TIANANMEN SQUARE, Introduction

Hi, my name’s Scott, and I’m your personal guide. Along with MyWoWo, I’d like to welcome you to one of the Wonders of the World: Tiananmen Square.

Tiananmen Square is the best-known symbol of modern China.

With a surface area of 440,000 square meters, 880 meters long and 500 meters wide, this is the largest square in China, and the sixth largest in the world. It is especially well known as the location of two important historical events. It was here that Mao Zedong proclaimed the founding of the People’s Republic of China in 1949, and 50 years later it bore witness to the massacre of opponents of the Communist regime.

The square owes its name to the monumental Tiananmen Gate, or Gate of Heavenly Peace, which leads into the imperial city, which also comprises the Forbidden City, located a few hundred meters beyond.

The history of the square is closely bound to that of the Gate. Both were built in 1417, during the Ming dynasty; at that time the square was quite small, and mostly contained administrative offices....