The Summer Palace

The Summer Palace, situated on the western outskirts of Beijing, is the largest and most well-preserved royal park in China. Acclaimed as the "the Museum of Royal Gardens", it was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1998.

With Qing Yi Yuan (the Garden of Clear Ripples) as its predecessor, the designers of the Summer Palace used West Lake in Hangzhou as its blueprint and also copied the artistic features of landscape gardens in the Southern Yangtze River Delta area.

Mainly composed of Kunming Lake and Wan Shou Shan (Longevity Hill), the Summer Palace at its zenith occupied 2. 97 square kilometers (293 hectares), with three-quarters of the area covered by water.

As the pinnacle of traditional Chinese horticulture, the Summer Palace boasts more than 100 scenic structures and 20-odd yards, which amounts to a floor area of more than 70,000 square meters. In addition, there are over 1,600 ancient trees dotted around the garden, adding more vitality to this grand site.

The Summer Palace, built on the principle of "a man-made garden as though created by nature", radiates the natural beauty and grandeur of royal gardens. However, the Garden of Ripples was burnt down by English and French armies in 1860. In 1900, the garden suffered another hit by the Eight-Power Allied Force and was repaired in the following two years.

Although the beauty and magnificence of the Garden of Ripples were basically restored, compared with what they originally had been, they were greatly compromised. At present, the Summer Palace houses more than 40,000 cultural relics, including bronzeware, porcelain works and lacquerware.