Balitsiao ( Chinese 八里桥 ) is a historic bridge over Tonghuihe in Beijing at the junction of the Chaoyang and Tongzhou districts, built during the Ming Dynasty . “Ba Li Qiao” in translation means “a bridge in eight li ”, it was so named because it was exactly eight li from Tongzhou.
| Bridge | |
| Balitsiao | |
|---|---|
| Chinese 八里桥 | |
 View of Baliziao from Tongzhou | |
| A country |  China |
| City | Beijing |
During imperial China, the bridge marked the border between the city of Beijing and the province of Zhili . If the emperor went on a trip, then he was brought to Balitsiao in a palanquin, and at the bridge he was transferred to horses or to a boat.
During the Second Opium War , a battle took place in these places, in which the Sino-Manchu troops tried unsuccessfully to stop the advance of the Anglo-French forces towards the capital. For victory in this battle, the commander of the French troops, General Charles Cousin-Montaban received from Napoleon III the title "Count of Balitsiao" ( French Comte de Palikao ).