The Burning of the Yuanmingyuan Imperial Garden
2 min readIntroduction
The Old Summer Palace，known in Chinese as Yuan Ming Yuan（the Gardens of Perfect Brightness）and originally called the ImperialGardens，was a complex of palaces and gardens in Beijing.It is located8kilometres northwest of the walls of the Imperial City and was built in the 18th and early 19th century as the place where the emperors of the Qing Dynasty resided and handled government affairs（the Forbidden City was used for formal ceremonies）.The Old Summer Palace was known for its extensive collection of gardens and buildings and other works of art（a popular name in China was the“Garden of Gardens”）.
During the Second Opium War，two British envoys，a journalist for The Times and their small escort of British and Indian troopers met with the Royal Prince to negotiate.The British High Commissioner to China，Lord Elgin，used their imprisonment as an excuse and ordered the destruction of the palace，which was then carried out by British and French troops.
History
Initial construction of the Old Summer Palace began in 1707 under the reign of the Kangxi Emperor.It was intended as a small gift for the emperor’s fourth son，the future Yongzheng Emperor，who would greatly expand the Imperial Gardens in 1725.Yongzheng also introduced the waterworks of the gardens，created lakes，streams and ponds to complement the rolling hills and grounds and named 28 scenic spots within the garden.
In the Qianlong Emperor’s reign，the second expansion was well underway and the number of scenic spots increased to 50（Qianlong personally directed construction）.By the middle of the nineteenth 4 century，the Imperial Gardens had undergone constant expansion in one form or another for over 150 years.
