Ming tombs

The Ming tombs are a collection of mausoleums built by the emperors of the Ming dynasty of China. The tomb of the first Ming ruler, the Hongwu Emperor (r. 1368–1398), is located near his capital Nanjing. However, the majority of the Ming tombs are located in a cluster near Beijing and collectively known as the Thirteen Tombs of the Ming dynasty (Chinese: 明十三陵; pinyin: Míng Shísān Líng; lit. 'Ming Thirteen Mausoleums'). They are located within the suburban Changping District of Beijing Municipality, 42 kilometers (26 mi) north-northwest of Beijing's city center. The site, on the southern slope of Tianshou Mountain (originally Huangtu Mountain), was chosen based on the principles of feng shui by the third Ming emperor, the Yongle Emperor (r. 1402–1424). After the construction of the Imperial Palace (Forbidden City) in 1420, the Yongle Emperor selected his burial site and created his own mausoleum. Most of the subsequent emperors placed their tombs in the same valley.

Tourist map showing locations of the Ming Tombs From the Yongle Emperor onwards, thirteen Ming emperors were buried in the same area. The Hongwu Emperor's Xiaoling Mausoleum is located near his capital Nanjing; the second emperor, the Jianwen Emperor (r. 1398–1402), was overthrown by the Yongle Emperor and disappeared, without a known tomb. The "temporary" emperor, the Jingtai Emperor (r. 1449–1457), was also not buried here, as the Tianshun Emperor (r. 1457–1464) had denied him an imperial burial; instead, the Jingtai Emperor was buried west of Beijing. The last emperor buried at the location was Chongzhen (r. 1627–1644), the last of his dynasty, who committed suicide by hanging on April 25, 1644. He was buried in his concubine Consort Tian's tomb, which was later declared as an imperial mausoleum Siling by the emperor of the short-lived Shun dynasty, Li Zicheng, with a much smaller scale compared to the other imperial mausoleums built for Ming emperors.