On this day, 165 years ago, on October 7, 1860 (August 23, 1860 in the lunar calendar), the British and French invaders burned down Yuanmingyuan. Photo of Haiyan Hall in Yuanmingyuan before it was burned On October 6, 1860, the British and French coalition forces broke into Yuanmingyuan and carried out crazy robberies. In order to eliminate the stolen goods and cover up the crimes, Britain and France set fire to Yuanmingyuan from October 7 to 9. After the First Opium War in 1840, Western capitalist countries forced the Qing government to sign the first batch of unequal treaties, seizing many privileges from China such as reparations, negotiated tariffs, opening up five ports to trade, consular jurisdiction, and unilateral most-favored-nation treatment. The British bourgeoisie thought that through these unequal treaties, they could dump a large amount of goods into China. But this is not the case. According to relevant records, Britain imported 750,000 pounds less goods into China in 1850 than in 1844. The reasons for this are: first, China's self-sufficient natural economy stubbornly resists the invasion of foreign goods; Second, there is a contradiction between Britain's increase in opium trade and the development of legal trade. Due to the large amount of opium imported into China by Britain and other colonialists after the Opium War, silver from China continued to flow out, which offset most of China's income from tea and raw silk exports, making it impossible to purchase more British industrial products. This is of course very unfavorable to Britain. The British bourgeoisie not only maintains the opium trade, which has brought huge benefits to it, but also expands sales of industrial products to China. In this way, it would force the Qing government to open more commercial ports, further control China customs, and strengthen control over the Qing government. In order to further open the door to China, Western countries such as Britain, France, and the United States tried to oppress the Qing government and give it new rights and interests of aggression in the name of amending the treaty. In May 1853, Britain first requested China to amend the relevant provisions of the Treaty of Nanjing. The United States and France also followed suit, but both were rejected by the Qing government. When the "treaty amendment" negotiations initiated by Britain, the United States, France and other colonialists failed to succeed, they became angry and decided to launch a new war of aggression against China to realize their unreasonable demands. On the morning of October 8, 1856, a rowing boat "Yaro" moored at the dock near Haizhu Fort in Guangzhou was preparing to set sail. At this time, a patrol boat of the Qing army was rushing towards. The officers and soldiers of the Guangdong Navy boarded rowing boats, interrogated the 14 sailors on the ship for their identities, and detained 12 of them, took them to the patrol boat, and brought them back to Guangzhou. The "Yaro" was originally a 100-ton rowing boat belonging to China Su Yacheng. It was later stolen by pirates and turned into a smuggling ship owned by Fang Yaming of China. For the convenience of smuggling, he had obtained a license from the Hong Kong authorities, but it had expired. The China Navy searched the smuggling ship and arrested China sailors. This is purely an internal affair of China. However, Bachali, the British Consul in Guangzhou, insisted that it was a British ship on the pretext that the ship had been registered and licensed in Hong Kong. He also fabricated something out of thin air that the China Navy had torn down the British flag on board and insulted Britain. Therefore, he issued a strong note to Ye Mingchen, Governor of Guangdong and Guangxi, unreasonably demanding that all detained prisoners be returned immediately, and that he also apologize and compensate Britain. On October 23, British Admiral Simamigali led British warships into the Provincial River and attacked Guangzhou, provoking the Second Opium War. In the face of the enemy, Ye Mingchen, the governor of Guangdong and Guangxi, blindly compromised and ordered that no counterattack be allowed. On October 29, the British army invaded Guangzhou City, and Ye Mingchen hurriedly fled for his life. In the spring of 1857, news of the "Yarrow" incident reached London. The British big bourgeoisie clamored for war, and the British Parliament passed a proposal to expand the war of aggression against China. In March, the British government appointed Erkin, former Governor of Canada, as an emissary with full authority to lead an army and navy to China. At the same time, it issued a note to France, the United States, Russia and other countries, proposing to jointly send troops to force the Qing government to sign a new unequal treaty. In October, the Third Napoleon of France (Louis Bonaparte) also appointed Grow as Minister Plenipotentiary under the pretext of the "Father Ma Incident"(the "Xilin Case") and led an invading army to China under the guise of "fighting to defend the Holy Church." The United States and Russia also agreed with Britain's proposal and actively supported Britain and France in launching a new war of aggression against China. In this way, the four ambitious invaders, based on common interests, temporarily formed a joint front of aggression against China, further expanding the Second Opium War initiated by Britain. In October, Erkin and Gro successively led their fleets to Hong Kong. U.S. Minister Plenipotentiary Leveline and Russian Minister Putiyatin rushed to Hong Kong to collude with Britain and France to study strategies for invading China. In December, Britain and France formed a coalition force with a total of more than 5600 people. On December 12, representatives of Britain and France respectively issued notes to Ye Mingchen, the governor of Guangdong and Guangxi, requesting to enter Guangzhou City to negotiate "amending the treaty" and "compensating for losses", and to reply within 10 days. Otherwise, they would attack Guangzhou. Ye Mingchen ignored the British and French notes, nor did he make any preparations for war and defense. On December 28, the British and French coalition forces shelled Guangzhou City. Ye Mingchen fled, and Guangzhou General Mukdena and Guangdong Governor Bai Gui surrendered shamelessly. On the 30th, Guangzhou was once again occupied by the Anglo-French coalition forces. Occupy Guangzhou was not the ultimate goal of the invaders. In April 1858, warships from Britain, France, the United States, Russia and other countries successively went north to Dagu. At 8 a.m. on May 20, the British and French coalition forces notified the Qing government, ordering the Qing army to hand over Dagu Fort within two hours. The Qing government ignored it. Two hours later, the British and French coalition forces brazenly broke into Dagu Mouth with dozens of small steam boats and sampans and launched a fierce attack on Dagu Fort. The patriotic officers and soldiers guarding the fort rose up and dealt the invaders a head-on blow. However, due to weak defense and huge differences in strength, Dagu was occupied that day. On the 26th, the British and French coalition forces arrived outside Tianjin. On the 29th, the Qing government hurriedly sent Grand Scholar Gui Liang and Minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs Hua Sha Na to Tianjin to negotiate with representatives of Britain, France and other countries, and signed the "Tianjin Treaty" on June 26 and 27 respectively. Britain, France and other countries are pushing their luck and preparing to expand the war of aggression against China in the name of exchanging contracts with Beijing. In the spring of 1860, British and French warships sailed to China one after another, and gathered outside Dagu Exit again at the end of July. On August 1, the British and French coalition forces captured Beitang, Tanggu on the 14th, Dagu on the 21st, and entered Tianjin on the 24th. The Qing government hurriedly sent Guiliang and Hengfu to Tianjin to seek peace. However, the invaders deliberately wanted to capture Beijing, asking exorbitant prices during the negotiations and constantly creating additional complications, causing the negotiations to fail, and the British and French coalition forces approached Beijing. On September 18, the British and French coalition forces captured Zhangjiawan and Tongzhou, and captured Baliqiao on the 21st. Emperor Xianfeng was so scared that he sent his sixth brother Prince Gong Yi? He was an imperial envoy and stayed in Beijing to preside over the peace talks. In the early morning of the 22nd, Emperor Xianfeng took his empresses, princes, princes and a group of ministers and hurriedly fled to Rehe Palace (now Chengde Summer Resort, Hebei Province). On October 5, the British and French coalition troops arrived at the foot of Beijing. According to information provided by Russian diplomat Ignatiyev, the Qing Dynasty garrison was concentrated in the east city, and the north city was the weakest place and should be attacked first; I also heard that the Qing Dynasty emperor of China was in Yuanmingyuan in the northwest suburbs. As a result, the British and French coalition forces raided Anding Gate and Desheng Gate, invaded Yuanmingyuan, and ransacked Yuanmingyuan, creating the "Burning Yuanmingyuan" incident that shocked China and foreign countries. Location Map of Yuanmingyuan Scenic Area (Local) Yuanmingyuan is located in the northwest suburbs of Beijing and was built in the Ming Dynasty. In 1709, Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty gave the garden to his fourth son Yinzhen (later Emperor Yongzheng) and named it Yuanmingyuan. After more than 150 years of management by the five emperors Yongzheng, Qianlong, Jiaqing, Daoguang and Xianfeng, a large amount of material resources were concentrated, countless skilled craftsmen were employed, and the blood and sweat of millions of working people were poured into it to carefully build it into a magnificent and beautiful Li Palace. Photos of the destroyed Yuanmingyuan Gate and Huaguao. The Qing Dynasty emperors came here every summer to escape the heat, listen to politics, and handle military and political affairs, so it was also called the "Summer Palace". Yuanmingyuan stretches for 10 kilometers and consists of Yuanmingyuan, Wanchun Garden and Changchun Garden. Yuanmingyuan is the largest, so it is collectively called Yuanmingyuan (also known as Yuanmingyuan Three Gardens). In addition, there are many affiliated gardens, distributed on the east, west and south sides of Yuanmingyuan, including Jingyi Garden in Xiangshan, Jingming Garden and Qingyi Garden in Yuquan Mountain (which was later built on this basis), etc., with a total area of more than 5000 acres. Yuanmingyuan not only brings together a number of famous gardens in the south of the Yangtze River, but also creatively transplanted Western garden buildings, integrating the masterpieces of ancient and modern Chinese and foreign garden art at that time. There are magnificent palaces in the garden, light and exquisite buildings and pavilions, a "shopping street" symbolizing the lively market, and a "mountain villa" symbolizing the rural scenery; There are some scenic spots modeled after the autumn moon of Pinghu Lake in Hangzhou and the sunset of Lei Peak, and some scenic spots modeled after the Lion Forest of Suzhou; there are also buildings modeled after the poetic and artistic style of ancient poets and painters, such as Penglai Yaotai, Wuling Spring, etc. It can be said that Yuanmingyuan is the crystallization of the wisdom and sweat of the working people of China, and is also a model of the architectural art and culture of the China people. Not only that, Yuanmingyuan also houses countless priceless treasures of various styles, extremely rare historical classics and rich and precious historical relics, such as calligraphy and paintings of the past dynasties, gold and silver jewelry, Song and Yuan porcelain, etc., which can be regarded as one of the treasures of human culture. It can also be said that it is one of the largest museums in the world. On October 6, the British and French coalition forces broke into Yuanmingyuan and immediately carried out crazy robbery. The first to break into Yuanmingyuan were the French invaders. They robbed everything they saw. The treasures in the pocket of each French soldier were worth thirty to forty thousand francs. They entered empty-handed and returned full of loot. In the French military camp, rare clocks, colorful silks, and precious works of art are piled up, worth 30 million francs. Although the British invading army was a step late, their pockets were filled with gold and silver. What's even worse is that they smashed the large porcelain and enamel bottles that could not be moved away. After the British and French invaders looted the Yuanmingyuan, in order to eliminate the stolen goods and cover up the crimes, British Minister Plenipotentiary Erkin, with the support of British Prime Minister Palmerston, ordered the burning of the Yuanmingyuan. There were two large-scale burning. The first was from October 7 to 9, mainly burning Yuanmingyuan. The fire burned for three days and nights, turning this world-famous garden into scorched earth. This catastrophe was as described and criticized by the famous French writer Hugo: one day, two bandits broke into Yuanmingyuan, one robbing and the other setting fire. One of the two bandits is called English and the other is called France. On October 13, the British and French invaders captured Andingmen and took control of Beijing. On October 18 and 19, the bandits looted precious cultural relics hidden in several gardens including Wanshou Mountain, Yuquan Mountain and Xiangshan, and carried out a second large-scale burn, burning down the halls and pavilions of the above-mentioned gardens. At this time, Emperor Xianfeng, who had fled to Rehe, actually issued an edict that "we can only compromise and make do with it in order to preserve the overall situation." Yi? In line with this will, we fully accepted the conditions put forward by Britain and France, exchanged the "Tianjin Treaty" with Erkin and Gro in the lobby of the Ministry of Rites on October 24 and 25 respectively, and signed the "Beijing Treaty" between China and Britain and China. On November 14, the China-Russia "Beijing Treaty" was signed with Russia. These unequal treaties that undermine power and disgrace the country have further deepened China's semi-colonial status and made the disaster for the China people even more serious. Yuanmingyuan is known as the "Garden of Thousands of Gardens". It was built during the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty. It has more than 140 pavilions and pavilions, with a total area of 3.5 million square meters. Its land building area is as large as the Forbidden City, and its water area is equal to the size of the Summer Palace. Yuanmingyuan consists of three gardens: Yuanming Garden, Changchun Garden and Wanchun Garden. The three gardens are separated by a wall. The front is Wanchun Garden, and the two gardens are juxtaposed behind: Yuanmingyuan and Changchun Garden. The southern part of Yuanmingyuan is Chaoting District, where the emperor handles official duties. There are 40 scenic spots distributed in the rest of the area. Many of them are directly built to imitate famous gardens and scenic spots in other places. For example, there are also "Ten Scenes of Hangzhou West Lake" here, which not only imitate the architectural style, but also have the same name. There are many Western-style buildings. The most famous one is called "Dashui Law", which is a Western fountain, as well as Huanghuazhen Maze and Western-style towers. It can be said to be the collection of garden architecture art and technology in China. Yuanmingyuan, the royal garden, is also a treasure museum, which contains a large number of rare cultural relics such as celebrity calligraphy and paintings, secret palace classics, bell tripods and precious weapons, gold and silver jewelry, gathering the essence of ancient China culture and art. However, after the British and French coalition forces invaded Beijing in 1860, they searched and looted the cultural relics and treasures in the park, and finally set fire to completely burn this garden of thousands of gardens. This was called "burning the Yuanmingyuan." Yuanmingyuan before the bird cage was destroyed. Photos of Haiyan Hall in Yuanmingyuan before the destruction of Haiyan Hall Part of Yuanmingyuan is also a treasure museum. It contains a large number of rare cultural relics such as famous calligraphy and paintings, secret palace classics, bell tripods, gold and silver jewelry, which embodies the essence of ancient China culture and art. However, after the British and French coalition forces invaded Beijing in 1860, they searched and looted the cultural relics and treasures in the park, and finally set fire to completely burn this garden of thousands of gardens. This was called "burning the Yuanmingyuan." Photos of the gate of Yuanmingyuan and the Chinese watch after the destruction. Yuanmingyuan sparrow cage before the destruction. The local part of Haiyan Hall. The bronze of the 12 zodiac animals cast dog heads in Haiyan Hall. The bronze of the 12 zodiac animals cast monkey heads in Haiyan Hall. The bronze of the 12 zodiac animals cast pig heads in Haiyan Hall.On this day, 165 years ago, on October 7, 1860 (August 23, 1860 in the lunar calendar), the British and French invaders burned down Yuanmingyuan. Photo of Haiyan Hall in Yuanmingyuan before it was burned On October 6, 1860, the British and French coalition forces broke into Yuanmingyuan and carried out crazy robberies. In order to eliminate the stolen goods and cover up the crimes, Britain and France set fire to Yuanmingyuan from October 7 to 9. After the First Opium War in 1840, Western capitalist countries forced the Qing government to sign the first batch of unequal treaties, seizing many privileges from China such as reparations, negotiated tariffs, opening up five ports to trade, consular jurisdiction, and unilateral most-favored-nation treatment. The British bourgeoisie thought that through these unequal treaties, they could dump a large amount of goods into China. But this is not the case. According to relevant records, Britain imported 750,000 pounds less goods into China in 1850 than in 1844. The reasons for this are: first, China's self-sufficient natural economy stubbornly resists the invasion of foreign goods; Second, there is a contradiction between Britain's increase in opium trade and the development of legal trade. Due to the large amount of opium imported into China by Britain and other colonialists after the Opium War, silver from China continued to flow out, which offset most of China's income from tea and raw silk exports, making it impossible to purchase more British industrial products. This is of course very unfavorable to Britain. The British bourgeoisie not only maintains the opium trade, which has brought huge benefits to it, but also expands sales of industrial products to China. In this way, it would force the Qing government to open more commercial ports, further control China customs, and strengthen control over the Qing government. In order to further open the door to China, Western countries such as Britain, France, and the United States tried to oppress the Qing government and give it new rights and interests of aggression in the name of amending the treaty. In May 1853, Britain first requested China to amend the relevant provisions of the Treaty of Nanjing. The United States and France also followed suit, but both were rejected by the Qing government. When the "treaty amendment" negotiations initiated by Britain, the United States, France and other colonialists failed to succeed, they became angry and decided to launch a new war of aggression against China to realize their unreasonable demands. On the morning of October 8, 1856, a rowing boat "Yaro" moored at the dock near Haizhu Fort in Guangzhou was preparing to set sail. At this time, a patrol boat of the Qing army was rushing towards. The officers and soldiers of the Guangdong Navy boarded rowing boats, interrogated the 14 sailors on the ship for their identities, and detained 12 of them, took them to the patrol boat, and brought them back to Guangzhou. The "Yaro" was originally a 100-ton rowing boat belonging to China Su Yacheng. It was later stolen by pirates and turned into a smuggling ship owned by Fang Yaming of China. For the convenience of smuggling, he had obtained a license from the Hong Kong authorities, but it had expired. The China Navy searched the smuggling ship and arrested China sailors. This is purely an internal affair of China. However, Bachali, the British Consul in Guangzhou, insisted that it was a British ship on the pretext that the ship had been registered and licensed in Hong Kong. He also fabricated something out of thin air that the China Navy had torn down the British flag on board and insulted Britain. Therefore, he issued a strong note to Ye Mingchen, Governor of Guangdong and Guangxi, unreasonably demanding that all detained prisoners be returned immediately, and that he also apologize and compensate Britain. On October 23, British Admiral Simamigali led British warships into the Provincial River and attacked Guangzhou, provoking the Second Opium War. In the face of the enemy, Ye Mingchen, the governor of Guangdong and Guangxi, blindly compromised and ordered that no counterattack be allowed. On October 29, the British army invaded Guangzhou City, and Ye Mingchen hurriedly fled for his life. In the spring of 1857, news of the "Yarrow" incident reached London. The British big bourgeoisie clamored for war, and the British Parliament passed a proposal to expand the war of aggression against China. In March, the British government appointed Erkin, former Governor of Canada, as an emissary with full authority to lead an army and navy to China. At the same time, it issued a note to France, the United States, Russia and other countries, proposing to jointly send troops to force the Qing government to sign a new unequal treaty. In October, the Third Napoleon of France (Louis Bonaparte) also appointed Grow as Minister Plenipotentiary under the pretext of the "Father Ma Incident"(the "Xilin Case") and led an invading army to China under the guise of "fighting to defend the Holy Church." The United States and Russia also agreed with Britain's proposal and actively supported Britain and France in launching a new war of aggression against China. In this way, the four ambitious invaders, based on common interests, temporarily formed a joint front of aggression against China, further expanding the Second Opium War initiated by Britain. In October, Erkin and Gro successively led their fleets to Hong Kong. U.S. Minister Plenipotentiary Leveline and Russian Minister Putiyatin rushed to Hong Kong to collude with Britain and France to study strategies for invading China. In December, Britain and France formed a coalition force with a total of more than 5600 people. On December 12, representatives of Britain and France respectively issued notes to Ye Mingchen, the governor of Guangdong and Guangxi, requesting to enter Guangzhou City to negotiate "amending the treaty" and "compensating for losses", and to reply within 10 days. Otherwise, they would attack Guangzhou. Ye Mingchen ignored the British and French notes, nor did he make any preparations for war and defense. On December 28, the British and French coalition forces shelled Guangzhou City. Ye Mingchen fled, and Guangzhou General Mukdena and Guangdong Governor Bai Gui surrendered shamelessly. On the 30th, Guangzhou was once again occupied by the Anglo-French coalition forces. Occupy Guangzhou was not the ultimate goal of the invaders. In April 1858, warships from Britain, France, the United States, Russia and other countries successively went north to Dagu. At 8 a.m. on May 20, the British and French coalition forces notified the Qing government, ordering the Qing army to hand over Dagu Fort within two hours. The Qing government ignored it. Two hours later, the British and French coalition forces brazenly broke into Dagu Mouth with dozens of small steam boats and sampans and launched a fierce attack on Dagu Fort. The patriotic officers and soldiers guarding the fort rose up and dealt the invaders a head-on blow. However, due to weak defense and huge differences in strength, Dagu was occupied that day. On the 26th, the British and French coalition forces arrived outside Tianjin. On the 29th, the Qing government hurriedly sent Grand Scholar Gui Liang and Minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs Hua Sha Na to Tianjin to negotiate with representatives of Britain, France and other countries, and signed the "Tianjin Treaty" on June 26 and 27 respectively. Britain, France and other countries are pushing their luck and preparing to expand the war of aggression against China in the name of exchanging contracts with Beijing. In the spring of 1860, British and French warships sailed to China one after another, and gathered outside Dagu Exit again at the end of July. On August 1, the British and French coalition forces captured Beitang, Tanggu on the 14th, Dagu on the 21st, and entered Tianjin on the 24th. The Qing government hurriedly sent Guiliang and Hengfu to Tianjin to seek peace. However, the invaders deliberately wanted to capture Beijing, asking exorbitant prices during the negotiations and constantly creating additional complications, causing the negotiations to fail, and the British and French coalition forces approached Beijing. On September 18, the British and French coalition forces captured Zhangjiawan and Tongzhou, and captured Baliqiao on the 21st. Emperor Xianfeng was so scared that he sent his sixth brother Prince Gong Yi? He was an imperial envoy and stayed in Beijing to preside over the peace talks. In the early morning of the 22nd, Emperor Xianfeng took his empresses, princes, princes and a group of ministers and hurriedly fled to Rehe Palace (now Chengde Summer Resort, Hebei Province). On October 5, the British and French coalition troops arrived at the foot of Beijing. According to information provided by Russian diplomat Ignatiyev, the Qing Dynasty garrison was concentrated in the east city, and the north city was the weakest place and should be attacked first; I also heard that the Qing Dynasty emperor of China was in Yuanmingyuan in the northwest suburbs. As a result, the British and French coalition forces raided Anding Gate and Desheng Gate, invaded Yuanmingyuan, and ransacked Yuanmingyuan, creating the "Burning Yuanmingyuan" incident that shocked China and foreign countries. Location Map of Yuanmingyuan Scenic Area (Local) Yuanmingyuan is located in the northwest suburbs of Beijing and was built in the Ming Dynasty. In 1709, Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty gave the garden to his fourth son Yinzhen (later Emperor Yongzheng) and named it Yuanmingyuan. After more than 150 years of management by the five emperors Yongzheng, Qianlong, Jiaqing, Daoguang and Xianfeng, a large amount of material resources were concentrated, countless skilled craftsmen were employed, and the blood and sweat of millions of working people were poured into it to carefully build it into a magnificent and beautiful Li Palace. Photos of the destroyed Yuanmingyuan Gate and Huaguao. The Qing Dynasty emperors came here every summer to escape the heat, listen to politics, and handle military and political affairs, so it was also called the "Summer Palace". Yuanmingyuan stretches for 10 kilometers and consists of Yuanmingyuan, Wanchun Garden and Changchun Garden. Yuanmingyuan is the largest, so it is collectively called Yuanmingyuan (also known as Yuanmingyuan Three Gardens). In addition, there are many affiliated gardens, distributed on the east, west and south sides of Yuanmingyuan, including Jingyi Garden in Xiangshan, Jingming Garden and Qingyi Garden in Yuquan Mountain (which was later built on this basis), etc., with a total area of more than 5000 acres. Yuanmingyuan not only brings together a number of famous gardens in the south of the Yangtze River, but also creatively transplanted Western garden buildings, integrating the masterpieces of ancient and modern Chinese and foreign garden art at that time. There are magnificent palaces in the garden, light and exquisite buildings and pavilions, a "shopping street" symbolizing the lively market, and a "mountain villa" symbolizing the rural scenery; There are some scenic spots modeled after the autumn moon of Pinghu Lake in Hangzhou and the sunset of Lei Peak, and some scenic spots modeled after the Lion Forest of Suzhou; there are also buildings modeled after the poetic and artistic style of ancient poets and painters, such as Penglai Yaotai, Wuling Spring, etc. It can be said that Yuanmingyuan is the crystallization of the wisdom and sweat of the working people of China, and is also a model of the architectural art and culture of the China people. Not only that, Yuanmingyuan also houses countless priceless treasures of various styles, extremely rare historical classics and rich and precious historical relics, such as calligraphy and paintings of the past dynasties, gold and silver jewelry, Song and Yuan porcelain, etc., which can be regarded as one of the treasures of human culture. It can also be said that it is one of the largest museums in the world. On October 6, the British and French coalition forces broke into Yuanmingyuan and immediately carried out crazy robbery. The first to break into Yuanmingyuan were the French invaders. They robbed everything they saw. The treasures in the pocket of each French soldier were worth thirty to forty thousand francs. They entered empty-handed and returned full of loot. In the French military camp, rare clocks, colorful silks, and precious works of art are piled up, worth 30 million francs. Although the British invading army was a step late, their pockets were filled with gold and silver. What's even worse is that they smashed the large porcelain and enamel bottles that could not be moved away. After the British and French invaders looted the Yuanmingyuan, in order to eliminate the stolen goods and cover up the crimes, British Minister Plenipotentiary Erkin, with the support of British Prime Minister Palmerston, ordered the burning of the Yuanmingyuan. There were two large-scale burning. The first was from October 7 to 9, mainly burning Yuanmingyuan. The fire burned for three days and nights, turning this world-famous garden into scorched earth. This catastrophe was as described and criticized by the famous French writer Hugo: one day, two bandits broke into Yuanmingyuan, one robbing and the other setting fire. One of the two bandits is called English and the other is called France. On October 13, the British and French invaders captured Andingmen and took control of Beijing. On October 18 and 19, the bandits looted precious cultural relics hidden in several gardens including Wanshou Mountain, Yuquan Mountain and Xiangshan, and carried out a second large-scale burn, burning down the halls and pavilions of the above-mentioned gardens. At this time, Emperor Xianfeng, who had fled to Rehe, actually issued an edict that "we can only compromise and make do with it in order to preserve the overall situation." Yi? In line with this will, we fully accepted the conditions put forward by Britain and France, exchanged the "Tianjin Treaty" with Erkin and Gro in the lobby of the Ministry of Rites on October 24 and 25 respectively, and signed the "Beijing Treaty" between China and Britain and China. On November 14, the China-Russia "Beijing Treaty" was signed with Russia. These unequal treaties that undermine power and disgrace the country have further deepened China's semi-colonial status and made the disaster for the China people even more serious. Yuanmingyuan is known as the "Garden of Thousands of Gardens". It was built during the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty. It has more than 140 pavilions and pavilions, with a total area of 3.5 million square meters. Its land building area is as large as the Forbidden City, and its water area is equal to the size of the Summer Palace. Yuanmingyuan consists of three gardens: Yuanming Garden, Changchun Garden and Wanchun Garden. The three gardens are separated by a wall. The front is Wanchun Garden, and the two gardens are juxtaposed behind: Yuanmingyuan and Changchun Garden. The southern part of Yuanmingyuan is Chaoting District, where the emperor handles official duties. There are 40 scenic spots distributed in the rest of the area. Many of them are directly built to imitate famous gardens and scenic spots in other places. For example, there are also "Ten Scenes of Hangzhou West Lake" here, which not only imitate the architectural style, but also have the same name. There are many Western-style buildings. The most famous one is called "Dashui Law", which is a Western fountain, as well as Huanghuazhen Maze and Western-style towers. It can be said to be the collection of garden architecture art and technology in China. Yuanmingyuan, the royal garden, is also a treasure museum, which contains a large number of rare cultural relics such as celebrity calligraphy and paintings, secret palace classics, bell tripods and precious weapons, gold and silver jewelry, gathering the essence of ancient China culture and art. However, after the British and French coalition forces invaded Beijing in 1860, they searched and looted the cultural relics and treasures in the park, and finally set fire to completely burn this garden of thousands of gardens. This was called "burning the Yuanmingyuan." Yuanmingyuan before the bird cage was destroyed. Photos of Haiyan Hall in Yuanmingyuan before the destruction of Haiyan Hall Part of Yuanmingyuan is also a treasure museum. It contains a large number of rare cultural relics such as famous calligraphy and paintings, secret palace classics, bell tripods, gold and silver jewelry, which embodies the essence of ancient China culture and art. However, after the British and French coalition forces invaded Beijing in 1860, they searched and looted the cultural relics and treasures in the park, and finally set fire to completely burn this garden of thousands of gardens. This was called "burning the Yuanmingyuan." Photos of the gate of Yuanmingyuan and the Chinese watch after the destruction. Yuanmingyuan sparrow cage before the destruction. The local part of Haiyan Hall. The bronze of the 12 zodiac animals cast dog heads in Haiyan Hall. The bronze of the 12 zodiac animals cast monkey heads in Haiyan Hall. The bronze of the 12 zodiac animals cast pig heads in Haiyan Hall.