(1) Yuanmingyuan was destroyed
Even foreigners are indignant at the destruction of Yuanmingyuan. Victor hugo, a great French writer, strongly condemned the atrocities committed by the British and French allied forces in burning Yuanmingyuan after the Second Opium War in the Letter to Captain Butler about the expedition of the British and French allied forces to China, as Hugo described and criticized:
"One day, two robbers from Europe broke into the Yuanmingyuan. One robber robbed the property, another robber set fire ... two robbers who will be punished by history, one is France and the other is Britain. "
In fact, not only these two robbers, but also eight robbers followed. Many people have an understanding that Yuanmingyuan was burned in Eight-Nation Alliance, but this understanding is not very accurate. It was the allied forces of Britain and France that set fire to Yuanmingyuan. Eight-Nation Alliance did not set fire to Yuanmingyuan, but robbed it all.
At that time, the imperialist robbers destroyed Yuanmingyuan not only to cover up the heinous crimes, but also to destroy such a magnificent, exquisite and magnificent garden on the orders of James Bruce (Earl Elgin), the British commander at that time. Instead of feeling sorry, he proudly declared: "This move will shock China and Europe, and its effect will far exceed the imagination of people thousands of miles away."
(2) The value of Yuanmingyuan
As a royal garden, Yuanmingyuan first represented the highest level of classical architecture in China at that time. This garden, built in 1709 (forty-eight years of Kangxi), was originally given to Yin Zhen, the fourth son of the emperor, who was later Yong Zhengdi. After 150 years of continuous creation and construction, it covers an area of 3.5 square kilometers, with a building area of 200,000 square meters, including 150 scenic spots, which is known as "the model of all gardening arts" and "the model of all gardening arts".
Secondly, as a royal treasure house, there are ancient paintings and calligraphy, Zhong Ding jade, gold and silver jewelry, Song and Yuan porcelain and so on. It can be said that all the rare treasures of China can be found in it, which is similar to the Royal Museum or Treasure House, and its value is immeasurable.
A soldier left this record: "In two days, I got 30 million francs worth of silk, jewelry, porcelain, bronzes and sculptures" and said, "This is like the illusion of marijuana users".
These robbers robbed for 48 hours, and they really took as much as they could, wishing they had more greedy hands. For the invaders, this is a bottomless carnival. According to a report in The Times at that time, the value of property robbed or destroyed was over 6 million pounds. Obviously, this figure is incredible, because many cultural relics are simply impossible to value.
I have to say that the Yuanmingyuan, if it still exists, is definitely a miracle and an unparalleled model in the cultural history of China and foreign countries.