Eunuchs in Beijing: The Bad and the Misunderstood

Eunuchs in Beijing: The Bad and the Misunderstood

Most eunuchs were undeserving of their bad reputation and social stigma, but a few eunuchs in Beijing's past, unfortunately, lived up to their notoriety.

Notes from the Medical Tent: Beijing Learns to Live with COVID

Notes from the Medical Tent: Beijing Learns to Live with COVID

Podcaster Zhang Yajun joins Jeremiah and David to talk about the situation in Beijing as COVID spreads throughout the city.

Special episode: The COVID lockdown protests, with David Moser and Jeremiah Jenne (Sinica Podcast)

Special episode: The COVID lockdown protests, with David Moser and Jeremiah Jenne (Sinica Podcast)

Special bonus episode of the Sinica Podcast: David Moser and Jeremiah Jenne join Kaiser Kuo and Jeremy Goldkorn for a discussion of the weekend's anti-COVID lockdown protests in China.

Standing Up to Zero COVID

Standing Up to Zero COVID

This special episode of Barbarians at the Gate recorded last night provides a “time stamp" and an initial reaction to the protests in several major Chinese cities on November 26 and 27, including the situation in Beijing.

Story of the 'Jing: The Legacy of the Jesuits in Beijing

Story of the 'Jing: The Legacy of the Jesuits in Beijing

One of the first communities of foreigners working in Beijing were Jesuits, missionaries turned advisors and aides to the emperors of the Ming and Qing.

Lockdowns, Legacies, and Looking Back with Journalist Melinda Liu

 Lockdowns, Legacies, and Looking Back with Journalist Melinda Liu

Award-winning journalist, Newsweek Bureau Chief, and long-time Beijing resident Melinda Liu joins David Moser and me on a special episode of Barbarians at the Gate. We're taking the long view of lockdowns, US-China relations, and some fascinating stories of World War II.

Back to the Land: Author Alec Ash on escaping to Dali, rural retreats, and a return to England

Back to the Land: Author Alec Ash on escaping to Dali, rural retreats, and a return to England

Author Alec Ash stops by the Barbarians at the Gate studio on his way through Beijing. David and I talk with Alec about Dali in a time of COVID, Alec's new book about urban refugees in the mountains of Yunnan, and his plans for the future.

The Horrifying History behind Beijing's Most Notorious Execution Grounds

The Horrifying History behind Beijing's Most Notorious Execution Grounds

Few places in Beijing are as soaked in blood and steeped in the supernatural as the now rather banal neighborhood outside the Caishikou Metro Stop.

Barbarians at the Gate: CoCo19 and the Quarantines (The Scene from Beijing)

Barbarians at the Gate: CoCo19 and the Quarantines (The Scene from Beijing)

David returns to Beijing and Jeremiah can't leave the city. We're both navigating the new information and media environment in the run-up to the October Party Congress. BATG is back with the scene from Beijing.

How to Explore Beijing's History and Avoid the Crowds This October Holiday

How to Explore Beijing's History and Avoid the Crowds This October Holiday

Beijing's famous sites will be heaving from today onwards, but you can beat the crowds and find quiet spaces to explore the city's past.

Story of the 'Jing: When Beijing's Most Famous Sites Opened Their Doors to the Public

Story of the 'Jing: When Beijing's Most Famous Sites Opened Their Doors to the Public

Beijing's most famous attractions didn't open their doors to the public until the 20th century (or even later).

Weekend Walking with the Lamas: A Quick Guide to Visiting Yonghegong

Weekend Walking with the Lamas: A Quick Guide to Visiting Yonghegong

Yonghegong, also known as The Lama Temple, reopened to the public last month and remains one of the city’s most fascinating religious sites.

The China History Podcast: Forbidden City

The China History Podcast: Forbidden City

Few topics have been requested more than the Forbidden City, located in the center of the great city of Beijing. To help introduce this iconic palace complex, Laszlo invited longtime Beijing resident, Jeremiah Jenne of "Barbarians at the Gate Podcast" fame onto the CHP to discuss the history of the Forbidden City from its construction in the Ming Dynasty up to the present day.

Barbarians at the Gate: The Destruction of the Yuanmingyuan (One from the Vault)

Barbarians at the Gate: The Destruction of the Yuanmingyuan (One from the Vault)

This month marks the 160th anniversary of the destruction of the Yuanmingyuan. In this episode, David and I talk about the events leading up to the looting and razing of the gardens and the shifting meaning of "National Humiliation" in China today.