In 1860, during the Second Opium War, Anglo-French forces took control of the Forbidden City and occupied it until the end of the war. In 1900 Empress Dowager Cixi fled from the Forbidden City during the Boxer Rebellion, leaving it to be occupied by forces of the treaty powers until the following year.

After being the home of 24 emperors – 14 of the Ming dynasty and 10 of the Qing dynasty – the Forbidden City ceased being the political centre of China in 1912 with the abdication of Puyi, the last Emperor of China. Under an agreement with the new Republic of China government, Puyi remained in the Inner Court, while the Outer Court was given over to public use, until he was evicted after a coup in 1924. The Palace Museum was then established in the Forbidden City in 1925. In 1933, the Japanese invasion of China forced the evacuation of the national treasures in the Forbidden City. Part of the collection was returned at the end of World War II, but the other part was evacuated to Taiwan in 1948 under orders by Chiang Kai-shek, whose Kuomintangwas losing the Chinese Civil War. This relatively small but high quality collection was kept in storage until 1965, when it again became public, as the core of the National Palace Museum in Taipei.

When Hongwu Emperor's son Zhu Di became the Yongle Emperor, he moved the capital from Nanjing to Beijing, and construction began in 1406 on what would become the Forbidden City.

Construction lasted 14 years and required more than a million workers.[10] Material used include whole logs of precious Phoebe zhennan wood (Chinese:楠木; pinyin: nánmù) found in the jungles of south-western China, and large blocks of marble from quarries near Beijing.[11] The floors of major halls were paved with "golden bricks" (Chinese: 金砖; pinyin: jīnzhuān), specially baked paving bricks fromSuzhou.

The common English name, "the Forbidden City", is a translation of the Chinese name Zijin Cheng (Chinese: 紫禁城; pinyin: Zíjinchéng; literally: "Forbidden City"). The name Zijin Cheng first formally appeared in 1576.[6] Another English name of similar origin is "Forbidden Palace".

The name "Zijin Cheng" is a name with significance on many levels. Zi, or "Purple", refers to the North Star, which in ancient China was called the Ziwei Star, and in traditional Chinese astrology was the heavenly abode of the Celestial Emperor. The surrounding celestial region, the Ziwei Enclosure (Chinese: 紫微垣; pinyin: Zǐwēiyuán), was the realm of the Celestial Emperor and his family. The Forbidden City, as the residence of the terrestrial emperor, was its earthly counterpart. Jin, or "Forbidden", referred to the fact that no one could enter or leave the palace without the emperor's permission.Cheng means a city.

Today, the site is most commonly known in Chinese as Gùgōng (故宫), which means the "Former Palace". The museum which is based in these buildings is known as the "Palace Museum" (Chinese:故宫博物院; pinyin: Gùgōng Bówùyùan).

Since 1925, the Forbidden City has been under the charge of the Palace Museum, whose extensive collection of artwork and artefacts were built upon the imperial collections of the Ming and Qing dynasties. Part of the museum's former collection is now located in the National Palace Museum inTaipei. Both museums descend from the same institution, but were split after the Chinese Civil War. With over 14.6 million annual visitors, the Palace Museum is the most visited art museum in the world

Constructed from 1406 to 1420, the complex consists of 980 buildings and covers 72 ha (over 180 acres).  The palace complex exemplifies traditional Chinese palatial architecture, and has influenced cultural and architectural developments in East Asia and elsewhere. The Forbidden City was declared a World Heritage Site in 1987,  and is listed byUNESCO as the largest collection of preserved ancient wooden structures in the world.

The Forbidden City was the Chinese imperial palace from the Ming dynastyto the end of the Qing dynasty—the years 1420 to 1912. It is located in the centre of Beijing, China, and now houses the Palace Museum. It served as the home of emperors and their households as well as the ceremonial and political centre of Chinese government for almost 500 years.

By Bus:
Take bus no.1, 5, 52, 99, and get off at Tiananmen West.
Take bus no.1,120, 126, 2, 52, 59, 82, 99, and get off at Tiananmen East.
Take bus no.120, 126, 2, 5, and get off at Tiananmen Square East or Tiananmen Square West.

By Subway:
Subway Line 1: get off at Tiananmen East or Tiananmen West Station.
Subway Line 2: get off at Qianmen Station and walk north.
 Beijing Bus / Subway Search

 Tips:
1. Tourists who go up to visit the tower are not allowed to take bags along. Bag Storage service is provided.
2. The renowned Forbidden City is reached through Tiananmen Gate.

Originally, it was a three-storey timberwork in the form of paifang of the imperial building named Gate of Accepting Heavenly Mandate (Chengtian Gate).Marble Cloud PillarIn 1457, it was damaged by lightning and was completely burnt down. Eight years later, Tian'anmen was rebuilt as a five-bay-wide and three-bay-deep gatehouse. In year 1644, the seventeenth year of the reign of Chongzhen (1627-1644), Gate of Accepting Heavenly Mandate suffered another blow in the war. It was burnt down by rebels led by Li Zicheng who attacked Beijing. In year 1661, the eighth year of the reign of Emperor Shunzhi (1644-1661) of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), the gate was given its present name when a massive remodeling lasting for six years completed. The Chinese name of the gate, Tiananmen, is made up of three Chinese characters "heaven", "peace" and "gate", hence the translated version "The Gate of Heavenly Peace". To be more accurate, this name is derived from the much longer phrase "receiving the mandate from heaven and stabilizing the dynasty". Later Tiananmen underwent two reconstruction works in year 1688 and in year 1952 separately. After standing there for more than 500 years, the gate had badly deteriorated and it was then rebuilt again in 1970. The external appearance of the gatehouse remained the same as it was in year 1651, although it is 83 centimeters higher from the original height 33.87m to 34.7m

On the two sides of the stone lions are reviewing stands. It was opened up to the public on the first day of 2012. Five thousand visitors were lucky to step up there and view the national flag rising that day. That was the first time the stands open up free to the public for since January 1, 1988. The reviewing stands now are available to group reservations for the opening day on the first day of each month. Only group reservations via local travel agencies are acceptable and should be submitted online before the 15th day of the previous month

Above the archway hangs a large portrait of Maozedong, on the east and west sides of which are two giant placards, the left one reading: "Long Live the People's Republic of China" while the right one reading: "Long Live the Great Unity of the World's Peoples." In front of the Tiananmen Tower is golden water bridge, above which spans 7 white marble bridges with fine carvings. Same as the arch gateways, the central bridge as the widest one was reserved for the emperor. In front of the central arch gateway are two a pair of stone columns, called huabiao, each weighs 10 ton and reaches about 10m. The two columns are carved with dragon design and have an animal "Wangtianhou" on top as decoration. Outside the gate there are two lions and two more guarding the bridges. Lions are believed to protect humans from evil spirits in Chinese culture. On the south of Tiananmen extends the No. 1 Street of Beijing, Chang'an Street, further south of which is the largest square in the world, Tiananmen Square. The tower sitting on the platform is a structure with double-eaved roof and yellow-glazed tiles. It is made 9 bays wide and 5 bays deep, which indicates the supremacy of the emperor.