This book is aimed at readers and researchers who are interested in Chinese garden architecture, the rise and fall of Yuanming Yuan and the history of the Qing dynasty. It is the first comprehensive study of the palatial garden complex in a Western language, and is amply illustrated with photographs and original drawings. Young-tsu Wong's engaging writing style brings "the garden of perfect brightness" to life as he leads readers on a grand tour of its architecture and history.

Autorentext
Wong Young-tsu, Ph.D. of History at the University of Washington, Seattle, has been Professor of History at the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, visiting scholar at the Australian National University, etc. He is now Director of the Humanities Center of the 'National Central University' (Taiwan) and Honorary Professor at the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.
Experienced historian and noted professor, editor-in-chief of the series Studies in Modern Chinese History; he has published many popular books in terms of the study of Chinese history, such as Search for Modern Nationalism: Zhang Binglin and Revolutionary China (Oxford), Beyond Confucian China and etc.

Inhalt
Introduction.- Part I Architecture.- Provenance.- Disposition.- Expansion.- Part II History.- Rise.- Structure and Function.- Royal Daily Life.- The Sacking.- Repairs and the Final Blows.- Epilogue.