Tian'anmen Square - Front Gate

(Local Name: Qianmen) At the southern end of Tian'anmen Square rises the tower-like Front Gate (Qianmen) and, across the road, the gun tower belonging with it. Both were once linked by walls surrounding an inner courtyard. The Front Gate used to form the central opening in the wall between Inner and Outer Cities. It was erected in 1421, but the wooden structures burned down several times, the last time in the year 1900 during the Boxer Rebellion. It was one of Beijing's nine city gates and the link between the north and south parts of the city. The structure consisted of two buildings one behind the other, connected by walls from which an inner courtyard came into being.