Tiananmen Square

Tiananmen Square, also known as Tian'an Men Square is the world's largest city square, encompassing 44 hectares (108.7acres). It is 880 metres from north to south and 500 metres from east to west, big enough to hold half a million people! The square has borne witness to a great deal of modern history, from the demonstrations by students of the May 4th Movement against foreign powers in 1919 to the recent parades in 2009 marking the 60th anniversary of The People's Republic of China. The square is flanked to the west by the Great Hall of the People, seat of the National People's Congress and other arms of the Chinese government, and to the east by the China National Museum, with Tiananmen Gate and the Forbidden City to the north. Sights on the square itself include the Monument to the People's Heroes and Chairman Mao's Mausoleum.