Liaoning Province, Shenyang City, Zhaoling Mausoleum (Qing Dynasty) - The tomb of Emperor Huang Taiji

Zhaoling, commonly known as Beiling (Northern Tomb), is the joint mausoleum of Huang Taiji, the second Great Khan of the Later Jin and the founding emperor of the Qing Dynasty, and his empress, Empress Xiaoduanwen. It is located in Huanggu District, Shenyang City, Liaoning Province, covering an area of 3,187,400 square meters. It is the largest and most magnificent of the 'Three Tombs outside the Great Wall' (Fushun Yongling, Shenyang Fuling, and Shenyang Zhaoling) before the Qing Dynasty moved its capital inside the Great Wall. In addition to the imperial couple, the mausoleum also houses the tombs of imperial consorts such as the Chenfei, Guifei, and Shufei. It is the most representative imperial tomb of the early Qing Dynasty outside the Great Wall and one of the most intact ancient imperial tomb complexes existing in China. Zhaoling Mausoleum was one of the second batch of key national cultural relics protection units announced by the State Council on February 23, 1982. On July 1, 2004, including Zhaoling, the Three Imperial Tombs of Shengjing were inscribed as an extension of the Ming and Qing Imperial Tombs on the World Heritage List by the 28th session of the World Heritage Committee. The construction of Zhaoling began in the eighth year of the Chongde era (1643) of the Qing Dynasty and was largely completed by the eighth year of the Shunzhi era (1651), with subsequent renovations and expansions leading to its current scale. The layout of the mausoleum complex follows the principle of 'front court and rear sleeping chamber,' consisting of three parts from south to north: front, middle, and rear, with the main structures built along the central axis. In 1927, the government of Fengtian Province opened the area around Zhaoling and the surrounding official land as Beiling Park. The layout is centered around Zhaoling and the Sacred Way, extending along the north-south central axis. Today, it covers an area of 3.3 million square meters. The overall plan is centered around the mausoleum, divided into three parts: the mausoleum area, the area in front of the mausoleum, and the area behind the mausoleum. The natural landscape within the park is diverse and colorful, with Fangxiu Garden being a garden within Beiling Park, covering an area of 40,000 square meters and planting nearly 200 species of plants, each with its own seasonal characteristics. In early spring, cherry blossoms bloom and fragrance fills the garden; in summer, lotuses compete in beauty, accompanied by the sound of willows and orioles; in autumn, the mountains are covered with red leaves, and the forests are dyed in layers; in winter, the scenery is wrapped in silver, with tall and straight pines. Throughout the garden, there are flowers in spring, shade in summer, fruits in autumn, and evergreens in winter, with exotic flowers and rocks, small bridges, and flowing water, all reminiscent of the beauty of the south of the Yangtze River. The park's architecture and landscape are cleverly combined, using traditional Chinese garden architectural art to integrate natural beauty with man-made beauty, forming a natural painting. The architectural part of Zhaoling occupies 180,000 square meters. From south to north, it consists of: the front part, from the Dismounting Stele to the Zhenghong Gate, including ornamental columns, stone lions, stone archways, dressing halls, and slaughter halls; the middle part, from the Zhenghong Gate to the Square City, including ornamental columns, stone elephants, stele pavilions, and sacrificial rooms; the rear part, which is the Square City, Crescent City, and Treasure City, is the main body of the mausoleum.