aeeble

The old Taipei City had a total of five gates: Dongmen (Jingfu Gate), Ximen (Baicheng Gate), Nanmen (Lizheng Gate), Xiaonanmen (Chongxi Gate), and Beimen (Cheng'en Gate). These were built during the Guangxu era of the Qing Dynasty, in the time of Liu Mingchuan. It encouraged merchants to invest in building houses within the city, forming streets and promoting development.

Beimen, also known as Cheng'en Gate, faces north and means "receiving heavenly blessings." It is the only remaining traditional Southern Fujian-style city gate in Taipei. Its importance in modern times is as a key landmark of the "West District" of old Taipei. In the Qing Dynasty, it was also the core gateway from "Chengnei" (the city area) to "Dadaiting." Therefore, the West District Gateway Project takes Beimen as its core, connecting surrounding sites from the Japanese colonial period, such as the "Railway Department," "Taipei Post Office," "Osaka Trading Company," "Mitsui Warehouse," and from the Qing Dynasty, "Futai Street Western-style Building," "Machine Bureau," etc., forming a "surface-like" historical site network. It also creates an image of a national gateway by developing the travel plaza in front of Taipei Station, connecting the axis from Taipei Station to Beimen.

In recent construction plans, Beimen was originally scheduled for demolition. However, with the rising awareness of preserving cultural heritage, the ancient Beimen was left intact. As a result, Beimen has become the only ancient city gate among the five that has been preserved in its original Qing Dynasty style. It is one of the most precious national historic monuments in Taipei. Moreover, due to its early defensive functions, it has become a historical witness to national defense.