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Zhalan Cemetery
Zhalan Cemetery (Chinese: 滕公栅栏; pinyin: ténggōng zhàlan) is a former Jesuit burial ground in Beijing. It is the oldest Christian cemetery in China.
It was initially established in the late Ming dynasty for the burial of missionary Matteo Ricci. There are 88 Jesuit graves in the cemetery.
The current setup is a restoration using original carved tombstones, following multiple episodes of desecration and turmoil during the Boxer Rebellion, the 1950s and the Cultural Revolution.
Ricci had wished to be buried in Beijing, as a rare honour for a non-Chinese foreigner and a recognition of the status of the Catholic Church in the Empire. Following his death on 11 May 1610, the Wanli Emperor allowed Diego de Pantoja to create a burial ground. The imperial decision was implemented on a lot that had been recently confiscated from a disgraced eunuch, outside the Fuchengmen gate of the Beijing city fortifications. A funeral ceremony was held on 22 April 1611, with a procession starting from the Jesuit premises where the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception now stands. Ricci's coffin stayed at the cemetery's chapel for several months until it was finally buried in November 1611.
Other Jesuits were buried on the ground in the ensuing years. In 1654, Johann Adam Schall von Bell obtained from the Shunzhi Emperor the authorization to extend the cemetery. Schall von Bell was himself buried there in 1666.
Following the Suppression of the Society of Jesus by the Holy See in 1773, the Lazarists took care of the cemetery, then the archimandrite of the Chinese Orthodox Church, then again the Catholic Church.
The cemetery was vandalized in 1900 during the Boxer Rebellion, and the bones of the interred Jesuits were dispersed. Its restoration, stipulated by the Boxer Protocol, included the brick framing of some of the delicately carved tombstones. At the same time a church dedicated to Mary was erected nearby (Maweigou Church).
In the mid-1950s, remains including hundreds of tombstones were moved to the Xibeiwang area of Beijing (now the Catholic Cemetery, zh:北京天主教陵園). A Chinese Communist Party school, now the Beijing Administration Institute, was established on the grounds. Because of their historical significance, however, the tombstones of Ricci, Johann Adam Schall von Bell and Ferdinand Verbiest were kept on the original ground. Other monumental tombstones were aligned against the Maweigou Church's wall.
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Zhalan Cemetery
Zhalan Cemetery (Chinese: 滕公栅栏; pinyin: ténggōng zhàlan) is a former Jesuit burial ground in Beijing. It is the oldest Christian cemetery in China.
It was initially established in the late Ming dynasty for the burial of missionary Matteo Ricci. There are 88 Jesuit graves in the cemetery.
The current setup is a restoration using original carved tombstones, following multiple episodes of desecration and turmoil during the Boxer Rebellion, the 1950s and the Cultural Revolution.
Ricci had wished to be buried in Beijing, as a rare honour for a non-Chinese foreigner and a recognition of the status of the Catholic Church in the Empire. Following his death on 11 May 1610, the Wanli Emperor allowed Diego de Pantoja to create a burial ground. The imperial decision was implemented on a lot that had been recently confiscated from a disgraced eunuch, outside the Fuchengmen gate of the Beijing city fortifications. A funeral ceremony was held on 22 April 1611, with a procession starting from the Jesuit premises where the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception now stands. Ricci's coffin stayed at the cemetery's chapel for several months until it was finally buried in November 1611.
Other Jesuits were buried on the ground in the ensuing years. In 1654, Johann Adam Schall von Bell obtained from the Shunzhi Emperor the authorization to extend the cemetery. Schall von Bell was himself buried there in 1666.
Following the Suppression of the Society of Jesus by the Holy See in 1773, the Lazarists took care of the cemetery, then the archimandrite of the Chinese Orthodox Church, then again the Catholic Church.
The cemetery was vandalized in 1900 during the Boxer Rebellion, and the bones of the interred Jesuits were dispersed. Its restoration, stipulated by the Boxer Protocol, included the brick framing of some of the delicately carved tombstones. At the same time a church dedicated to Mary was erected nearby (Maweigou Church).
In the mid-1950s, remains including hundreds of tombstones were moved to the Xibeiwang area of Beijing (now the Catholic Cemetery, zh:北京天主教陵園). A Chinese Communist Party school, now the Beijing Administration Institute, was established on the grounds. Because of their historical significance, however, the tombstones of Ricci, Johann Adam Schall von Bell and Ferdinand Verbiest were kept on the original ground. Other monumental tombstones were aligned against the Maweigou Church's wall.