On the sign at the gate of Long Ton Gate of the Forbidden City, China, there is a strange arrow that has existed for 200 years and no one dares to take it down, what is the mystery behind it?
It can be said that the Forbidden City is one of the most distinctive classical buildings in China. Whether they are Chinese or foreigners, when coming to Beijing, they will also choose this place as the first attraction to learn about the imperial citadel representing these two historical Ming Qing dynasties.
The magnificent and sophisticated architectural art of the Forbidden City always amazes visitors. However, many people who have been to the Forbidden City did not come to the sign at the gate of Long Ton Gate with a strange arrow.
How could such an arrow appear in royal residences without any ancient generals or emperors noticing? The answer is that this arrow has been on the sign for about 200 years. It appeared from the reign of King Gia Khanh of the Qing Dynasty. He allowed the existence of the arrow on the sign as a reminder of the preservation of the country.
Arrows on the signboard at Long Ton Gate.
The Qing Dynasty was a dynasty founded by ethnic minorities. This is a rare dynasty in Chinese history and unified the Central Highlands with ethnic minorities. In the agricultural age, having natural resources meant enjoying a more advanced civilization. The nomadic ethnic groups are still living on the natural resources they have, living a rich life, so civilization is of course not inferior to that in the Central Highlands.
In China’s feudal society, Confucian culture continues to play a fundamental role with a history of thousands of years. However, after the arrival of the Manchus, they hoped to assimilate Han culture. They intended to make the Manchu language the official language in the central highlands, and to spread Manchu culture widely.
Although the Qing Dynasty defeated the Ming by force, the culture has been ingrained in people’s hearts for thousands of years, making it difficult for the Qing rulers to uproot the previous dynasty. so difficult. Military force can be accepted, but if the Han people are to worship Manchu culture, throw away the cultural traditions of humanity, justice, ceremony, wisdom, and faith that have been inherited for thousands of years, this must create a small wave of protests.
Although from the era of Kangxi, the Qing rulers began to study calligraphy and Confucian teachings, the anti-minority ideology that dominated the central highlands is still deeply ingrained in some people’s minds. That is also one of the reasons why the rulers of the Qing Dynasty always felt insecure.
At that time, there were many armed organizations against Qing rule, and sometimes uprisings were organized that caused the Dai Qing government a headache. Although they have been suppressed many times, these deeply rooted opposers are like weeds, blown up by the wind.
These folk organizations are also associated with religion, which prevails in all circumstances. During the reign of King Gia Khanh, there was an anti-Thanh organization named Bach Lien (white lotus) that developed extremely strongly. They took advantage of religious ideology and skillfully controlled some people who wanted to rebel against the Qing Dynasty. And the arrow on the signboard in front of the gate of Long Tong Gate at the Imperial Palace is closely related to this Bach Lien organization.
During the Qing Dynasty, regardless of the dynasty, they did not forget the traditions of their ancestors. Princes had to learn to ride horses and shoot arrows from an early age, and even had to pass exams. After becoming emperor, hunting activities will be held every year.
Before each hunt, a lot of work must be prepared. First of all, the hunting area must be prepared. Must be supervised during the year, and no one is allowed in or out. Second, when hunting, the emperor often brought a large number of followers. And in order to protect the emperor’s safety, every hunting requires the mobilization of many people to do a good job of protection.
During the Qing Dynasty, princes had to learn to ride horses and shoot arrows from an early age.
In the autumn of Gia Khanh’s eighteenth year, he took a group of people to Chengde to hunt. More than half of the soldiers in Zi Jincheng followed him. It can be said that the Forbidden City at this time was a very weak defensive city. At that time, Emperor Gia Khanh just wanted a hunting according to the tradition of his ancestors without thinking about the safety of the imperial citadel.
At this time, there was a small branch of the White Lotus Church, which was Thien Ly. At first, the number of this organization was small, but after hundreds of years of development, Thien Ly religion also gathered a large civilian power. At that time, the leader of the Thien Ly Religion was Lam Thanh , a native of Beijing, because he was not familiar with the Qing forces, so he volunteered to join the Thien Ly Sect. Lam Thanh bribed a number of Qing officials and learned that Gia Khanh was hunting.
At that time, Lam Thanh decided to break into the Forbidden City. Although this person’s organization only had over 200 people, he was quite confident because he heard that most of the guards in the Forbidden City had followed Gia Khanh. However, when Lam Thanh brought more than 200 people into the Forbidden City, the group of Thien Ly Sect still encountered fierce resistance.
The guards in the inner palace of the Forbidden City have undergone rigorous training, most of which are highly skilled in martial arts. Lam Thanh’s group was already small in number, most of them were just people holding weapons and had not experienced any confrontation, so they soon lost. During the chaos, a stray arrow was planted on the sign of the Long Ton Gate.
More than two hundred people of the Tianli Sect were later beheaded. Lam Thanh also did not escape death. After Emperor Gia Khanh returned, knowing the situation and seeing the arrow on the sign, he ordered no one to take it down. He considers it as a reminder to wake himself up to always stay awake and stay strong in all circumstances.