The four major gardens in China refer to the Summer Palace in Beijing, the Humble Administrator's Garden in Suzhou, Jiangsu, the Summer Resort in Chengde, Hebei, and the Lingering Garden in Suzhou, Jiangsu.
1. Summer Palace, Beijing
The Summer Palace, formerly known as Qingyi Garden, is located at No. 19, Xinjian Gongmen Road, Haidian District, Beijing. It is now open to the public as an AAAAA-level scenic spot. It was built by Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty in honor of his mother, the Empress Dowager Chongqing. It was renamed the Summer Palace during the reign of Emperor Guangxu. It was a summer recreation place for the Qing Dynasty royal family. Famous scenic spots include Wanshou Mountain, Foxiang Pavilion, Kunming Lake, Seventeen-Arch Bridge, Suzhou Street, etc.
2. Humble Administrator’s Garden, Suzhou, Jiangsu
The Humble Administrator’s Garden is located at No. 178 Northeast Street, Gusu District, Suzhou City, Jiangsu Province. It was built in the early years of Zhengde in the Ming Dynasty and was built by the imperial censor Wang Xianchen. Taking the phrase "Filling the garden with vegetables to provide for day and night meals... This is also what a clumsy person does in politics" in "Xianju Fu", it was named "Humble Administrator's Garden", which is still in use today. Famous scenic spots include Jianshan Tower, Tingyuxuan, Xiaofeihong, Suzhou Garden Museum, etc.
3. Chengde Mountain Resort, Hebei Province
The Mountain Resort located in Chengde City, Hebei Province was once the summer palace of the emperor of the Qing Dynasty in China. It is composed of the emperor's palace, royal gardens and magnificent temples. composed of groups. Founded in 1703, it took 89 years to complete after three generations of emperors from Kang, Yong, and Qian dynasties in the Qing Dynasty.
4. The Lingering Garden in Suzhou, Jiangsu
The Lingering Garden was built in 1593, the 21st year of Wanli in the Ming Dynasty. It was Xu Taishi's private garden. The courtyard of the garden is full of changes. The garden adopts an irregular layout, with winding paths leading to secluded areas. The architectural art is exquisite, and the architecture is naturally integrated with mountains, water, and stones. In the garden, Taihu Shiguanyun Peak is the most prominent, and it has the reputation of "getting the beauty of the mountains and forests without leaving the city walls".
The architectural layout of the Summer Palace:
The Summer Palace covers an area of ??3.009 square kilometers (of which the Summer Palace World Cultural Heritage Area is 2.97 square kilometers), and the water surface accounts for about three-quarters. It is mainly composed of Wanshou Mountain and Kunming Lake. There are more than 3,000 palace and garden buildings in various forms, which can be roughly divided into three parts: administration, living and sightseeing.
The administrative area centered on Renshou Hall was the place where the Empress Dowager Cixi and Emperor Guangxu sat in court to listen to politics and meet with foreign guests. Behind the Hall of Renshou are three large courtyards: Leshou Hall, Yulan Hall and Yiyun Hall, where Cixi, Guangxu and their concubines lived respectively. The Deheyuan Theater on the east side of Yiyun Hall was one of the three major theaters in the Qing Dynasty.
The Summer Palace starts from the Sea of ??Wisdom on the top of Wanshou Mountain, and forms a clear-cut central axis consisting of the Pavilion of Buddhist Incense, the Hall of Dehui, the Hall of Paiyun, the Gate of Paiyun, and the Yunhui Yuyufang. At the foot of the mountain is a "corridor" that is more than 700 meters long. There are more than 8,000 color paintings on the beams of the corridor, which is known as the "No. 1 Corridor in the World". In front of the corridor is Kunming Lake. The West Causeway of Kunming Lake is modeled after the Su Causeway of West Lake.
Reference for the above content: Baidu Encyclopedia-China’s Four Famous Gardens