Blue House

Blue House
청와대 靑瓦臺 Cheong Wa Dae
The reception center of the Blue House in August 2010.
Location in Seoul
Alternative names	Cheong Wa Dae
General information
Address	1 Cheong Wa Dae Road, Jongno District
Town or city	Seoul
Country	South Korea
Coordinates	37°35′12″N 126°58′35″E / 37.586673°N 126.976268°E / 37.586673; 126.976268Coordinates: 37°35′12″N 126°58′35″E / 37.586673°N 126.976268°E / 37.586673; 126.976268
Current tenants	None
Construction started	July 22, 1989 (1989-07-22)
Completed	September 4, 1991 (1991-09-04)

The Blue House (Korean: 청와대; Hanja: 靑瓦臺; Cheong Wa Dae; literally "pavilion of blue tiles") is the executive office and official residence of the South Korean head of state, the President of the Republic of Korea, and is located in the capital city of Seoul. The Blue House is in fact a complex of buildings, built largely in the traditional Korean architectural style with some modern elements.

Built upon the site of the royal garden of the Joseon Dynasty (1392–1897), the Blue House now consists of the Main Office Hall (Korean: 본관; Hanja: 本館), the Presidential Residence, the State Reception House (Korean: 영빈관; Hanja: 迎賓館), the Chunchugwan (Korean: 춘추관; Hanja: 春秋館) Press Hall, and the Secretariat Buildings. The entire complex covers approximately 250,000 square metres or 62 acres.

The location of Cheong Wa Dae was the site of a royal villa in what was then Hanyang, the southern capital of the Goryeo dynasty (918–1392). It was built by King Sukjong (r. 1095–1105) in 1104. Goryeo's principal capital was at Kaesŏng, and it also maintained a western capital at Pyongyang and an eastern capital at Gyeongju.

After the Joseon Dynasty (1392–1910) moved its capital to Hanyang, Gyeongbok Palace was built in 1395, the fourth year of the reign of King Taejo (r. 1392–1398) as the main palace, and the royal villa lot became the back garden of the palace. It was used as the site for civil service examinations and military training.