Shenyang Imperial Palace (Mukden Palace)

UNESCO World Heritage Site (Imperial Palaces Of The Ming And Qing Dynasties In Beijing And Shenyang, Extended 2004) · Shenyang, Liaoning

The palace of the Manchu rulers before they conquered China: a compact walled complex of halls, towers and courtyards in the old centre of Shenyang, begun in 1625 by Nurhaci and completed under his son Hong Taiji, who proclaimed the Qing dynasty here in 1636. When the Qing moved to Beijing in 1644 it became a secondary palace that later emperors visited on journeys to their ancestral lands, and in 2004 it joined the Forbidden City on the UNESCO World Heritage list. Unlike the Forbidden City, it shows the Qing before they became fully Chinese emperors: the octagonal Dazheng Hall, where the ruler held court, faces two rows of Ten Kings' Pavilions for the princes and banner commanders of the Manchu military system; the private Qingning Palace kept Manchu shamanic rites, with a sacrificial spirit pole in its courtyard; and the architecture mixes Manchu, Han, Mongolian and Tibetan styles. Later additions include the Wensu Pavilion, built to house a copy of the vast imperial encyclopaedia Siku Quanshu. Today it is a museum of Qing treasures, a short walk from the old commercial street of Zhongjie.

171 Shenyang Road, Shenhe District, Shenyang, Liaoning, China

Tuesday-Sunday 8:30-17:00 (April 10-October 10, last entry 16:15) and 9:00-16:30 (October 11-April 9, last entry 15:45); closed Mondays except public holidays.

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