Tsinghua University

Tsinghua University is a public university in Haidian, Beijing, China. It was established in 1911 on the grounds of former Qing imperial gardens and is one of the best-known universities in China. Its alumni include leaders Xi Jinping, Hu Jintao and Zhu Rongji and physicist Yang Chen-Ning, a Nobel winner.

Today it has 22 schools and 59 departments in subjects from science and engineering to law, medicine and art. The globe model shows the white Old Gate (Er Xiao Men) with the characters Tsinghua Garden, built in 1909 and rebuilt in 1991. It is part of China's Double First-Class Construction program and a member of the C9 League.

A gift turned into scholarships

After the Boxer Rebellion, the Qing government had to pay large sums to foreign powers. The US thought its share, 30 million dollars, was too much. In 1909 Congress agreed to cut it by 10.8 million, if the money was used as scholarships for Chinese students to study in the United States.

That money led to the school that became Tsinghua.

Many names

The school began in 1911 as Tsinghua Xuetang, in the former imperial garden Tsinghua Yuan. In 1912 it became Tsinghua School, in 1928 National Tsinghua University, and in 1949 simply Tsinghua University.

Its English name is spelled Tsinghua, not Qinghua. It is separate from National Tsing Hua University in Taiwan, though the two keep in touch. It is funded by the Ministry of Education.

On the globe

The model shows the white Old Gate with the name of the former garden over the doorway. Look for its white colour and the garden name over the gate.