The Puppet Manchurian Imperial Palace
was where Puyi, the last emperor of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), lived and
worked during his reign. During the Japanese occupation of Manchuria
(1931-1945), Puyi was installed as the "puppet" ruler of the so-called State of
Manchukuo. The Puppet Imperial Palace was built by the Japanese especially for
Puyi to live and take part in political activities.
Located at No.3 Guangfu Road in the
northeast corner of Changchun City in Jilin Province, the palace is surrounded
by black palace walls that enclose an area of 12 hectares. It is composed of
series of buildings erected in Chinese classical, European, and Japanese styles,
including the Qinmin Building, Jixi Building, Tongde Hall and other subsidiary
facilities.
Around the courtyards of the palace there
were originally nine two-storeyed blockhouses surrounded by high walls made of
concrete. The main gate of the palace was called the Laixun Gate, which was a
special passageway for Puyi and commanders. The Baokang Gate in the west was the
passageway for court staffs.
The Puppet Manchurian Imperial Palace was
divided into two parts: inner court and outer court. The former was the living
quarters of Puyi and his concubines. Its main architectures include Jixi
Building on the west courtyard and Tongde Hall on the east courtyard. The outer
court was where Puyi dealt with state affairs. Its main architectures include
Qinmin Building, Huanyuan Building and Jiale Hall. What's more, there are
gardens, man-made rockeries, a fish pond, a swimming pool, air-raid shelters, a
racket court, a golf course, a hippodrome, a storeroom of books and paintings
and other subsidiary facilities.
Among all buildings in the palace, the Jixi
Building, Qinmin Building and Tongde Hall are the most outstanding, blending
western and Chinese styles, are only two-storey and feature various designs. The
Jixi Building was where Puyi and the empress Wanrong lived. On the second floor,
there were Puyi's bedroom, reading room, the family hall for worshipping Buddha
and the living rooms of Wanrong and concubine Tan Yuling.
The Qinmin Building was
Puyi's office building. In its southeast corner is a large room, i.e. its main
hall, where Puyi handled affairs of state, received foreign ambassadors and consuls, and
issued certificates of appointment to and conferred orders or medals to his
puppet government officials.
The Tongde Hall, built during the period
from 1936 to 1938, is the largest building in the puppet palace. Japanese
engineers were responsible for the design and the supervision of its
construction. Its interior decoration is very gorgeous. Now, the east courtyard
has been changed into a history museum while the west one has become a display
hall. In the palace there stand wax statues of Emperor Puyi and some imperial
concubines and display photos of the Japanese invasion and of Puyi's
life.
Since Puyi was the last emperor of China,
the Puppet Manchurian Imperial Palace he lived during his reign (1932-1945) is
regarded as the last palace of Chinese feudal
dynasties.