Secret City: Republican Congress Building

Tucked away inside the grounds of the Xinhua News Agency is a building where world leaders once met to discuss China's fate.

Tucked away inside the grounds of the Xinhua News Agency is a building where world leaders once met to discuss China's fate. The Republican Congress Building, which now acts as a community centre for retired Xinhua workers, was built in 1913 as the official meeting place of the Kuomintang, who had formed after the revolution of 1911. Today's retirees drink coffee by the congress hall, auditorium and meeting rooms where Sun Yat Sen and his government laid the groundwork for post-Imperial China. Though its status has gone, the low-rise building, with a red star over its doorway, still exudes a sense of history; surrounded by skyscrapers, it features the Western-influenced brickwork typical of early 20^th-century Chinese architecture.

  Interestingly, it was the yard in front of the Congress Building where Imperial elephants were trained and domesticated until 1884. In a tradition which started in the Yuan Dynasty, the elephants were ranked and given their official title as part of the royal guard of honour. The tradition only ended in 1884 because the elephants went on a rampage, causing widespread destruction to the surrounding area. Many of the nearby streets, that have long since been demolished, described how the area was used. The former bridge to the south of Tonglin Lu was called Xiangfangqiao (Elephant House Bridge), and the hutong to its west was called Xianglaijie (Elephant Arrival Street).

The Republican Congress Building 62, Tonglinge Lu, Xicheng district (inside the Xinhua News Agency)