The Great Escape

The Last Emperor Puyi in Tianjin

In 1925 the last emperor Puyi fled from Beijing to Tianjin. It was an escape performed in open daylight. Puyi simply just took the train. It must have taken hours to travel the distance between the two cities. Today the same ride can be done in 25 minutes, nevertheless the city of Tianjin ironically seems mentally much more distant to most Beijingers than what it was in 1925.

When the boy emperor arrived in Tianjin to seek refuge in the international concession, the city was one of the most happening places in North China. Puyi explored the city with an enormous appetite. In the society pages of newspapers he is pictured playing golf, dancing tango and participating in picnics much more. For a child that had lived most of his life inside the Imperial Palace, Tianjin was a whole new world. However despite his glamorous lifestyle, the emperor wished to be reinstated on the throne. Most countries were reluctant to support his claim, but in 1931 the Japanese gave him an offer that he could not refuse...

“The Great Escape” is a portrait of the last Emperors time in Tianjin. We follow the boy emperors struggle trying to come to terms with a new reality. We have no claim on the imperial throne, but we have discovered that Tianjin is an amazing unpolished gem that is more than worth exploring.

A day trip to Tianjin