Peking ( Beijing ) University, commonly called Beida, was founded in 1898 under the edict of Emperor Guangxu (1875-1908) to replace the ancient Imperial College (Guozijian) and in an attempt to restore the declining Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). Its history is closely related to that of the development of modern China's politics and science. Yan Fu and Cai Yuanpei, China's famous early educationists and ideologists, were early presidents and helped to establish the university's tradition of open thought. Among the 40-plus important historical sites in China listed by the government, four are on university campuses. This includes the original Yanyuan architecture around Weiming Lake at Peking University. The buildings of Peking University are typical of the architecture of the early 1900's.

Mao Zedong, Li Dazhao and Chen Duxiu who were founders of the Chinese Communist Party, and Lu Xun who is considered modern China's greatest writers and one of the of the founders of the Chinese New Culture Movement, either taught or held office here. Ma Yinchu (1882-1982), who worked as a professor and dean of the economics department in 1915 and once served as president of Beijing University during the period 1951 to 1960, was the creator of the One Child Policy. The University was also the cradle of the anti-imperialist May 4th Movement which took place in 1919.

Since the founding of the People's Republic of China, the university has implemented the Communist Party's policy of a systematic transformation of the educational system and the reformation of teaching methods. The task of Beijing University is to train research workers and college teachers in liberal arts, natural sciences and social sciences as well as to carry out scientific research projects and aid the development of the national economy and science.

Between 1949 and 2001, nearly 120,000 undergraduates and graduate students have graduated from this university. They are now scattered throughout the country, an have become the backbone in the industrial, agricultural, scientific, educational and cultural fields. There are around 2000 foreign students from across the world studying in Peking University each year.

For photos of Peking (Beijing) University, click here!