Tiananmen Square

Tiananmen Square: The Solemnity and Glory of the World's Largest City-Center Square

Overview

Tiananmen Square is located on East Chang'an Avenue in Dongcheng District, Beijing. It measures 880 meters from north to south and 500 meters from east to west, covering a total area of 440,000 square meters and capable of accommodating one million people for gatherings, making it the world's largest city-center square. At the north end of the square stands the Tiananmen Gate Tower, at the south end the Zhengyangmen Arrow Tower, with the Monument to the People's Heroes in the center, the National Museum of China to the east, and the Great Hall of the People to the west. The square's ground is paved entirely with light-colored granite strips processed with special techniques, and in the center stand the Chairman Mao Memorial Hall and the flagpole. Tiananmen Square is a symbol of the People's Republic of China, an important venue for major national events, military parades, and mass gatherings, and a must-visit place for Chinese and foreign tourists to understand China's history and culture.

Historical Evolution

Core Attractions

1. Tiananmen Gate Tower

The Tiananmen Gate Tower stands at the north end of the square. It was first built in the 15th year of Yongle in the Ming Dynasty (1417), originally named Chengtian Gate, and was renamed Tiananmen after reconstruction in the 8th year of Shunzhi in the Qing Dynasty (1651). The tower has a total height of 34.7 meters, consisting of a platform and a tower. The platform is made of brick and stone, with a 1.59-meter-high white marble sumeru base at the bottom, and five arched gates in the center of the platform. The tower has a double-eaved hip roof covered with yellow glazed tiles, with a width of nine bays and a depth of five bays, symbolizing the "supremacy of the emperor." The national emblem of the People's Republic of China is hung on the tower, and a portrait of Chairman Mao Zedong is hung above the central gate, with slogans "Long Live the People's Republic of China" and "Long Live the Great Unity of the Peoples of the World" on both sides.

2. Monument to the People's Heroes

The Monument to the People's Heroes is located in the center of the square. Construction began in 1952 and was completed in 1958. The monument is 37.94 meters high and is built of 17,000 pieces of granite and white marble. The front of the monument bears the inscription "The People's Heroes Are Immortal" in eight gilded characters written by Mao Zedong, and the back bears an inscription written by Zhou Enlai. The base of the monument is inlaid with ten white marble reliefs, with themes including the Opium War at Humen, the Jintian Uprising, the Wuchang Uprising, the May Fourth Movement, the May 30th Movement, the Nanchang Uprising, the Anti-Japanese Guerrilla War, the Victory in Crossing the Yangtze River, Supporting the Front, and Welcoming the People's Liberation Army, vividly reproducing major historical events in modern Chinese history.

3. Chairman Mao Memorial Hall

The Chairman Mao Memorial Hall is located at the south end of the square and was completed in 1977. The building is square in shape, facing south, with a construction area of 28,000 square meters. The memorial hall consists of the North Hall, the Viewing Hall, and the South Hall. The North Hall is the venue for commemorative activities, with a white marble seated statue of Mao Zedong in the center; in the center of the Viewing Hall is a crystal coffin containing Mao Zedong's body; the South Hall is the exit hall, with Mao Zedong's poem "Man Jiang Hong: In Reply to Comrade Guo Moruo" inscribed on the wall.

4. National Flag and Flag-Raising Ceremony

The flagpole is located at the north end of the square, aligned with the central axis of the Tiananmen Gate Tower. The flagpole is 32.6 meters high with a white marble base. A flag-raising ceremony is held at sunrise every day, and a flag-lowering ceremony at sunset. The national flag guard consists of 36 members who march from the Golden Water Bridge to the flagpole, a total of 138 steps, symbolizing the 138 years from the founding of the Communist Party of China to the founding of the People's Republic of China.