Palace of Earthly Tranquility
Encyclopedia
The Palace of Earthly Tranquility is the northernmost of the three main halls of the Inner Court of the Forbidden City
Forbidden City
The Forbidden City was the Chinese imperial palace from the Ming Dynasty to the end of the Qing Dynasty. It is located in the middle of Beijing, China, and now houses the Palace Museum...

, the other two halls being the Palace of Heavenly Purity
Palace of Heavenly Purity
The Palace of Heavenly Purity, or Qianqing Palace is a palace in the Forbidden City in Beijing, China. It is the largest of the three halls of the Inner Court , located at the northern end of the Forbidden City...

 and the Hall of Union
Hall of Union
The Hall of Union is a building in the Forbidden City, in Beijing, China. It stands between the Palace of Heavenly Purity and the Palace of Earthly Tranquility. These three halls together constitute the centre of the Inner Court of the palace complex....

.

The Palace of Earthly Tranquility is a double-eaved building, 9 bays wide and 3 bays deep. In the Ming Dynasty, it was the residence of the Empress. In the Qing Dynasty, large portions of the Palace were converted for Shamanist worship by the new Manchu rulers. Thus, the front part of the hall featured shrines, icons, prayer mats, and a large kitchen where sacrificial meat was prepared. From the reign of the Yongzheng Emperor, the Empress moved out of the Palace following the Emperor's move out of the Palace of Heavenly Purity. However, two rooms in the Palace of Earthly Harmony were retained for use on the Emperor's wedding night. The wedding ceremony would be held in the main room, and afterwards the Emperor and Empress would retire to one of these rooms.
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