Shenyang Imperial Palace 沈阳故宫

About Shenyang Imperial Palace

Its eastern group is especially distinctive: an octagonal Dazheng Hall faces the Ten Princes' Pavilions in a layout associated with the Eight Banners. In the central group, Chongzheng Hall served government business while the residential palaces rise on a higher platform behind it. Reading these two arrangements together makes the palace's Manchu architectural character much clearer.

Construction began in 1625 under Nurhaci, founder of the Later Jin dynasty, with further building completed by 1631 under his successor, Hong Taiji; the first three Qing emperors lived there until 1644. After the Qing conquest moved the capital to Beijing, the palace lost its status as imperial residence and became a secondary palace, expanded again in 1780 during the Qianlong era. A Museum of Three Eastern Provinces was established there in 1928, renamed the Fengtian Old Palace Museum in 1932 and closed in 1936; a Manchukuo monument built at its southwest corner in 1934 was demolished in 1945.

In the western section, and in the eastern and western subsidiary palaces of the central section, the architecture is built entirely in Han Chinese style. The arrangement in the central section, with the residential quarters set above and the halls used for governance below, is said to derive from a Manchu custom of living on raised ground.

The palace was designated a Major Historical and Cultural Site Protected at the National Level in its first batch in March 1961, and in 2004 was inscribed on the World Heritage List as an extension of the Ming and Qing imperial palaces centred on the Forbidden City in Beijing.

What to look for

• Dazheng Hall and the Ten Princes' Pavilions, expressing the organisation of the Eight Banners.
• Chongzheng Hall and the raised residential area reached through Phoenix Tower.

The surrounding area

Provincial capital base; Fangcheng, Tiexi and Xita are different city districts with distinct reasons to visit.

Location & getting there

Getting to Shenyang Imperial Palace

Use 171 Shenyang Road in Shenhe District; the museum identifies Zhongjie as a nearby metro stop. Check the day's visitor circulation before choosing the eastern or central group first.