Yesterday I visited the Presidential Palace (总统府, Zǒngtǒng fǔ). The Presidential Palace is a 90,000-square-meter compound that dates back 600 years. There have been a lot of changes in China in the last 600 years! Check out what has gone on in the palace:
Ming Dynasty - The place where Prince Han lived.
Qing Dynasty - Home to a viceroy who was in charge of of 3 provinces. The Emperor would stay here when he traveled South.
Taiping Rebellion - The palace was taken over by a man named Hong Xiuquan (洪秀全, Hóng Xiùquán) who claimed to be the younger brother of Jesus Christ and led an uprising called the Taiping Rebellion (太平天国, Tàipíng Tiānguó) that conquered half of China between 1851 and 1864. 20-million people died in the rebellion, making it one of the most deadly military conflicts in history.
Qing Dynasty (again) - In 1864 - Hong Xiuquan died of food poisoning (be careful what you eat!) and his followers were defeated by the Qing Dynasty with the help of the British and French. The Qing government took back the palace and rebuilt it.
Nationalist China - From 1912 to 1949 the Nationalist Party ruled China. The first president was Sun Yat Sen (孙中山, Sūn Zhōngshān) and the second president was Chiang Kai Shek (蒋介石, Jiǎng Jièshí). This palace is the only public place in China where the Nationalist Party flag is hung. Here's my classmates and I with the Nationalist flag!
Ming Dynasty - The place where Prince Han lived.
Qing Dynasty - Home to a viceroy who was in charge of of 3 provinces. The Emperor would stay here when he traveled South.
Taiping Rebellion - The palace was taken over by a man named Hong Xiuquan (洪秀全, Hóng Xiùquán) who claimed to be the younger brother of Jesus Christ and led an uprising called the Taiping Rebellion (太平天国, Tàipíng Tiānguó) that conquered half of China between 1851 and 1864. 20-million people died in the rebellion, making it one of the most deadly military conflicts in history.
Qing Dynasty (again) - In 1864 - Hong Xiuquan died of food poisoning (be careful what you eat!) and his followers were defeated by the Qing Dynasty with the help of the British and French. The Qing government took back the palace and rebuilt it.
Nationalist China - From 1912 to 1949 the Nationalist Party ruled China. The first president was Sun Yat Sen (孙中山, Sūn Zhōngshān) and the second president was Chiang Kai Shek (蒋介石, Jiǎng Jièshí). This palace is the only public place in China where the Nationalist Party flag is hung. Here's my classmates and I with the Nationalist flag!
Communist China - The Nationalist Party lost the civil war to the Communists in 1949 and fled to the island of Taiwan. The Communist Party still runs China today, and the Nationalists government is still active on Taiwan.
Now, you might have noticed that some of the names in this post seem a bit weird. The pinyin doesn’t match!
For example:
Sun Yat Sen = 孙中山 = Sūn Zhōngshān
Chiang Kai Shek = 蒋介石 = Jiǎng Jièshí
The names “Sun Yat Sen” and “Chiang Kai Shek” are Wade-Giles. Wade-Giles is the system of romanization (turning characters into letters) used before Pinyin. Most of the time nobody uses Wade-Giles. However, for some places and people that were famous before Pinyin was created the Wade-Giles names seem to have stuck. Here’s some more Wade-Giles:
Now, you might have noticed that some of the names in this post seem a bit weird. The pinyin doesn’t match!
For example:
Sun Yat Sen = 孙中山 = Sūn Zhōngshān
Chiang Kai Shek = 蒋介石 = Jiǎng Jièshí
The names “Sun Yat Sen” and “Chiang Kai Shek” are Wade-Giles. Wade-Giles is the system of romanization (turning characters into letters) used before Pinyin. Most of the time nobody uses Wade-Giles. However, for some places and people that were famous before Pinyin was created the Wade-Giles names seem to have stuck. Here’s some more Wade-Giles:
Now you know the story behind "Peking Duck" and "Peking Ravioli." They're from Beijing!