Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
Fig. 1.6
Plan of old Beijing City
1
.
Palaces,
2
.
Imperial Ancestral Temple,
3
. Altar of Land and Grain,
4
. Altar of Heaven,
5
. Altar
of Earth,
6
. Altar of Sun,
7
. Altar of Moon,
8
. Xiannong Altar (Altar of the God of Agriculture),
9
. Western Garden,
10
. Jing Hill,
11
. Confucian Temple,
12
. Imperial College,
13
. Residence
of Princes and Princesses,
14
. Yamun,
15
. Barns,
16
. Buddhist Temples,
17
. Taoist temples,
18
. Islamic mosques,
19
. Examination Hall,
20
. Bell and Drum Towers,
21
. Elephants stall,
22
. Catholic church, 23. Barrack (From
A Brief History of Chinese Architecture
,
vol. 1,
pp. 183-184)
But as a Chinese saying goes: “things will develop in the opposite direction when
they become extreme.” The planning and designing of the old city of Beijing dem-
onstrated that the autocratic feudalism in Chinese history had gone to its extreme.
And this extreme autocracy led to its own collapse.