The Yuanmingyuan is located in the northwestern suburbs of Beijing where is the eastern part of Haiding District. Being a large royal garden in the Qing Dynasty, it gains worldwide fame. The Yuanmingyuan covers about 3.47 square kilometers with a plane composition of inverted font of “品”(a Chinese character), consisting of the Yuanmingyuan, the Changchunyuan and the Qichunyuan. The gross area reaches 350 hectares.
The overland area of the Yuanmingyuan is the same size as that of the Palace Museum, and the water area is as that of the Summer Palace.
In history the Yuanmingyuan, the Changchunyuan and the Qichunyuan constitute the Yuanmingyuan. There are hundreds of well-knownscenic spots in the 3.47 square-kilometer areas. It became the “Bestowed Garden” which the Emperor Kangxi granted to his fourth son Yongzhen in the year of 1707. After Yongzhen came into power in 1722, in accordance with the layout of the Forbidden City, it was rebuilt on a large scale with numerous skillful craftmen’s efforts and billions of silver. The Yuanmingyuan was known throughout the world for its huge area, outstanding art of court-yard building, elaborate architectures and abundant cutural collections. In Europe, it was reputed “the most beautiful garden in the world” or “the model of the gardens”.