Tiananmen Square Gate of China was demolished, allowing for the enlargement of the square. In November 1958, a major expansion of Tiananmen Square started, which was completed after only 11 months, in August 1959. This followed the vision of Mao Zedong to make the square the largest and most spectacular in the world, and intended to hold over 500,000 people. In that process, a large number of residential buildings and other structures have been demolished. On its southern edge, the Monument to the People's Heroes has been erected. Concomitantly, as part of the Ten Great Buildings constructed between 1958–59 to commemorate the
Funding of student organizations during the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests Funding of student organizations during the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests The catalyst for the birth of the Pro-Democracy Movement was the death of Hu Yaobang on April 15, 1989. Beginning in late April until June 3 large crowds gathered in Tiananmen Square. During this period a significant amount of money was donated to the student organizations, it was spent on providing food, water and other supplies required to sustain the many thousands of protesters who occupied the Square. Virtually every day large numbers of people gathered in the Square to demonstrate, on some days tens of thousands of people took