[2] The complex claims to consist of 9,999 rooms in total, although experts have shown in recent years that the number only amounts to 8,886,[3] covering 72 ha (720,000 m2)/178-acre.

The palace gained its name from its enormous scale and severely restricted access to all but the Emperor, the Imperial family, and Eunuchs; hence the Chinese term "Forbidden City" emerged.

[13] Material used include whole logs of precious Phoebe zhennan wood (楠木; nánmù) found in the jungles of south-western China, and large blocks of marble from quarries near Beijing.

In April 1644, it was captured by rebel forces led by Li Zicheng, who proclaimed himself emperor of the Shun dynasty.

[15] He soon fled before the combined armies of former Ming general Wu Sangui and Manchu forces, setting fire to parts of the Forbidden City in the process.

[17] The Qing rulers changed the names on some of the principal buildings to emphasise "harmony" rather than "supremacy",[18] made the nameplates bilingual (Chinese and Manchu),[19] and introduced shamanist elements to the palace.

[21] In 1900 Empress Dowager Cixi fled from the Forbidden City during the Boxer Rebellion, leaving it to be occupied by forces of the treaty powers until the following year.

This relatively small but high quality collection was kept in storage until 1965, when it again became public as the core of the National Palace Museum in Taipei.

[27] After the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949, some damage was done to the Forbidden City as the country was swept up in revolutionary zeal.

[28] During the Cultural Revolution, however, further destruction was prevented when Premier Zhou Enlai sent an army battalion to guard the city.

[29] The Forbidden City was declared a World Heritage Site in 1987 by UNESCO as the "Imperial Palace of the Ming and Qing Dynasties",[30] due to its significant place in the development of Chinese architecture and culture.

[32] On the 5 November 2024, 100 years was marked since the expulsion of the last Emperor of China, Puyi, from the palace by republican forces, led by Feng Yuxiang.

[3][33] A common myth states that there are 9,999 rooms including antechambers,[34] based on oral tradition, but it is not supported by survey evidence.

They were constructed with a rammed earth core, and surfaced with three layers of specially baked bricks on both sides, with the interstices filled with mortar.

According to one legend, artisans could not put a corner tower back together after it was dismantled for renovations in the early Qing dynasty, and it was only rebuilt after the intervention of carpenter-immortal Lu Ban.

[42] Entering from the Meridian Gate, one encounters a large square, pierced by the meandering Inner Golden Water River, which is crossed by five bridges.

[51] At the centre of the stairs leading up to the terraces from the northern and southern sides are ceremonial ramps, part of the Imperial Way, featuring elaborate and symbolic bas-relief carvings.

[13] The southern ramp, in front of the Hall of Supreme Harmony, is even longer, but is made from two stone slabs joined — the joint was ingeniously hidden using overlapping bas-relief carvings, and was only discovered when weathering widened the gap in the 20th century.

Above the throne hangs a tablet reading "Justice and Honour" (Chinese: 明光大正; pinyin: míngguāng dà zhèng).

In the last decades of the Qing dynasty, empresses dowager, including Cixi, held court from the eastern partition of the hall.

[61] The north-eastern section of the Inner Court is taken up by the Palace of Tranquil Longevity (寧壽宮) (O), a complex built by the Qianlong Emperor in anticipation of his retirement.

The twelve palaces were the place where many of the Qing emperors were born and grew up, and they formed the daily life of the imperial family.

At the same time, the native Chinese Taoist religion continued to have an important role throughout the Ming and Qing dynasties.

[70] To the west lies Zhongnanhai, a former royal garden centred on two connected lakes, which now serves as the central headquarters for the Chinese Communist Party and the State Council of the People's Republic of China.

Today, these are the Beijing Labouring People's Cultural Hall[71] and Zhongshan Park (commemorating Sun Yat-sen) respectively.

Since 2000, the Beijing municipal government has worked to evict governmental and military institutions occupying some historical buildings, and has established a park around the remaining parts of the Imperial City wall.

[73] In 2005, the Imperial City and Beihai (as an extension item to the Summer Palace) were included in the shortlist for the next World Heritage Site in Beijing.

[74] The design of the Forbidden City, from its overall layout to the smallest detail, was meticulously planned to reflect philosophical and religious principles, and above all to symbolize the majesty of Imperial power.

However, with the Communists' victory imminent in the Chinese Civil War, the Nationalist government decided to ship the pick of this collection to Taiwan.

[83] In addition to works of art, a large proportion of the Museum's collection consists of the artifacts of the imperial court.