The Cloud Dispelling Hall (simplified Chinese:排云殿; traditional Chinese: 排雲殿; pinyin: Pái Yún Diàn; literally “the Hall where the cloud is dispelled”) is at the centre in front of the Longevity Hill. It was built by Qianlong for his mother’s 60th birthday. It was burnt down by the British and French joint troops in 1860. In 1886, Empress Ci Xi reconstructed it and changed its name into “Cloud Dispelling Hall” to hold her Grand Birthday Ceremony. It also served as the place where the officials went to worship Ci Xi when she lived in the Summer Palace or on her birthday. Now the hall has on display many birthday presents from the imperial princes and ministers to Ci Xi.
The word “Pai Yun”, meaning “dispel the cloud”, is taken from a poem which describes the imminent appearance of the Gods out of the cloudy and misty hall. Viewed from a distance, the Cloud Dispelling Hall forms an ascending line together with the decorated archway, the Cloud Dispelling Gate, Golden-water Bridge and Ergong Gate, which is the most spectacular building complex in the Summer Palace.
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