“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