Museum of the Imperial Palace of Manchukuo

In the People's Republic of China the structures are generally referred to as the Puppet Emperor's Palace & Exhibition Hall.[2] In 1931, the Japanese took control of the north-east of China, the area of modern-day Liaoning, Jilin and Heilongjiang provinces, which were historically known as Manchuria.The Mantetsu wanted a modern palace design that integrated itself into the new city of Xinjing (modern-day Changchun).The Japanese Empire surrendered unconditionally, ending World War II, and simultaneously Manchukuo ceased to exist.Within the complex were gardens, including rockeries and a fish pond, a swimming pool, air-raid shelter, a tennis court, a small golf course and a horse track.Around the courtyards were nine two-storey blockhouses for the Manchukuo Imperial Guard, and the entire complex was surrounded by high concrete walls.It contained Puyi's bedroom, reading room, the family hall, Buddhist chapel and the separate quarters for Empress Wanrong and the concubine Tan Yuling.The Tongde Hall (同德殿) is the largest and most impressive of the buildings in the palace, and has the most luxurious interior decoration.The main hall was the setting for a dance party scene in Bernardo Bertolucci's film The Last Emperor, although it was never actually used for that purpose.In its southeast corner is a large room where Puyi received foreign ambassadors and consuls, and issued certificates of appointment and conferred medals to his government officials.Dating from the early 20th century, it was originally the mansion of Wei Zonglian, the head of Jilin-Heilongjiang Exclusive Transportation Bureau.