China up close: Xi Jinping breaks taboo and enters the Forbidden City
“Mao Zedong, the founding father of modern China, never once set foot inside the walls of Beijing’s Forbidden City. While he did sometimes stand on the rostrum of Tiananmen — the southernmost gate of the sprawling 72-hectare complex — including on Oct. 1, 1949, when he declared the establishment of the People’s Republic of China, he intentionally avoided entering the former home of emperors.”
Source: China up close: Xi Jinping breaks taboo and enters the Forbidden City- Nikkei Asian Review