Baliqiao literally meaning Eight Mile Bridge, is a historic bridge

Bridge

A bridge is a structure built to span physical obstacles such as a body of water, valley, or road, for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle...

 in Beijing

Beijing

Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...

, China

China

Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

. It is located in the Baliqiao suburb, named for the bridge.

The Bridge

The exact beginnings of the bridge are difficult to discern, and while current structure is of the late Ming dynasty

Ming Dynasty

The Ming Dynasty, also Empire of the Great Ming, was the ruling dynasty of China from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan Dynasty. The Ming, "one of the greatest eras of orderly government and social stability in human history", was the last dynasty in China ruled by ethnic...

, records show that there has been a bridge on the site since the Yan Dynasty.

The bridge (桥) is exactly eight (八) Chinese li (里)

Li (unit)

The li is a traditional Chinese unit of distance, which has varied considerably over time but now has a standardized length of 500 meters or half a kilometer...

 (often called a Chinese mile) from Tongzhou, hence the name 八里桥, or Eight Mile Bridge. This bridge once marked the outer limit of the Imperial City of Beijing, beyond which was the Province of Zhili

Zhili

Zhílì was a northern province in China from the Ming Dynasty until the province was dissolved in 1928 during the Republic of China era.-History:...

.

A small palace

Palace

A palace is a grand residence, especially a royal residence or the home of a head of state or some other high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop. The word itself is derived from the Latin name Palātium, for Palatine Hill, one of the seven hills in Rome. In many parts of Europe, the...

 and temple

Temple

A temple is a structure reserved for religious or spiritual activities, such as prayer and sacrifice, or analogous rites. A templum constituted a sacred precinct as defined by a priest, or augur. It has the same root as the word "template," a plan in preparation of the building that was marked out...

 complex once also stood here. It was here that the Emperor, on his travels, alighted from his sedan-chair and rested overnight, changing from his rich court robes into plainer travelling clothes before proceeding in a horse-drawn carriage. When the Emperor

Emperor

An emperor is a monarch, usually the sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife or a woman who rules in her own right...

 returned, he again stayed overnight at the complex, washing and changing into court robes, before entering the city on sedan-chair.

The canal over which the bridge stands is connected to the Summer Palace

Summer Palace

The Summer Palace is a palace in Beijing, China. The Summer Palace is mainly dominated by Longevity Hill and the Kunming Lake. It covers an expanse of 2.9 square kilometers, three quarters of which is water....

, and it was from the bridge that Emperor Qianlong started his six famous boat trips to the South

Jiangnan

Jiangnan or Jiang Nan is a geographic area in China referring to lands immediately to the south of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River, including the southern part of the Yangtze Delta...

.

The Battle of Baliqiao

During the Second Opium War

Second Opium War

The Second Opium War, the Second Anglo-Chinese War, the Second China War, the Arrow War, or the Anglo-French expedition to China, was a war pitting the British Empire and the Second French Empire against the Qing Dynasty of China, lasting from 1856 to 1860...

 in 1860, on the morning of 21 September, a combined Anglo-French force that had recently occupied Tianjin

Tianjin

' is a metropolis in northern China and one of the five national central cities of the People's Republic of China. It is governed as a direct-controlled municipality, one of four such designations, and is, thus, under direct administration of the central government...

 engaged a Chinese army numbering some 30,000-strong at Baliqiao. A fierce battle ensued, with the Anglo-French force inflicting massive losses on the Chinese army and invading Beijing thereafter. Historians estimate the losses on the Chinese side as about 25,000. The French, in contrast, lost only 1,000 soldiers. The French troops were led by Charles Guillaume Cousin-Montauban, who was then awarded the title of Count of Palikao by Napoléon III.

It was here that the Qing court envoys agreed to all Western demands, including the payment of indemnities and the acceptance of foreign diplomats at the imperial court in Beijing.

Modern Baliqiao

Baliqiao currently stands at the juncture of the districts of Chaoyang

Chaoyang District, Beijing

Chaoyang District is a district of Beijing, China.Chaoyang is home to the majority of Beijing's many foreign embassies, the well-known Sanlitun bar street, as well as Beijing's growing CBD. The Olympic Park, built for the 2008 Summer Olympics, is also in Chaoyang...

 and Tongzhou

Tongzhou District

Tongzhou District is a district of Beijing, the capital of People's Republic of China. It is located in southeast Beijing and considered the eastern gateway to the Chinese capital...

, and has a subway station

Baliqiao Station

Baliqiao Station is a station on Batong Line of the Beijing Subway in People's Republic of China....

 served by the Line Batong of the Beijing Subway

Beijing Subway

The Beijing Subway is a rapid transit rail network that serves the urban and suburban districts of Beijing municipality. It is owned by the city of Beijing and has two operators, the wholly state owned Beijing Mass Transit Railway Operation Corp., which operates 12 lines, and the Beijing MTR...

. The Jingtong Expressway

Jingtong Expressway

The Jingtong Expressway is an expressway with express road characteristics in Beijing, China which links central Beijing to Tongzhou District...

 runs through the suburb.

A pavilion built in Qing Dynasty style has been recently erected to protect the stelae with Emperor Qianlong's calligraphy from the elements.

Nothing presently remains of the small temple and palace complex, but its location has been identified, and archaeologists are applying for permission to investigate the hitherto undisturbed site.

At present, Baliqiao is in a somewhat neglected state, with graffiti and assorted bills marring its marble construction. There are plans to build a new bridge in order to divert road traffic from the bridge, permitting restoration and conservation work to be carried out, and restricting access to the bridge to all but pedestrian traffic. A museum

Museum

A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...

for the bridge and site is also planned.