You can find on this page the Beijing (Peking) old map to print and to download in PDF. The Beijing (Peking) historical map and the vintage map of Beijing (Peking) present the past and evolutions of the city of Beijing (Peking) in China.

Beijing (Peking) historical map

Map of Beijing (Peking) historical

The Beijing (Peking) old map shows evolutions of Beijing (Peking) city. This historical map of Beijing (Peking) will allow you to travel in the past and in the history of Beijing (Peking) in China. The Beijing (Peking) ancient map is downloadable in PDF, printable and free.

Archaeologists have found neolithic settlements throughout the municipality including Wangfujing in downtown Beijing (Peking). The first walled city in Beijing was Ji, the capital of the State of Ji from the 11th to 7th century BCE, and later the capital of the State of Yan, one of the powers of the Warring States period (473–221 BCE). Ji was located to the south of the historical Beijing (Peking) West Railway Station. After the fall of the Yan, the subsequent Qin, Han, and Jin dynasties made Ji the prefectural capital of the area as its mentioned in Beijing (Peking) historical map. During the Tang Dynasty, Ji known as Youzhou was headquarter of the Fanyang jiedushi, the military governor of what is now northern Hebei. An Lushan launched the An Shi Rebellion from Fanyang in CE 755.

In 936, the Later Jin Dynasty (936–947) of northern China ceded a large part of its northern frontier, including Youzhou, to the Khitan Liao Dynasty. In 938, the Liao Dynasty set up a secondary capital at Youzhou, which was renamed Nanjing (the "southern capital") as its shown in Beijing (Peking) historical map. In 1125, the Jurchen Jin Dynasty conquered the Liao, and in 1153 moved its historical capital to Liao Nanjing in 1153, which was renamed Zhongdu (中都) or the "central capital". Zhongdu expanded the old City of Ji in southwest Beijing (Peking). Some of the oldest surviving relics in Beijing (Peking), such as the Tianning Temple, date to the Liao period.

Mongol forces burned Zhongdu to the ground in 1215 in what is now known as the Battle of Zhongdu. In 1264, in preparation for the conquest of all of China to establish the Yuan Dynasty, Kublai Khan decided to build a new capital adjacent to the Jin capital. His capital, Dadu (大都, Chinese for "great capital") or Daidu to the Mongols, spelled Cambaluc or Cambuluc in Marco Polo accounts, was completed in 1293. Kublai Khan decision greatly enhanced the status of a city on the northern fringe of China proper. Dadu was centered at the Historical Drum Tower slightly to the north of modern central Beijing (Peking), and stretched from what is today Chang'an Avenue in the south to Line 10 of the Beijing Subway in the north as you can see in Beijing (Peking) historical map. Remnants of the Yuan-era earthen wall, known as Tucheng, still stand.

Beijing (Peking) vintage map

Map of Beijing (Peking) antique

The Beijing (Peking) vintage map give a unique insight into the history and evolution of Beijing (Peking) city. This vintage map of Beijing (Peking) with its antique style will allow you to travel in the past of Beijing (Peking) in China. The Beijing (Peking) vintage map is downloadable in PDF, printable and free.

In 1368, Zhu Yuanzhang, soon after declaring himself the first emperor of the Ming Dynasty, sent an army toward Dadu, still held by the Yuan. The last Yuan emperor fled north to Shangdu, and Zhu razed the Yuan palaces in Dadu to the ground. The vintage city was renamed Beiping (北平) in the same year, and Shuntian (順天) prefecture was established in the area around the city. In 1403, the new (and third) Ming emperor – the Yongle Emperor – renamed this city Beijing (Peking), and designated it the co-capital, alongside the (then) current capital of Nanjing. Beijing (Peking) was the site of a major construction project for a new Imperial residence, the Forbidden City that lasted nearly 15 years, from 1406 to 1420. When the palace was finished, the Yongle Emperor ceremoniously took up residence. From 1421 onwards, Beijing (Peking), also known as Jingshi (京师), was the "official" capital of the Ming Dynasty, while Nanjing was demoted to the status of "secondary" capital. as its mentioned in Beijing (Peking) vintage map

By the 15th century, Beijing (Peking) had essentially taken its current shape. The vintage Ming-era city wall served as the Beijing (Peking) city wall until modern times, when it was pulled down and the 2nd Ring Road was built in its place. It is believed that Beijing (Peking) was the largest city in the world from 1425 to 1650 and from 1710 to 1825 as its shown in Beijing (Peking) vintage map. Another notable building constructed during the Ming period was the Temple of Heaven (built by 1420). Tiananmen, now a state symbol of the People Republic of China and featured on its emblem, was first built in 1420, and rebuilt several times later. Tiananmen Square was built in 1651 and enlarged in 1958. Jesuits finished building the first Beijing-area Roman Catholic church in 1652 at the Xuanwu Gate, where Italian Jesuit Matteo Ricci (1552–1610) had lived; the modern Nantang (南堂, Southern Cathedral) has been built over the original cathedral.

The end of the Ming came in 1644, when Li Zicheng peasant army captured and held Beijing (Peking) for 40 days, and overthrew the government. When the powerful Manchu army arrived at the outskirts, Li and his followers abandoned the city, allowing the Manchus, under Prince Dorgon, to capture Beijing (Peking) without a fight. When Dorgon established the Qing Dynasty as the direct successor of the Ming, Beijing (Peking) remained China capital. The Qing emperors made some modifications to the Imperial residence, but in large part, the Ming buildings and the general layout remained unchanged as you an see in Beijing (Peking) vintage map. Beijing (Peking) at this time was also known as Jingshi. The classic Chinese novel Dream of the Red Chamber is set in Beijing during the early years of Qing rule at the end of the 17th century.