Tiananmen Square is situated right in the center of Beijing. At 440,000 square meters it’s the largest open urban square in the world.

‘Tiananmen’ means ‘Gate of Heavenly Peace’. Built in 1417, this gate, which stands at the north end of the square, is the entrance to the Forbidden City. When the Forbidden City was first built, Tiananmen was reserved for the sole use of aristocrats, but today it’s the tourist entrance.

The Great Hall of the People stands on the west side of the square. Erected in 1959, the building is divided into three parts, the central hall, the auditorium, and the banquet hall. The China National People’s Congress meets in this richly appointed building.

Mao Zedong’s mausoleum takes up the south side of the square. Here he lies in state, preserved in his crystal coffin so that the people can see and honor him. And they do, by the millions; there’s always a line to go through and his body is always surrounded by fresh flowers.

East, there’s the China National Museum. Opened in 2003 the museum has two main focuses: Chinese history up to 1921, when the last emperor left the throne, and the Chinese Revolution and the development of the modern state.

The great granite Monument to the Peoples Heroes dominates the center of the square. It was constructed in 1952 and is the largest monument in China. It bears the inscription ‘The Peoples heroes are immortal’, as well as eight large relief sculptures depicting China’s development. The entire monument is surrounded by a double marble railing.

An honor guard raises the Chinese National flag is raised every morning at sunrise. Despite the hour, plenty of people turn up every morning to see it raised.

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