Hall of Luminous Benevolence in the Forbidden City

He Palace of Heavenly Purity in the Forbidden City in the early Qing dynasty was actually an office and study. The real bedchamber was the Hall of Luminous Benevolence on the east of he Palace. Emperor Kangxi (r. 1662-722) moved there when he was 16 years Jd and lived there for 53 years until he died. The Qianlong emperor (r. 1736-1795) dared not to pollute his grandfather’s former residence and converted it into rare books storage in order to show his reverence. In the ninth year of the Qianlong reign (1744) and the second year of the Jiaqing reign (1797), the rare books of the Song (960-1279), Liao (916-1125), Jin (1115-1234), Yuan (1271-1368) and Ming (1368-1644) dynasties were gathered into and preservcd in the Hall The plaque with the Qianlong emperor’s inscription of “Tian Lu Lin Lang” (Beautiful Treasures of the Heaven) is hung on its wall.

Relevant attractions in the Forbidden City

Palace of Heavenly Purity
Palace of Earthly Tranquility
Hall of Luminous Benevolence
Hall of Expanding Virtue
Hall of Union and Peace