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The 'Forbidden City', the former imperial palace complex, is located in:
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Answer: Option C — Beijing, China
Detailed Solution
The Forbidden City is a vast imperial palace complex in the centre of Beijing, China.
About the Forbidden City:
It was built between 1406 and 1420 on the orders of the Ming emperor Yongle, who moved the capital from Nanjing to Beijing.
It served as the home of the emperors and the political centre of China for nearly 500 years, from 1420 to 1912. Twenty-four emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties lived there.
It was called "Forbidden" because ordinary people could not enter without the emperor's permission.
Its Chinese name is "Zijin Cheng" ("Purple Forbidden City"); it is now officially called the "Palace Museum" ("Gugong").
It covers about 72 hectares and is said to have about 9,000 rooms (traditionally said to be 9,999). It is the largest surviving ancient palace complex in the world.
It is surrounded by a 10-metre-high wall and a 52-metre-wide moat.
Its buildings have yellow-glazed roof tiles, because yellow was the colour reserved for the emperor.
Its largest hall is the "Hall of Supreme Harmony" (Taihedian), where important ceremonies were held.
After the last emperor's abdication in 1912, he was allowed to live in the inner part until 1924.
It became the Palace Museum in 1925.
It was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987 (as part of the "Imperial Palaces of the Ming and Qing Dynasties").
It is one of the most visited museums in the world.
Nearby landmarks:
Tiananmen Square and the Tiananmen ("Gate of Heavenly Peace") are at its southern entrance. Mao Zedong proclaimed the People's Republic of China from the Tiananmen on 1 October 1949.
The Temple of Heaven and the Summer Palace are other famous palaces and temples in Beijing.
Other famous palaces in Asia:
- Tokyo Imperial Palace (Japan).
- Gyeongbokgung Palace, Seoul (South Korea).
- Imperial City of Hue (Vietnam).
- Potala Palace, Lhasa (Tibet): the former winter residence of the Dalai Lama.
Why not the other options?
- ✗Tokyo has the Imperial Palace of Japan.
- ✗Seoul has the Gyeongbokgung Palace.
- ✗Hanoi has the Imperial Citadel of Thang Long, but not the Forbidden City.
Quick tip
Remember: Forbidden City = Beijing (built 1406-1420 by Ming emperor Yongle; home of 24 emperors till 1912; Palace Museum since 1925; UNESCO 1987); Potala Palace = Lhasa; Tiananmen = its southern gate.
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Monuments & Religious Places — Preparation
This question tests your understanding of Monuments & Religious Places, a key topic in the General Knowledge section. The detailed solution above uses a step-by-step approach to show the reasoning, and where available, a shortcut that helps you solve similar questions in under 90 seconds during the actual exam.
This topic covers India's important monuments, temples, mosques, churches, gurudwaras and pilgrimage sites, who built them and when, their architectural styles, and India's UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Questions ask who built a monument, where it is located, or which dynasty or style it belongs to. For example, the Qutub Minar was begun by Qutbuddin Aibak, and the Sun Temple at Konark was built by the Eastern Ganga king Narasimhadeva I. Revise the UNESCO World Heritage Sites as a list, noting the most recent additions. Practise the monuments and religious places questions below, written in the style of the general awareness sections of exams such as SSC, banking, railways, CUET GAT, MAH CET and CLAT. Each question comes with a detailed explanation that adds related facts, so every question helps you revise more than one point.