The Old Summer Palace which is also known as the Ruins of the Old Summer Palace or the Garden of Perfection and Light is located northwest of Beijing and to the east of the (present-day) Summer Palace. The Garden was
first constructed in the year of 1709 during the reign of the Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). Over the next 150 years of the Qing Dynasty, this Garden was expanded to be a large-scale Chinese emperors' private pleasure garden, covering a total area of 350 hectares (over 864 acres).
Generally speaking, the Old Summer Palace consists of three parts - The Old Summer Palace, Wanchunyuan (the Garden of Blossoming Spring) and Changchunyuan (the Garden of Eternal Spring). These three gardens are often referred to as one common name: The Old Summer Palace. There are hundreds of scenic spots in the Garden. Indeed, it embodies the essence of Chinese ancient landscape gardening.
To be distinct from other traditional Chinese Gardens, the garden construction and horticulture of The Old Summer Palace is a harmonious blend of typical Chinese scenery and western architecture. A lot of famous scenic spots were included, for example, the Grand Waterworks, the Throne for viewing the Waterworks and the Labyrinth. No wonder The Old Summer Palace was also called the 'garden of gardens' or the 'Versailles of the East' in the Europe during that era. Furthermore, the Old Summer Palace was also an imperial museum that collected a large number of books, treasures and cultural artifacts. However, a large number of these collections were plundered by the Anglo-French Allied Forces in 1860, at the same time as the Garden was burnt down. Now, most of these historical curiosities are displayed in the other countries' museums, including the British Museum; Bibliotheque National de France; Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City, USA; Oslo Museum of Applied Art and so on.
The Old Summer Palace is creating a scale, magnificent scenery of large gardens. Plain water, Daniel rockery garden, refined wide plant trees, flowers. In succession, tortuous surface and hills, dance halls and pavilions, islands and bridge, will be wide causeway into space size 100 landscape encircle, interest in different scenery. The water park area of three tenths of four, on flat surface, artificial digging medium by the river flow of disciplinary entangles series for a complete system of lakes. Park and compose fold have greatly small seen heaped-up mountains, and 250 combining with water, water for water, mountain, constitute the mountain after water transfer, folds of garden space. Make whole garden as the jiangnan YanShui blurred, though: by people do, wan since opening day.
The Old Summer Palace reflected in ancient garden art, is the essence of the most outstanding at a large garden. The emperor said it: "Real treasure of the
area, responsible spirit of emperors and more than this, beyond". But in the garden architecture and occupies an important position. His fame spread to Europe. In France the greater writer Victor Hugo in 1861 has such assessment: "You just to imagine that the heart is a charmed, like the moon, the building castles in the Summer Palace (that) to The Old Summer Palace building." People often say: Greece Parthenon, the pyramids in Egypt, Roman the Coliseum, the Orient Palace. "This is a breathtaking incomparable masterpiece".
The tragedy of The Old Summer Palace destroyed, was the symbol of Chinese national humiliation, the rebirth of the Old Summer Palace, has come to the point that the nation will continue to be unyielding, increasingly prosperous.。