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This page was last updated on: June 7, 2017
Gate New China - ZhongNanHai China CP Leadership Compound
(3) Lay-out and Security of Zhongnanhai
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View a Satellite Image based Map of ZhongnanHai & Xinhua Men
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One of the Side Gates into ZhongNanHai, most of which are have Guards as well as Camera monitoring. Guarded Gates in China in General are not allowed to be Photographed.
Two normal Beijing Police Men patrol in front of Gate of New China at Eternal Peace Avenue.
ZhongNanHai - Zhong Hai and Nan Hai (Lakes) Satellite Image and Map,
A unique view into China's Secluded Leadership compound "ZhongNanHai" - with Zhong Hai and Nan Hai Lake, part of the ancient watersource of the Imperial Capital of Beijing within - From Space.
( Appreciate the Unique Imperial Gardens design and Lay-out, compare with Beihai and other Northern lakes. ) This Area is not accesible to the General Public.
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Map of the popular ShichaHai (3 Lakes) area of Beijing Old City.
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Xinhua Men - the Gate of New China , Flag Raising Ceremony :
History of the Xinhua Men - the Gate of New China and Zhongnanhai:
Xinhua Men - the Gate of New China , what cannot be seen :
Important structures within Zhongnanhai.
To start in the South of Zhongnanhai, what lies beyond the front of the Gate of New China is not known. "China's Kremlin".
See Maps.

Security of Zhongnanhai.
The security of the complex goes way to back to its earliest beginnings as an extension of the Imperial itself. Thus, a true part of the late Qing Dynasty Imperial Palace, it was also part of the Forbidden City. In those days there no smart technologies available, but of course those employed by the best architects in the Empire, those who designed the Temples and Palaces in Beijing. Thus, as part of the Imperial palace it was equal in status and enclosed by the same signiature purple chalked wall that surrounds the Palace Museum. However, where the Imperial Palace itself may have been a forbidden city, many and large parts of can however be seen from various points in the City, although -admittedly- in the Imperial Days the Palace was surrounded by the Imperial City, and thus possible spectators looking into the Palace would be a highly selected few to begin with. Furthermore, it was unlikely some outsider would dare spy on the Emperor for any length of time, lest this be discovered and lead to quick death by beheading. No one was that eager to look.
The Zhongnanhai Palace and Garden complex, which was constructed centuries after the original Imperial Palace, not during the Ming but during The Qing Dynasty is unique in this particular trait: from no point in the city of Beijing, none, can anyone view over the walls and look at what lies beyond it. This achievement reached during the Qing Dynasty still stands today as the main outward feature of Zhongnanhai; its high outer wall, its usually closed gates and no way to view beyond or get above street level.  It is for a good reason that none of modern highrises in Beijing today were built anywhere near the Zhongnanhai compound.

Further security at Zhongnanhai, must for practical reasons, remain mostly a mystery. Although China is a much more modern and open nation today, none of todays tourist dwellers are eager to provoke the guards by taking too many
photographs, especially not beyond the proud and significant Zhongnanhai, which for this reason is decorated with revolutionary slogans in the old fashioned style. Extensive photography beyond the Gate of New China, of minor gates and security cameras fixed on walls might provoke the curiosity of the security staff who are equipped with their own cameras and other sensors. When prawking the perimeter of Zhongnanhai, even as a pedestrian, one is watched at all times. Not that there would be much one could or would try. As with the imperial palace, the massive walls are too high and too slippery to scale,
unless one has aquired special skills.
Public access or personal access in any way is not rare but non-existent. Not even Foreign Diplomats make it to within the confines of Zhongnanhai. Official receptions, diplomatic meetings, and presedential visits are handled through The Great Hall of the Peoples or other guesthouses and palaces in town. In short, unless one could fly, there is no way to look into this very safe and private place.

Special features include tunnels of what has become known as the May the 19Th 1969 Underground Project, which is not the same as the so-called Beijing Underground City air raid shelters available to the city public.
The May the 19Th Underground City is a completely seperate and much more solidly constructed network, which has served its purposes on many occassions. Among things, the Zhongnanhai Complex has underground connections to The Great Hall of the Peoples as well as the Mao Zedong Mausoleum and the Gate of Heavenly Peace, Tian✧An Men. However, beyond that the network stretches underneath the city farther and wider than its little sister, the so-called Underground City. If the People of Beijing thought they would be safe from (nuclear and chemical) bombardment, there leaders would fare far better.
It is known from several sources that Zhongnanhai also has an underground clinic, underneath the #305 Hospital, just North of the North Gate of Zhongnanhai. The tunnels further are said to connect to various military airfields around Beijing, Beijing Capital Airport, there is supposedly a main and large entrance available for trucks and heavy transport somewhere in the western hills area, and apart from that Zhongnanhai, naturally is also connected to the bomb-proof underground military headquarters, known as the Jade Pagoda Mountain, also in the western hills. No doubt, there is more.

No Fly-Zone.

Centuries ago, this stretch of water was divided into three sections- North Lake (Beihai 北海), Central Lake (Zhonghai 中海) and South lake (Nanhai 南海). The area between Xinhuamen (New China) Gate on Chang’ an Boulevard in the south and Yingtai (SEA terrace Island) in the north is called South Lake. The area north of the Hall of Diligent Government (Qinzhengdian) and south of the Hall of Endless Blessings (Wanshandian) is called Central Lake. It is connected to South Lake by a lock near the old eastern gate. The area north of the Hall of Received Brilliance (Chengguangdian) and south of the Five-Drag-on Pavilions (Wulongting) is known as North Lake or Beihai. A long white marble bridge-the Golden Tortoise Jade Rainbow Bridge-divided Central Lake from North Lake. The water supply for the lakes comes from the Jade Spring Mountain (Yuquanshan) to the west of Beijing and enters the city at the Deshengmen (Moral Victory) Gate in the northwest corner of the old city.
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