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New Summer Palace
The Summer Palace () is a vast ensemble of lakes, gardens and palaces in Beijing. It was an imperial garden in the Qing dynasty. Inside includes Longevity Hill () Kunming Lake and Seventeen Hole Bridge. It covers an expanse of , three-quarters of which is water. Longevity Hill is about high and has many buildings positioned in sequence. The front hill is rich with splendid halls and pavilions, while the back hill, in sharp contrast, is quiet with natural beauty. The central Kunming Lake, covering , was entirely man-made and the excavated soil was used to build Longevity Hill. Inspired by the gardens in South China, in the Summer Palace there are over 3,000 various Chinese ancient buildings that house a collection of over 40,000 kinds of valuable historical relics from each dynasty. In December 1998, UNESCO included the Summer Palace on its World Heritage List. It declared the Summer Palace "a masterpiece of Chinese landscape garden design. The natural landscape of hills and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Haidian District
Haidian District () is a district of the municipality of Beijing. It is mostly situated in northwestern Beijing, but also to a lesser extent in the west, where it has borders with Xicheng District and Fengtai District. It is 431 square km in area, making it the second-largest district in urban Beijing area (after Chaoyang), and is home to 2,240,124 inhabitants (2000 Census). Sister cities Since 1992, Haidian District has signed official papers and established Sister City relationship with 14 cities and districts from 10 countries of 4 continents. Some sister cities are shown below: South America * Santa Fe, Argentina (May 2010) * La Falda, Cordoba, Argentina (10 September 2009) North America * Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States (8 February 2008) * Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, United States (15 April 1998) Europe * Savonlinna, Finland (9 March 2016) * Olympia, Peloponnesus, Greece (28 February 2008) * Groningen, Netherlands (19 October 2004) * Bures-sur-Yvette, Massy ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Heilongjiang
Heilongjiang () formerly romanized as Heilungkiang, is a province in northeast China. The standard one-character abbreviation for the province is (). It was formerly romanized as "Heilungkiang". It is the northernmost and easternmost province of the country and contains China's northernmost point (in Mohe City along the Amur) and easternmost point (at the junction of the Amur and Ussuri rivers). The province is bordered by Jilin to the south and Inner Mongolia to the west. It also shares a border with Russia (Amur Oblast, Jewish Autonomous Oblast, Khabarovsk Krai, Primorsky Krai and Zabaykalsky Krai) to the north and east. The capital and the largest city of the province is Harbin. Among Chinese provincial-level administrative divisions, Heilongjiang is the sixth-largest by total area, the 15th-most populous, and the second-poorest by GDP per capita. The province takes its name from the Amur River (see the etymology section below for details) which marks the border bet ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eunuch
A eunuch ( ) is a male who has been castrated. Throughout history, castration often served a specific social function. The earliest records for intentional castration to produce eunuchs are from the Sumerian city of Lagash in the 2nd millennium BCE. Over the millennia since, they have performed a wide variety of functions in many different cultures: courtiers or equivalent domestics, for espionage or clandestine operations, castrato singers, concubines, or sexual partners, religious specialists, soldiers, royal guards, government officials, and guardians of women or harem servants. Eunuchs would usually be servants or slaves who had been castrated to make them less threatening servants of a royal court where physical access to the ruler could wield great influence. Seemingly lowly domestic functions—such as making the ruler's bed, bathing him, cutting his hair, carrying him in his litter, or even relaying messages—could, in theory, give a eunuch "the ruler's ear" and impa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tianqi Emperor
The Tianqi Emperor (23 December 1605 – 30 September 1627), personal name Zhu Youjiao (), was the 16th Emperor of the Ming dynasty, reigning from 1620 to 1627. He was the eldest son of the Taichang Emperor and a elder brother of the Chongzhen Emperor, who succeeded him. " Tianqi", the era name of his reign, means "heavenly opening". Biography Zhu Youjiao became emperor at the age of 15, following the death of his father, the Taichang Emperor, who ruled less than a month. He did not pay much attention to state affairs, and was accused of failing in his filial duties to his late father by not continuing the latter's wishes. It is possible that Zhu Youjiao suffered from a learning disability or something more. He was illiterate and showed no interest in his studies. However, he was an outstanding carpenter and craftsman, often spending vast amounts of time on woodworking and instructing his servants to sell his creations undercover on the market just to see how much they were wor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wanli Emperor
The Wanli Emperor (; 4 September 1563 – 18 August 1620), personal name Zhu Yijun (), was the 14th Emperor of the Ming dynasty, reigned from 1572 to 1620. "Wanli", the era name of his reign, literally means "ten thousand calendars". He was the third son of the Longqing Emperor. His reign of 48 years (1572–1620) was the longest among all the Ming dynasty emperors and it witnessed several successes in his early and middle reign, followed by the decline of the dynasty as the emperor withdrew from his active role in government around 1600. Early reign (1572–1582) Zhu Yijun ascended the throne at the age of eight and adopted the regnal name "Wanli", thus he is historically known as the Wanli Emperor. For the first ten years of his reign, he was aided by a notable statesman, Zhang Juzheng, who governed the country as Wanli's regent. During this period, the Wanli Emperor deeply respected Zhang as a mentor and a valued minister. Archery competitions, equestrianism and calligraphy ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Zhengde Emperor
The Zhengde Emperor (; 26 October 149120 April 1521) was the 11th Emperor of the Ming dynasty, reigned from 1505 to 1521. Born Zhu Houzhao, he was the Hongzhi Emperor's eldest son. Zhu Houzhao took the throne at only 14 with the era name Zhengde, meaning "right virtue" or "rectification of virtue". He was known for favoring eunuchs such as Liu Jin and became infamous for his childlike behavior. He eventually died at age 29 from an illness he contracted after drunkenly falling off a boat into the Yellow River. He left behind no sons and was succeeded by his first cousin Zhu Houcong. Early years Zhu Houzhao was made crown prince at a very early age and because his father did not take up any other concubines, Zhu did not have to contend with other princes for the throne. (His younger brother died in infancy.) The prince was thoroughly educated in Confucian literature and he excelled in his studies. Many of the Hongzhi Emperor's ministers expected that Zhu Houzhao would become a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wet Nurse
A wet nurse is a woman who breastfeeds and cares for another's child. Wet nurses are employed if the mother dies, or if she is unable or chooses not to nurse the child herself. Wet-nursed children may be known as "milk-siblings", and in some cultures, the families are linked by a special relationship of milk kinship. Wet-nursing existed in cultures around the world until the invention of reliable formula milk in the 20th century. The practice has made a small comeback in the 21st century. Reasons A wet nurse can help when a mother is unable or unwilling to breastfeed her baby. Before the development of infant formula in the 20th century, wet-nursing could save a baby's life. There are many reasons why a mother is unable to produce sufficient breast milk, or in some cases to lactate at all. For example, she may have a chronic or acute illness, and either the illness itself, or the treatment for it, reduces or stops her milk. This absence of lactation may be temporary or permane ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ming Dynasty
The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last orthodox dynasty of China ruled by the Han Chinese, Han people, the majority ethnic group in China. Although the primary capital of Beijing fell in 1644 to a rebellion led by Li Zicheng (who established the short-lived Shun dynasty), numerous rump state, rump regimes ruled by remnants of the House of Zhu, Ming imperial family—collectively called the Southern Ming—survived until 1662. The Ming dynasty's founder, the Hongwu Emperor (r. 1368–1398), attempted to create a society of self-sufficient rural communities ordered in a rigid, immobile system that would guarantee and support a permanent class of soldiers for his dynasty: the empire's standing army exceeded one million troops and the naval history of China, navy's dockyards in Nanjin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hongzhi Emperor
The Hongzhi Emperor () (30 July 1470 – 9 June 1505) was the tenth Emperor of the Ming dynasty, reigned from 1487 to 1505. Born Zhu Youcheng, he was the eldest surviving son of the Chenghua Emperor and his reign as emperor of China is called the "Hongzhi Restoration" (弘治中興). His era name, " Hongzhi", means "great governance". A peace-loving emperor, the Hongzhi Emperor also had only one empress and no concubines, granting him the distinction of being the sole perpetually monogamous emperor in Chinese history, besides Emperor Fei of Western Wei. Early years Zhu Youcheng was born on 30 July 1470 to the Chenghua Emperor and Consort Ji (紀氏). Consort Ji was one of the Yao women captured during the suppression of an uprising in the southern Chinese province of Guangxi and then bought into the palace. Youcheng inherited a Southern appearance from his mother: a small figure and darker skin. He is also said to have intelligent and clear eyes and would grow a mustache and a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Changping District
Changping District (), formerly Changping County (), is a district situated in the suburbs of north and northwest Beijing. History Changping County and Jundu County which administered the area were established in the Han Dynasty. Changping was incorporated into Jundu when the Northern Wei dominated; however, the condition was reversed since the Eastern Wei. The county was promoted as Changping subprefecture had jurisdiction over Miyun, Shunyi and Huairou, in the era of Zhengde during the Ming Dynasty. These three counties were transferred to Shuntian Prefecture in the era of Yongzheng during the Qing Dynasty. Changping became a county again after the Xinhai Revolution, and it was transferred to Beijing from Hebei in 1956. Geography Changping District, covering an area of , contains two subdistricts of the city of Changping and 15 towns (five of which are suburbs of Beijing) with total population of 1.83 million (2012), a rapid increase from the 614,821 recorded in the 2000 c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Guo Shoujing
Guo Shoujing (, 1231–1316), courtesy name Ruosi (), was a Chinese astronomer, hydraulic engineer, mathematician, and politician of the Yuan dynasty. The later Johann Adam Schall von Bell (1591–1666) was so impressed with the preserved astronomical instruments of Guo that he called him "the Tycho Brahe of China." Jamal ad-Din cooperated with him. Early life In 1231, in Xingtai, Hebei province, China, Guo Shoujing was born into a poor family.O'Connor. He was raised primarily by his paternal grandfather, Guo Yong, who was famous throughout China for his expertise in a wide variety of topics, ranging from the study of the Five Classics to astronomy, mathematics, and hydraulics. Guo Shoujing was a child prodigy, showing exceptional intellectual promise. By his teens, he obtained a blueprint for a water clock which his grandfather was working on, and realized its principles of operation. He improved the design of a type of water clock called a lotus clepsydra, a water clock w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Khanbaliq
Khanbaliq or Dadu of Yuan () was the winter capital of the Yuan dynasty of China in what is now Beijing, also the capital of the People's Republic of China today. It was located at the center of modern Beijing. The Secretariat directly administered the Central Region () of the Yuan Empire (comprising present-day Beijing, Hebei, Shandong, Shanxi, and parts of Henan and Inner Mongolia) and dictated policies for the other provinces. Kublai and his successors also claimed supremacy over the entire Mongol Empire following the death of Möngke (Kublai's brother and predecessor) in 1259. Over time the unified empire gradually fragmented into a number of khanates. Khanbaliq is the direct predecessor to modern Beijing. Several stations of Line 10 and Line 13 are named after the gates of Dadu. Name The name Khanbaliq comes from the Mongolian and Old Uyghur words '' khan'' and ''balik'' ("town", "permanent settlement"): "City of the Khan". It was actually in use among the Turks an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
