Rear Five Rooms 后五间

Old Door in the Confucius Mansion 孔府

Old Door in the Confucius Mansion 孔府

I come to the end of the Confucius Mansion, it really wasn’t as great as I thought it would be. I found myself a bit cheated upon learning that Confucius didn’t live here after all. This place was primarily used by his descendants and served as their offices. By today’s standards the Confucius Mansion may look a little austere but back then the Kong family was living like kings. In fact, they practically have their own little kingdom with the walled town all to themselves.

One of the Halls in the Rear Five Rooms 后五间

One of the Halls in the Rear Five Rooms 后五间

So important were the Kong family that they were given huge leeways in government. Recently, the city of Qufu planned to build a train station nearby but because the Kong family was not in favor of it, the train station was moved further away. They aren’t as influential now as they were in the past, but the tremendous respect for their clan still lingers two thousand years on.

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