Beijing can boast of over 3,000 years of recorded history and was the capital of China until the fall of the Qing dynasty in 1911. Beijing reclaimed its title as capital in 1949 with the establishment of the People's Republic of China.
The Forbidden City was home to the royal families of the Ming dynasty and then the Qing dynasty. The grounds were divided into two sections: the southern section was dedicated to matters of state and the northern section which served as living quarters of the royal family.
In 1407, during the Ming dynasty, construction began on the Forbidden City. The palace took 14 years to construct and was completed in 1420. It's been estimated that approximately one million workers were forced into service to complete the project.
The grounds are rectangular encompassing 74 hectares. The Palace is surrounded by a 20-foot moat and a wall measuring 33 feet in height. The palace has 9,999 rooms and features towers on each corner of the grounds. These towers provide excellent views of both the centrally located palace and the city of Beijing.
You will discover that the color yellow dominates the Forbidden City. The palace roofs were constructed with yellow tiles, numerous decorations throughout the palace are yellow and even the flooring is yellow. The reason yellow is so predominant is that it's the symbolic color of the royal family.
