On the afternoon of January 6th, local time, hundreds of protesters gathered in Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States, to demonstrate in support of Trump. Subsequently, the demonstration turned violent.
Some protesters entered the U.S. Congressional area and broke through the Capitol. Members of Congress were evacuated urgently.
Since 1800, the Capitol has been a symbol of American politics.
Congress is held here, and successive presidents of the United States have also been sworn in here. However, in its more than 200 years of history, it is rare for the Capitol to be occupied by protesters.
CNN White House Correspondent Kaitlan Collins on Twitter: “The U.S. Capitol is occupied today, the first since the British attack and set fire to the Capitol in 1814. It’s shameful.
The political turmoil caused by the capture of the U.S. Capitol by protesters has attracted global attention, and the fate of the century-old building is also worrying regardless of politics itself.
Why is it “Capitol” not “Congress House”?
Speaking of the history of the United States Capitol, it can be traced back to the late 18th century.
In 1791, George Washington, the first president of the United States, chose what is now Washington, D.C., as the capital of the country and invited Pierre Charles Langfont, a famous French architect, to plan for it.
Langfang proposed to build the Capitol on Jenkins Hill at the eastern end of the National Mall at an altitude of 25 meters.
In his words, this small hill is like “a waiting base for a monument”, which is known today as “Capitol” Hill).
Many people wonder why the English name of the Capitol is “Capitol” instead of “Congress House”. It is said that this was proposed by Thomas Jefferson, and the word “Capitol” comes from Latin and is related to the Temple of Jupiter on Mount Capitolio in Rome.
Since then, the word “Capitol” has also been used in government buildings in many U.S. state capitals, although there are often spelling mistakes in “Capitol” and “Capital” (the former refers to the building where the government agency is located, and the latter refers to the entire capital city).
On September 18, 1793, construction of the Capitol began.
At the foundation laying ceremony, President George Washington personally laid the cornerstone for it (the exact location of the building is now unconviable), and the whole country celebrated the arrival of a new era.
Construction of the Capitol began on September 18, 1793, and President George Washington personally laid the cornerstone for it.
However, like many important buildings in Washington, D.C., the Anglo-American War broke out in 1812 (also known as the Second American War of Independence), the British occupation of Maine in the United States in 1814, and the capture of the U.S.
capital Washington., and the unfinished Capitol was severely burned and damaged by the British army.
In 1814, Britain occupied Maine in the United States and once captured the capital of the United States, Washington, burning down the U.S. Capitol.
In the following decades, the Capitol underwent numerous reconstructions, restorations and expansions, and until 1892, the building basically reached its current size and appearance.
In addition to the Capitol, today’s Capitol Hill also includes six major House and Senate buildings, three Library of Congress buildings, Supreme Court Buildings, American Botanical Gardens and other facilities.
Standing on Capitol Hill, you can also see the Washington Monument 1.4 miles away and the Lincoln Memorial 2.2 miles away.
The big dome with the highest appearance rate
Covering an area of more than 1.5 million square feet, the whole Capitol is a three-storey flat-roofed building with a total length of 233 meters, which is mainly made of white marble. In the center is a tall dome, which is also divided into three floors. The north and south wings on both sides are the offices of the House of Representatives and the Senate respectively.
The eastern steps of the Capitol are usually the place where the presidential inauguration ceremony is held, where most presidential inauguration ceremonies took place from the time of President Andrew Jackson in 1829 to the end of the 20th century.
Occasionally, there are exceptions. President Reagan and President Clinton both held inauguration ceremonies on the western steps of the Capitol.
During the Revolutionary War, the American bourgeoisie tried to get rid of the European architectural style representing the “colonial style” while getting rid of the colonial system. However, the United States did not have a long tradition, so it could only draw from the classical architecture of Greece and Rome to express “democracy”, “freedom” and “glorious independence”.
Element. The U.S. Capitol was inspired by the Pantheon in Paris and is a representative of neoclassical architectural style.
The U.S. Capitol is the representative of neoclassical architectural style.
The design of the Capitol took a total of 12 architects. The earliest design drawings were drawn by architect William Thornton, who won the design competition of the U.S. Capitol in 1793 and conceived the iconic Central Rotunda (R otunda).
But due to shortages of funds and supplies, and the British set fire to it in 1814.
The rotunda was not built until 1824 under the baton of architect Charles Bulfinch.
Oil paintings hanging on the wall of the rotunda show four important moments in the history of the founding of the United States – Declaration of Independence, Sir Cornwalli Surrender, General Bergin’s Surrender, Washington Resignation.
These four paintings were created by John Trumbull in 181. 7 years) and four important events of the early colonial period – Columbus Landing, Discovery of the Mississippi River, the Baptism of Pocahontas, and the Pilgrims on the Ship.
Pocahontas was the daughter of the Argonquian Indians (i.e. the Powhatan) chiefs of Virginia.
Her most famous rumor is to save the life of British Captain John Smith. At the same time, in order to promote peace between the Powhatans and British colonies, she even converted to Christianity and married John Rolfe, an immigrant from Jamestown.
The painting depicts her as she is receiving a baptism. She is also the prototype of the heroine in the Disney animated film Strange in the Wind.
However, the most impressive and “highest appearance” in the design of the Capitol is the towering three-storey dome, which was designed by Thomas U. Walter. Walter) The design is complete.
The three-tier dome is composed of Thomas U. Walter) designed.
The dome is a double cast iron structure. The internal dome has a large eye hole.
Standing in the rotunda in the center of the Capitol, visitors can see a huge mural through the “eye of the dome”.
It was The Apotheosis of Washington by Italian artist Constantino Brumidi.
Constantino Blumidi painted in the Vatican and Roman palaces before moving to the United States, and was deeply influenced by the works of the Italian master Rafael.
The Deification of Washington was completed within 11 months after the end of the Civil War, and the characters were also inspired by classical and Renaissance images.
In the painting, George Washington ascends to heaven, flanked by fables representing freedom/authority and victory/reputation, surrounded by young girls representing thirteen colonies.
The six sets of pictures of the outer circle represent war, science, ocean, commerce, machinery and agriculture. The whole mural is suspended 180 feet above the ground of the rotunda, covering 4,664 square feet, and the characters in the painting are clearly distinguished from any angle.
There is also a small round tower above the outside of the dome, and at the top stands a bronze statue of the Statue of Liberty.
This is an image of a classical woman with long flowing hair, a helmet composed of eagle heads and feathers, and a classical dress with a “U.S.” Brooch with words.
Her right hand was placed on a hilt wrapped in a turban, and under her feet stepped on a globe surrounded by the motto “Epluribusunum”.
The headdress, shoulders and shield of the Statue of Liberty have 10 copper tips with gold to protect it from lightning.
In many 19th-century works of art, the Statue of Liberty usually wears a red knitted hat, the Phrygian cap.
For example, in the famous painting Freedom Guides the People, the Statue of Liberty wears a Phrygian hat (it is said that in ancient Rome, at the ceremony of granting freedom to slaves, The granting of a red hat to slaves, an element that later became popular in the French Revolution as a symbol of freedom).
But the Statue of Liberty in the U.S. Capitol wears a helmet and a sword, which is more like Athena, the goddess of war, indicating that she is ready to fight for the protection of the country.
It is said that the Statue of Liberty is assembled in five parts.
On December 2, 1863, when the head and shoulders of the last part of the statue were spliced, 12 fortresses around Washington sounded at the same time, and the salute sounded from the sky.
The model of the Statue of Liberty remained in the basement of the Russell office building until the Capitol Visitor Center opened in 2008, when it was moved to the center of the Liberation Hall, where visitors could see the details of the model.
100 sculptures in the Capitol
The U.S. Capitol contains many exquisite paintings, sculptures and other works of art, vividly depicting various important periods in American history.
One of the most popular rooms is the National Sculpture Hall, which attracts thousands of visitors every day, and many special government events will also be held in this room, including presidential luncheons and greetings to foreign dignitaries.
Built in the form of the ancient Greek Amphitheatre, the National Sculpture Hall is one of the earliest Greek Revival buildings in the United States.
The room is surrounded by huge Corinthian white marble columns, and the floor of the hall is covered with black and white marble tiles.
Originally, it was actually used as the hall of the House of Representatives, connecting the rotunda with the House building, but later, because the House moved into a larger conference hall, it was transformed into a statue art hall after 1864.
Congress invited each state to contribute two statues of outstanding citizens to be permanently displayed in the hall, so there are 100 statues.
These figures include Alexander Hamilton Stephens (Georgia), who wrote the Civil War’s Constitutional View, Andrew Jackson (Tennessee), the seventh President of the United States, Caesar Rodney (Tlawareland), one of the signatories of the Declaration of Independence, the indigenous leaders of Nebraska, etc.
There are also some women, such as Helen Keller (Alabama), Janet Rankin (Montana), the first female member of the United States House of Representatives, and Dr., the first female member of the American Academy of Sciences.
Florence Sabin (Colorado) and so on.
However, with the expansion of the collection, in 1933, for aesthetic and structural reasons, Congress left only 35 statues in the National Statue Hall, and the remaining statues were placed in prominent positions in the designated areas and corridors of the Capitol.
The statue donated by the state of Hawaii is the largest statue in the National Sculpture Hall.
Its character is Kamehameha I, the founder of the Kingdom of Hawaii, also known as Kamehameha the Great.
It is said that when Kamehameha I was born, the comets came to the earth, which was destined to be extraordinary in his life. After becoming a chief, he learned from the West while maintaining the indigenous tradition and built the kingdom of Hawaii under his rule into an independent state (which remained independent for almost the whole 19th century, except for five months by the British occupation in 1843) until it was annexed by the United States in 1898.
Therefore, he even has the nickname “Napoleon of the Pacific”.
Kamehameha I died on May 8, 1819 in Kailua, Kona District, Hawaii Island.
His body was secretly hidden, and according to the ancient custom, “only the stars know his last resting place”.
In the sculpture, Kamehameha I wears a gilded cloak and a helmet made of rare feathers.
The spear of his left hand symbolizes the ability to defend himself and the country. At the same time, he stretches out his right hand and makes an “Aloha” gesture, representing the traditional spirit of Hawaiians advocating friendship and peace.
In 1969, the statue of Kamehameha I and Father Pater Damiaan (Catholic priest, famous for promoting public welfare activities in the Molokai Island of the Hawaiian Islands) was dedicated to the National Sculpture Hall together with the State of Hawaii.
In 2008, the statue was moved to the Liberation Hall of the Capitol Visitor Center.
Every year on June 11th, “Kameha Day”, a memorial service for King Kamehameha is held in front of the statue.
It is said that every June 11 (known as “Kameha Day”, which is an official holiday in Hawaii), the liberation hall will hold a memorial ceremony for King Kamehameha.
The statue will be covered with a Hawaiian wreath and a hula dance performance.
Since the opening of the Capitol Visitor Center on December 2, 2008, the U.S. Capitol has attracted millions of visitors every year.
Since the Capitol Visitor Center opened on December 2, 2008, the U.S. Capitol has attracted millions of visitors every year. The tour time is from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and an appointment is required.
At the Capitol Visitor Center, there are two small theaters. Visitors will learn about how the U.S. government was founded and learn about the story of the Congress and the Capitol by watching the 13-minute movie.
