Beijing Main Gate

The Qianmen or "Front Gate" is the common name for the gateway known formally as Zhengyangmen. It stands at the south end of the Tiananmen Square precinct, and was formerly the front gate of the Inner City, a part of the ancient city of Beijing.

First built in 1419, the gateway consisted of a gatehouse proper and an archery tower, which forms a large barbican. Today the archery tower and the gatehouse survive and it was extensively reconstructed in 1914 and incorporated modern design elements. At 42 meters high, the gatehouse was, and is, the tallest among all of the gates of Beijing.

Behind (that is, to the north of) the Qianmen once stood the Gate of China; to the northern end of the Tiananmen Square lies the famous Tiananmen Gate, and the Meridian Gate, which is the front entrance to the Forbidden City.

To the south of Qianmen Gate is Qianmen Shopping Street.