World heritage is an honor, a responsibility, and a rare and irreplaceable wealth for mankind. World heritage sites are subdivided into three categories: World Cultural Heritage, World Natural Heritage and Dual World Cultural and Natural Heritage. Many countries around the world are very enthusiastic about the application for heritage, because once the application is successful, it can not only obtain the assistance provided by the "World Heritage Fund", but also improve the level of tourist attractions, and even become world-class tourist attractions.
At present, there are 1122 World Heritage Sites in the world, distributed in 167 countries in the world, and China has 56 World Heritage Sites, the number of which is the largest in the world. So, which of the many provinces and cities in China has the most World Heritage Sites? Up to now, there are 7 World Heritage Sites in Beijing, all of which are World Cultural Heritage, enjoying the highest level of cultural protection and inheritance. So, let's take a look at which 7 are there.
The Great Wall (1987)
The Great Wall of China is the greatest construction project in the history of human civilization and one of the cultural symbols that symbolize China. The Great Wall was first built in the Qin Dynasty, and there were large-scale constructions in the Han and Ming dynasties. Therefore, this is a cultural heritage jointly declared by several provinces in China that have the remains of the Great Wall. However, although there are Great Walls in many parts of China, the most famous of them is the Badaling Great Wall in Beijing, which is the essence of the Great Wall. The Badaling Great Wall was built in the Ming Dynasty and is known as one of the "Nine Plugs under the Heavens"; the phrase "not to the Great Wall is not a good man", makes this a must-visit attraction for tourists to Beijing.
Ming and Qing Dynasty Imperial Palace (1987)
Jointly declared by the Forbidden City in Beijing and the Imperial Palace in Shenyang. The weight of the Forbidden City in everyone's heart is self-evident, especially in recent years, the popularity has risen steadily. As the palace of the Ming and Qing dynasties, 24 emperors have ascended to the throne of the True Dragon Heavenly Son in the Forbidden City; 600 years later, the Forbidden City is the largest and most complete ancient imperial palace complex in the world, and is the "first of the five major palaces in the world". The forbidden city is now both a "palace" and a "museum"; the long history has left here a large-scale precious building and countless cultural relics, and when you are in the grand and regular high-walled courtyard, you can truly feel its former glory.
Zhoukoudian Beijing Ape Man Ruins (1987)
In 1929, Mr. Pei Wenzhong, a Chinese paleoanthropologist, excavated the first complete fossil skull of "Beijing Ape Man" in Zhoukoudian Keel Mountain, Fangshan District, Beijing, which shocked the world and became a milestone in the history of paleoanthropology research. In 1953, our country built a site and museum on the site where the skull was found. The site is a conservation-restored Ape Man Cave, as well as various archaeological excavation sites around the mountain, including the famous cave at the top of the mountain; the museum displays a variety of fossils excavated by archaeologists.
Temple of Heaven (1998)
The Temple of Heaven was a special altar for the emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties to sacrifice the heavens, pray for rain and pray for a good year. It was built in the eighteenth year of Ming Yongle (1420), and was rebuilt during the Qianlong and Guangxu periods of the Qing Dynasty. The Temple of Heaven is divided into two altars, the inner and outer altars, both of which are southern and northern circles. The inner altar is composed of two parts: circular hill and prayer valley altar, and the main buildings are the Imperial Vault, the Prayer Hall, the Imperial Qian Hall, the Sai Palace, and the Kagura Department; the outer altar is a forest area, and trees are widely planted. The temple of heaven covers an area of about 4 times that of the Forbidden City, and is the largest and most complete ancient celestial complex in China and even in the world.
Summer Palace (1998)
The Summer Palace was the imperial garden of the Qing Dynasty in China, located in the western suburbs of Beijing, and is the first classical garden in China. It is composed of Wanshou Mountain and Kunming Lake, based on the West Lake of Hangzhou, a large landscape garden that integrates Jiangnan gardening techniques, and is also the most complete preserved royal palace garden, known as the "Royal Garden Museum". The whole park is divided into a political activity area centered on Renshou Hall, an imperial living area dominated by Yulan Hall and Leshou Hall, and a scenic tourism area composed of Wanshou Mountain and Kunming Lake. Mountains, lakes and buildings are integrated, and the scenery of the four seasons is endlessly changing.
Ming and Qing Dynasty Royal Mausoleums (2000-2004)
It is a heritage jointly declared by 6 Ming and Qing royal tombs, including the Qing Dynasty Tombs (Hebei), the Qing Dynasty Tombs (Hebei), the Ming Tombs (Jiangsu), and the Ming Tombs (Beijing). Among them, the Ming Tombs are the general name for the tombs of the 13 emperors after the Ming Dynasty moved the capital to Beijing, and it is also one of the largest and most imperial tomb complexes in the country. The tombs of each emperor are built in front of a mountain, the largest of which is the Changling Tomb of Zhu Di of the Ming Dynasty, the first of the Thirteen Tombs.
Grand Canal of China (2014)
Jointly declared by Beijing, Tianjin, Hebei, Shandong, Henan, Anhui, Jiangsu, Zhejiang and other provinces with grand canals. The Grand Canal is the longest, earliest and largest canal in the world. It was founded in 486 BC and includes three parts: the Sui-Tang Grand Canal, the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal and the Zhejiang East Grand Canal.
The Beijing section of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal involves six districts of Changping, Xicheng and Chaoyang, and there are Kunming Lake, Guangyuan Lock, Wanning Bridge, and Dongbu Pressure Bridge along the line. Beijing's Tongzhou is born of canals, canal squares, canal parks, and tourism a few years ago. Visitors can stroll along the canal or take a boat trip to enjoy the beauty of both sides of the river and read about the thousand-year-old canal culture.
The pace of applying for heritage has never stopped
In the future, Beijing's World Heritage sites will definitely not stop at these 7 places. Since 2011, the application project for the central axis of Beijing has been launched; at present, 14 heritage sites, such as Yongdingmen, Zhengyangmen and Arrow Tower, Monument to the People's Heroes, Tiananmen, Shejitan, Taimiao, Jingshan, Drum Tower and Bell Tower, have been identified, and will participate in the joint declaration, and it is expected that the application for heritage will be realized in 2035. The road to apply for heritage is long, and China's newest World Heritage Site, Quanzhou City, has been realized after more than 20 years. For the application for the central axis of Beijing, let us wait and see.
So, of the 7 world heritage sites that Beijing already has, how many have you been to? Are you looking forward to the success of Beijing's central axis application? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section below.