Weiyang Palace was a palace complex, located near the city of Chang'an

Chang'an

Chang'an is an ancient capital of more than ten dynasties in Chinese history, today known as Xi'an. Chang'an literally means "Perpetual Peace" in Classical Chinese. During the short-lived Xin Dynasty, the city was renamed "Constant Peace" ; yet after its fall in AD 23, the old name was restored...

 (modern day Xi'an

Xi'an

Xi'an is the capital of the Shaanxi province, and a sub-provincial city in the People's Republic of China. One of the oldest cities in China, with more than 3,100 years of history, the city was known as Chang'an before the Ming Dynasty...

). Built in 200 BC

200 BC

Year 200 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Maximus and Cotta...

 at the request of Han Gaozu, under the supervision of his prime minister Xiao He

Xiao He

Xiao He was a Chinese statesman who lived during the early Han Dynasty. He served Liu Bang during the insurrection against the Qin Dynasty, and fought on Liu's side in the Chu–Han contention against Xiang Yu. After the founding of the Han Dynasty, Xiao He became chancellor and held office until...

, it served as the administrative centre and imperial residence of the Western Han Dynasty, as well as the Western Jin dynasty and several other regimes during the Northern and Southern Dynasties. The palace survived until the Tang dynasty

Tang Dynasty

The Tang Dynasty was an imperial dynasty of China preceded by the Sui Dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period. It was founded by the Li family, who seized power during the decline and collapse of the Sui Empire...

when it was burnt down by marauding invaders en route to Tang Chang'an. This is the largest palace ever built on Earth, covering 4.8 km² (1,200 acres), which is 6.7 times the size of the current Forbidden City, or 11 times the size of the Vatican City. Today it is located in an open field and nothing remains of the former palace.

Name

The name "Weiyang" (未央) means "endless; unending"; thus the name of the palace literally means "the endless palace".

Description

Weiyang palace is sited to the southwest of Han Dynasty Chang'an, and is therefore also called the Western Palace. Surrounded by walls, the palace complex is rectangular in shape, with a length of 2150 metres east-west and 2250 metres north-south. Each side of the walls has a single main gate, with the eastern and northern gates (facing Chang'an city) built with gate towers.