The Palace probably refers to the Summer Palace or Yihe Yuan, literally meaning "Garden of Nurtured Harmony" which was begun in 1750 during the reign of the Emperor Qianlong. It received its current name in 1888 when it was used as a summer resort for Express Dowager Cixi. She used large amounts of silver, originally designated for the Chinese Navy, for the enlargement of her palace. In December 1998, UNESCO named the Summer Palace a World Heritage Site, calling it "an outstanding expression of the creative art of Chinese landscape garden design incorporating the works of humankind and nature in a harmonious whole." |
