Located to the east of Beihai Park and north of the Imperial Palace, Jingshan Park is another beautiful spot to visit. It occupies an area of 23 hectares. Many palatial towers and pavilions are arranged on a 47.5-meter-high hill. Now covered by fruit trees, pines and cypress trees, the hill was originally made with the earth from the moat surrounding the Forbidden City. From the top there are wonderful views of Beijing, especially over the Forbidden City, hence its name, which means "Scenic Hill". The park was an imperial garden during the Yuan (1271 - 1368), Ming (1368 - 1644) and Qing (1644 - 1911) dynasties.
The main sites of interest in the park include the Hope Tower "xiwanglou", where people still worship at a memorial tablet for Confucius, which is in the Keeping Benevolence Hall (yong'endian). The Visiting Virtue Hall (guandedian), to the north of the hill, is where the coffins of the Qing emperors and empresses lie. The 43-metre-high Million Spring Pavilion (Wanchunting) sits atop the hill. From here it is possible to appreciate a spectacular 360 degree vista of the city of Beijing. Directly to the north is Di'anmen Street, running straight as an arrow up to the Drum and Bell Towers (zhonggulou); to the east is the Yonghegong Lamasery, the Imperial College, and the Confucian Temple; to the west is Beihai Park, where the White Pagoda rises above a blue lake full of boats; and to the south is the Imperial Palace.
Since the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, the park has been renovated several times. It is now famous for its peony flowers.
Jingshan Park has many ancient trees and stretches of peony flowers.Apart from its flowers and views, the park is also remembered for a Chinese scholar tree that used to grow on the eastern slope of the hill. It was from this tree that the last emperor of the Ming Dynasty, Chongzhen, hung himself. The Emperor Chongzhen took shelter in the park in 1644, when Lizicheng took Beijing for the Manchus who were to found the Qing Dynasty. Having shamed his ancestors by his defeat, Chongzhen committed suicide by hanging himself on the Chinese scholar tree. The tree no longer survives as it was destroyed in subsequent upheavels.
