I am working on an alternate history short story which features the Qing Dynasty modernizing after Empress Dowager Cixi dies in 1875 due sickness (I'm pulling off a Schrödinger's cat scenario as she actually did get sick that year in the real timeline but didn't die). It's been a while since my past attempts to create the world if such a story but have started fleshing it out more thanks to a collaboration with u/Telemannische_Aias.
Lately, I've been thinking about the Yuanmingyaun and the idea of the Guangxu Emperor moving his official residency to there had been restored. I imagine the parts that were damaged beyond repair being rebuilt, but with more western style buildings. Obviously, Xiyang Lou would easily get fully restored to its former glory, but I'm talking more about the spots that were destroyed that had Chinese buildings. I read online that only 13 buildings survived intact, most of them in the remote areas or by the lakeside. Those buildings would later be destroyed by the Eight Nation Alliance in 1900 in the real timeline.
That being said, which parts of Yuanmingyuan were damaged beyond repair and which parts were left untouched after the Second Opium War? Feel free to mention the function of those destroyed areas.
Hi there - we're happy to approve your question related to your creative project, and we are happy for people to answer. However, we should warn you that many flairs have become reluctant to answer questions for aspiring novelists and the like, based on past experience: some people working on creative projects have a tendency to try to pump historians for trivia while ignoring the bigger points they were making, while others have a tendency to argue with historians when the historical reality does not line up with what's needed for a particular scene or characterization. Please respect the answers of people who have generously given you their time, even if it's not always what you want to hear.
Additionally, as amazing as our flair panel is, we should also point out that /r/AskHistorians is not a professional historical consultation service. If you're asking a question here because you need vital research for a future commercial product such as a historical novel, you may be better off engaging a historical consultant at a fair hourly rate to answer these questions for you. We don't know what the going rate for consultancy work would be in your locality, but it may be worth looking into that if you have in-depth or highly plot-reliant questions for this project. Some /r/AskHistorians flairs could be receptive to working as a consultant in this way. However, if you wish for a flair here to do this work for you, you will need to organize this with them yourselves.
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