Tian An Men , or the Gate of Heavenly Peace at DongChangÁn Jie and TiananMen Squares Northern Flank. Behind the traffic at Beijing's busiest avenue , TiananMen and the Southern Buildings of the Forbidden City are clearly visible.
Welcome to the world famous and renowned TiananMen Square , the Square of Heavenly Peace at the political heart of China's People's Republic. Monuments include remnants of the Former Front Gate, The Great Hall of The People, The National Museum, The Monument to the Heroes of the Revolution, the China National Flag, TiananMen The Gate and ofcourse the Famed Mao Zedong Memorial Mausoleum. Walk around the largest square parading ground in the World and enjoy the sights, sounds & scenes.
A map of the wider TiananMen Square area plus Forbidden City Area and surroundings. A map of the wider Palace Museum / Forbidden City area , with the Palace Moat, Zhongshan Park and the Park of the Peoples Culture Included. Very Accurate Map of The Imperial Palace Museum Grounds, including names of all Pavillons and the area of Zhongshan Park and the Park of the Peoples' Culture
(Both between TiananMen en Wumen Gate)
No building left out !
TiananMen (Sq.) and Palace Museum Maps & Directions
Webstyle produced NavBar
ChinaReport.comat
Soundbonus: Modern Chinese Pop Song "Wo Ai Beijing Tian'AnMen" (I Love Beijing Gate of Heavenly Peace), sung by Qun Xing.
Full Map of the Beijing Subway System of 2015 AD - Click Map for FULL Version !
The Square of Heavenly Peace is located at the very Center of the City of Beijing, just South of The Palace Museum.
The Square can be accessed from all directions, North-South and West through several pathways and is reachable by Bus, Metro/Subway, Car or Taxi, Rickshaw or Bicycle and on Foot. Some daring Tourist have even been spotted on Skates, but this is hardly advisable with current traffic levels.
The Only Thing to Remember is that no vehicles are alllowed to stop, drop off passengers or park immediately at TiananMen Square, TianAnMen Gate, or the two flanks formed by the Great Hall and the National Museum. There are no Bus Stops at the Square nor a Subway Station. In other words - you can get there, but you can't get off.
The Easiest Road to The Square of Heavenly Peace
therefor leads by Subway. Get off conveniently near the Square by traveling on the Central Red Line to TiananMen East- or West-Stations, or by the Circular Blue line to end up at QianMen Station, on the very southern Tip of TiananMen Square.
Please use the Below Satellite Image based Map of the Square of Heavenly Peace to navigate the Square, Monuments and various roads leading to and from the Square.
A View at the Square of Heavenly Peace, from the 1st Floor of Ming Tien Coffee Language, a now closed establishment with a certain grandeur.
The Square of Heavenly Peace is both the Largest Square on the face of the Earth and the symbolic Political Center of the world's Largest Nation, The Peoples Republic of China.
With it's origins in a much smaller square that existed in various forms from the construction of Beijing as an Imperial Capital during the Third Reign of the Ming Dynasty (1368 AD - 1644 AD), through the Years of the ManchuQing Dynasty (1644 AD - 1911 AD) and the "Boxer War" of 1900 and 1901 AD to the Year of the founding of the Modern Nation of China in 1949 AD, The Square of Heavenly Peace has survived through Time to remain at the center of the Modern Capital of a fast modernizing Nation. It has seen quite a remarkable history.
The Square of Heavenly Peace is the current Central Square of Beijing City and is constructed on the exact Central Axis of the City. The Central Axis enters the City at YongdingMen Gate in the South, passes through QianMen Dajie' and TiananMen Square and continues through the Center of The Palace Museum (Forbidden City) to the Coal Hill - Jingshan in the North and beyond.
Altogether the Square of Heavenly Peace covers 440,000 square meters, or 40.5 hectares (100 acres), measuring 880 meters from north to south, and 500 meters from east to west. This makes it the largest open-urban square in the world in by Far. "TiananMen Square" as it popularly called is larger than the Macro Plaza in Monterrey, Mexico (400,000 m) and far bigger than it's original Revolutionary Counter-part Red Square in Moscow which only measures around 330 meters (1100 ft) long and 70 meters (230 ft) wide.
The Square of Heavenly Peace can hold the staggering number 10,000,000 people at one time.
After the Chinese Revolution and the establishment of The Peoples Republic of China the Square of Heavenly Peace was reconstructed into the new Political Center of the Nation. Its architecture, rectangular and alligned South to North along a Central Axis with buidlings on the sides, resembles both that of a Chinese Temple and the architecture of the Former Political Center, the Imperial Palace. In this way, the
historic Monuments of the Central City are merged together as a mix of historic cultural treasures and traditional design elements ofset by the modernity of the Buildings and Monuments of the Revolution.
The Square of Heavenly Peace represents the enormity of the Communist Party of China, the success of the Chinese Revolution, as well as a claim to "The Mandate of Heaven", the divine right to Rule, earlier held by the Emperors in the Forbidden City.
A Historic Black & White Photo of the Northern Section of Square of Heavenly Peace in 1979 AD. The Photo was taken from the Rostrum of The Gate of Heavenly Peace, a previously forbidden part of the city but since a few years opened to the public. Buy a ticket to the rostrum on the Square behind the Gate of Heavenly Peace.
Click through adjacent Links to learn more about the Largest Square in the World and World History.
To Great Hall of the Peoples West Street (Renmin Dahui Tang Xi Lu) and the National Theatre.
East
Easily navigate the various sections of the Square of Heavenly Peace using below Satellite Image and Pages with Fully detailed Descriptions of the 4 Section of North, South, Flanks and the Area around the South of the Giant Square, starting in the North and Ending Up in the very South around the Former Front Gate of the Imperial Capital of Emperors !
- Click Map Image to Enlarge Further -
Getting to the Square of Heavenly Peace is usually not a problem for the elderly or handicapped.
Although on the North and South Sides there are pedestrian tunnels which are not easily accesible to wheel-chairs because they have ramps that are slippery and often crowded, there are two street level entrances on both flanks of the large square providing for an easy drive or walk onto the Square. Find the one on the West Flank in front of The Great Hall of The People. On the Eastern Flank of the Square there is a crossing point directly in front of the National Museum. Two more crossing points are located to the South of these.
Inside the Square
Accessing the Square of Heavenly Peace
Once on the Square you will find it a flat and level, completely open space, only interrupted by the Large Monuments, Lighting Poles fit with surveilance camera's and the odd Police Van parked on the Square. There are no benches to sit on for a rest !
On occasion there are special decorations installed inside the Square to highlight various Celebrations or National Holidays. Among these are plastic and electrically illuminated trees and flowers and such to brighten up the days celebrating the spring festival. Another variety are the Slogans and Large Portraits of Revolutionary Heroes displayed on various spots, mostly in the Northern Section of the Square Space. Lately, mostly Sun Yat-Sen seems popular, as are slogans calling on The People to be better citizens.
Security at Tian'An Men Square
The Square of Heavenly Peace in Beijing is, after ZhongNanHai - the Communist Party Leadership Compound, the most heavily secured and Police patrolled piece of land in the City. The entire square, as well the roads surrounding it, as well as nearby area's are continuously patrolled by the Beijing Normal Police, which uses foot patrols, Police Van's, Cars and Motor Cycles and even Dogs to patrol the spaces bordering on the Square. Police Vehicles also Patrol on the Square itself.
In addition there are plain clothes Police Men (and Women) prowling the Square and the space underneath The Gate of Heavenly Peace continuously. The Security is further enhanced by the large number of official guards of the Monuments themselves, all of which have their own details of Special Armed Police, recognizable by the olive green uniform with golden-with red-bands on the sleeves and the brown-leathered holsters for their fire-arms. For further control, the entire square and immediate surroundings have been rigged with closed-circuit surveillance camera's. Camera's are hung from Lighting Poles throughout the Square. In addition they are installed at the perimeters of the Monuments and inside of those. The Roads leading up to The Square of Heavenly Peace are watched around the clock by use of surveillance camera's as well.
The Visitors passing through at the Entrance Points to the Square of Heavenly Peace have long been subject to a security check. In the past this basicly held that although unwanted political displays and protests had occured in the past, especially in the Falun Gong years, most foreigners were not bothered or targeted by the Officers at the Check-Point. Even back-packs were not considered a problem.
Instead the check-points mainly targeted Chinese Nationals, who were often required to show their ID Cards, and open their bags for a search.
This situation has been changed recently however. As part of the preparations of the Square as the focus of World Attention during the Olympic Games of August 2008, x-ray screening machines were introduced at the Entrances to the Square. Even after the Olympic Games have passed, bags entering the Square are still required to be screened.
At Night, when the Square closes off to the Public, a combined armed special police and Beijing Normal Police presence seals off the access to the square space while the surrounding area's of the Square are continuously patrolled.
Within the Perimeter Guards watch the Monuments, as well as the fence dividing the Square from its surroundings.
A Police Van is parked at The Gate of Heavenly Peace throughout the Night. The Five White Marble Bridges leading up to the Gate itself are closed off. Guards patrol within this perimeter throughout the Night.
The Southern End of The National Museum is another point where Police Vans Park during the Night. Regardless what the weather, security at and around The Square of Heavenly Peace are in full operation.
Guards on Watch at The Gate of Heavenly Peace and Eternal Peace Avenue during the worst snow-storm in 20 years, in November 2003 AD.
Political Sloganeering on a Grand Scale in TiananMen Square in November 2002, during the 16Th Communist Party Congress.
With the spring festival of 2006 AD Fire-Works were reallowed in the City of Beijing, making for a louder beginning of the new Year. Although Fire-works are still not allowed inside the Square of Heavenly Peace, authorities eagerly made an exception for the Ceremonies and Celebrations involved in the organizing of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. Especially the closing Ceremonies for the Games, saw a spectacular finale at the Tian'AnMen Square, with abundant Fire-Works to light up the Sky above the Olympic Venues in North Haidian District, as well as the Square of Heavenly peace, and of course the Tian'An Men Gate. It was probably the most spectacular party the Square saw in the last 50 years.
Security Check of TianAnMen Square at the Entrance in front of The Great Hall of The People. There are the armed special police guards in green uniforms, as well as the Beijing Normal Police (Jing Sha) in navy blue. One Beijing Police Man has an specially trained explosive sniffing dog.
Squads of Special Armed Police Guards march on- and off- at Beijing's Square of Heavenly Peace. Monuments are guarded around the clock and have full ceremonial guard details during daytime (Photo: May 2005 AD).
The Entrance Points and Security Checks on the Square of Heavenly Peace are located at the exits of the 4 pedestrian tunnels leading to the Square through it's corners. Four More are located on the Flanks of the Square where its is freely accessible by road-crossing and zebra path through two points at each side, East and West. Dogs are often used at these entrance points for added security.
Secrets of The Square Of Heavenly Peace
Never spoken of, and even less published on, the Square of Heavenly peace has its Secrets.
The Firs secret is that there are tunnels leading underneath the square of Heavenly Peace. The existence of this tunnels has been confirmed, however nothing so far is known about the length and extends of these Tunnels. The only hints of these Tunnels can be deduced from the remarks of Mao Zedong's personal doctor Li ZhiSui, in his biography of Mao and the story of the circumstances around the Death of the Great leader and the preservation of his body in the Book "The Private Life of Mao". The other hint consists of visible doorways leading away from the main pedestrian tunnels giving access to the Square from the North-West and North-East.
More to follow when information becomes available !
The Second Secret is the Protest on- and ensuing Battle of TianAnMen Square in the Summer of 1989 AD as events themselves. Although massive chaos broke out on The Square when it was cleared by the army with use of assault rifles and armored vehicles, none of the substantial damage caused at the Time can be seen today. Not a single bullet hole remains to be found anywhere in or near the Square. Not a Tile is damaged.
In this way it is possible that many Chinese Citizens who have never left China, are younger of age and/or were not in the City at the Time of the 1 Million strong protests but away in some distant province , are usually unawares of the events that took place inside their National Square in the year 1989 AD.
Apart from the Main Monuments at The Square of Heavenly Peace, there are quite a few minor attractions to be viewed and visited as well.
Among these are the Bank of China building on the East Flank of the Square, which was originally constructed just after the year 1900 AD. Another Two minor monuments are found due East of The Gate of Heavenly Peace where there is the Entrance Gate into The Imperial Ancestral Temple. Located adjacent it sits the West gate and Exit of the Park of The Peoples Culture, which is hidden behind the reddened Walls of the Old Imperial City along the North of The Square.
In the South-West stands the Old QianMen Train Station, a relic of the early industrialization of China after the feudal Society of the Qing Dynasty.
Other Tourist attractions lie scattered around.
Further down the roads leading away from The Square of Heavenly Peace there is more to be seen. As such, there are the National Theatre and the Gate of new China (Xinhua Men) in the North-West along West Eternal Peace Avenue.
To the East of the Square sits the section of Beijing that was formerly in use as the Embassy Area, the so called Beijing Foreign Legations.
Among the smaller pleasures and the treasures of The Square of Heavenly Peace are the forever Kites, the sellers with tourist books, and ofcourse the Post Cards and Souvenirs of Chairman Mao.
Kites can be seen in many spaces and places in and around Beijing, but flying a Kite at TiananMen Square is part of a traditional Beijing visit. Visitors can bring their own Kites (requiring the size is modest and the design acceptable - see Security at TiananMen Square) or buy or even rent one at the Square. Most Kites are flown in the North Section, which is most suitable due to the large open space without high monuments. In the South, behind the Chairman Mao Mausoleum is another favored spot.
Make sure not to Fly your Kite into the large ShenyangMen Tower, or it will most likely be lost!
This Space south of the Chairman Mao Memorial Hall is also the location of the Gift Shop attached to The Mausoleum. In the Past one could not pass here without being offered an abundance of Pins, Buttons, Playing Cards, Postcards, the Little Red Book, Quotations and Images of Mao and more of the Chairman, all wares enthousiastically praised by eager to sell -if not plain pushy- peddlers. A famous sentence recognized by many a tourist is "Hello ? Postcard Chairman Mao ? Tian'An Men Square ?"
Today's peddlers remain pushy but have modernized their offerings, diversifying into tourist maps, and of course Beijing 2008 Olympic Games souvenirs.
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