Zongli Yamen
The Zongli Yamen (Chinese: 總理衙門; pinyin: Zǒnglǐ Yámén; Wade–Giles: Tsung3-li3 Ya2-men2) was the government body in charge of foreign policy in imperial China during the late Qing dynasty. It was established by Prince Gong in 1861 after the Convention of Beijing. It was abolished in 1901 and replaced with a Foreign Office of ministry rank.
The former site of the Zongli Yamen is now located in Dongtangzi Hutong, Dongcheng District, Beijing. Nearly all the buildings are preserved in good condition.
Zongli Yamen is a traditional abbreviation of the official name (總理各國事務衙門; Zǒnglǐ Gèguó Shìwù Yámén), literally meaning "Office in Charge of Affairs of All Nations". The corresponding name in Manchu, the other official language of the Qing Empire, was Geren gurun i baita be uherileme icihiyara yamun. (
) A common misconception is that the Zongli Yamen's name means the "Premier's Office". This arose because the term zongli (总理) is now used in Chinese to refer to the Premier or Prime Minister of a country. In fact, the name Zongli Yamen is an abbreviation of its full name, which makes it the bona fide office of foreign affairs.
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