananmen is often referred to as the front entrance to the Forbidden City. However, the Meridian Gate is the first entrance to the Forbidden City proper, while Tiananmen was the entrance to the Imperial City, within which the Forbidden City was located.