Donghuamen, the East Gate

In front of you is Dōnghuámén, the eastern gate of the Forbidden City. It was built in 1420, like the rest of the palace, and today it is one of its exits. From here you begin to see what the palace looks like from outside: a wall almost ten metres high surrounded by a moat.

1A gate for ministers

Under the Qing, only senior officials of the Grand Secretariat could enter through this gate. The Qianlong Emperor later allowed the oldest ministers to use it, so they would not have to walk all the way round to the south gate.

2The ghost gate

Look at the gilded studs on the doors. On the palace's other gates there are nine rows of nine, the highest number, reserved for the emperor. Here there are eight rows of nine. The coffins of deceased emperors and empresses left the palace through this gate, and people began to call it “the ghost gate”.

The popular explanation links the two: an even number, associated with yin, for the gate of the dead. No document confirms it.

In 1813 a band of rebels from the Eight Trigrams sect tried to storm the palace through here. They got into an argument with some coal sellers at the gate, their weapons were spotted and the guards shut the doors just in time. Only a handful managed to get in.

3What to look for

• The gilded studs: count the rows.
• The plaque with the gate's name under the eaves.
• The moat, which surrounds the whole palace, and the red wall behind it.