Kilometre Zero

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Kilometre Zero

In many countries, Kilometre Zero (also written km 0) or similar terms in other languages, is a particular location (often in the nation's capital city), from which distances are traditionally measured. A similar notion also exists for individual roads (that is, all locations on the road have a number, depending on their distance from that location), and for individual cities (often the city's central post office is used for this).

The most famous such marker of which any part survives from ancient times is the Milliarium Aureum ("Golden Milestone") of the Roman Empire

Roman Empire

The Roman Empire was the Roman Republic phase of the Ancient Rome, characterised by an autocracy form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
, believed to be the literal origin for the maxim that "all roads lead to Rome."

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Chile

Chile, officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long and narrow coastal strip wedged between the Andes mountains and the Pacific Ocean....
's Autopista Central (the Chilean portion of the Panamerican Highway) has its Kilometre Zero at the intersection with the Alameda del Libertador Bernardo O'Higgins

Alameda del Libertador Bernardo O'Higgins

Avenida Libertador General Bernardo O'Higgins, popularly known as La Alameda , is Santiago, Chile's main avenue. It runs east-west in the center of the greater urban area and is 15 km long, and it has 5 lanes in each direction....
.

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China Railways

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Roman Empire

Countries

Chile

Alameda del Libertador Bernardo O'Higgins

China

China Railways

China Railways is the national railway company of the People's Republic of China, under the Chinese Ministry of Railways.CR operates rail commuter and freight transport via several smaller companies....
' 0km is located at the entrance to the Fengtai Yard on the Jingguang Line just outside of Beijing. This point was historically the start of the line; the marker is a simple concrete marker, with "0" painted on it. There is no ceremonial plaque.

Cuba

The Republic of Cuba is a country in the Caribbean. It consists of the island of Cuba , the island of Isla de la Juventud, and several adjacent small islands....
's Kilometre Zero is located in its capital Havana

Havana

Havana is the capital city, major port, and leading commercial centre of Cuba. The city is one of the 14 Provinces of Cuba. The city/province has 2.1 million inhabitants, and the urban area over 3.5 million, making Havana the largest city in both Cuba and the Caribbean....
in El Capitolio

El Capitolio

El Capitolio, or National Capitol Building in Havana, Cuba, was the seat of government in Cuba until after the Cuban Revolution in 1959, and is now home to the Cuban Academy of Sciences....
. Embedded in the floor in the centre of the main hall is a replica 25 carat

Carat (mass)

The carat is a unit of mass used for measuring gemstones and pearls . Currently a carat is defined as exactly 200 milligram . This definition, known as the metric carat, was adopted in 1907 at the Fourth General Conference on Weights and Measures, and soon afterwards in many countries around the world....
(5 g) diamond, which marks Kilometre Zero

Kilometre Zero

In many countries, Kilometre Zero or similar terms in other languages, is a particular location , from which distances are traditionally measured....
for Cuba. The original diamond, said to have belonged to Tsar

Tsar

Tsar or czar , occasionally spelled csar or tzar in English language, is a slavs term designating certain monarchs.Originally, the title Czar meant Emperor in the European medieval sense of the term, that is, a ruler who has the same rank as a Ancient Rome or Byzantine emperor due to recognition by another emperor or...
Nicholas II of Russia

Nicholas II of Russia

Nicholas II was the last Tsar of Russian Empire, Grand Prince of Finland, and claimant to the title of King of Poland. His official title was Nicholas II, Emperor and Autocrat of All the Russias and he is currently regarded as Saint Nicholas the Passion Bearer by the Russian Orthodox Church....
and have been sold to the Cuban state by a Turkish merchant, was stolen on 25 March 1946 and mysteriously returned to the President, Ramón Grau San Martín, on 2 June 1946. It was replaced in El Capitolio by a replica in 1973.

France

Kilometre Zero of French national highways

Route nationale (France)

A route nationale, or simply nationale, is a trunk road in France. Trunk roads are in France are significantly important roads which cross broad portions of the French territory, in opposition to secondary or communal roads who only serve local areas....
, located in Paris

Paris

Paris is the Capital of France and the country's largest city. It is situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the ?le-de-France Regions of France ....
on the square facing the main entrance of Notre Dame cathedral

Notre Dame de Paris

Notre Dame de Paris is a Gothic architecture cathedral on the eastern half of the ?le de la Cit? in the 4th arrondissement of Paris of Paris, France, with its main entrance to the west....
, and considered the official centre of the city of Paris.

Hungary

Main article: Zero Kilometre Stone (Budapest)
Zero Kilometre Stone (Budapest)

Zero Kilometre Stone is a 3 m high limestone sculpture in Budapest, forming a zero sign, and an inscription on its pedestal reading "KM" for kilometres....

The Zero Kilometre in Budapest is marked by a monument, forming the number "zero". The starting point was initially reckoned from the threshold of the Buda Royal Palace, but it was taken down to the Széchenyi Chain Bridge when it was built in 1849.

India

The resting place of Mahatma Gandhi

Mahatma Gandhi

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was a major political and spiritual leader of India and the Indian independence movement. He was the pioneer of satyagraha?resistance to tyranny through mass civil disobedience, firmly founded upon ahimsa or total non-violence?which led India to Indian independence movement and inspired movements for civi...
, the Father of the Nation

Father of the Nation

Father ofhjkjijolkpx?gsoplqhdtrsjdewfathers]] may be used if more than one person is considered key....
, in the National Capital Region (NCR) of Delhi

Delhi

Delhi , sometimes referred to as Dilli , is the List of most populous cities in India metropolis in India and, with over 11 million residents, the List of metropolitan areas by population....
(known as Raj Ghat) is the point from which all highway distances are measured. The Raj Ghat has a milestone at its entrance that reads "0 KM".

Italy

The Italian Kilometre Zero is located on the top of the Capitoline Hill

Capitoline Hill

The Capitoline Hill , between the Roman Forum and the Campus Martius, is one of the seven hills of Rome of Rome. By the 16th century, Capitolinus had become Campidoglio in the Romanesco....
, in Rome

Rome

Rome is the capital city of Italy and Lazio, and is Italy's largest and most populous city, with 2,724,347 residents in an urban area of some ....
.

Japan

The is on the middle of Nihonbashi

Nihonbashi

, or Nihombashi, is a business district of Chuo, Tokyo, Japan which grew up around the bridge of the same name which has linked two sides of the Nihonbashi River at this site since the 17th century....
bridge in Tokyo

Tokyo

, officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan of Japan and located on the eastern side of the main island Honshu. The twenty-three special wards of Tokyo, each governed as a city, cover the area that was once the Tokyo City in the eastern part of the prefecture, and total over 8 million people....
. Tokyo Station

Tokyo Station

is a train station located in the Marunouchi business district of Chiyoda, Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan, near the Kokyo grounds and the Ginza commercial district....
is considered the originating point of the national railway network and has several posts and monuments indicating zero kilometre of lines originating from the station.

Panama

The Panamanian Kilometre Zero is located at the Martin Sosa Bridge on the Simon Bolivar Avenue (Transisthmian Highway) in Panama City

Panama City

Panama City is the Capital and largest city of the Panama. It has a population of 708,738, with a total metro population of 1,063,000, and it is located at the Pacific entrance of the Panama Canal, at ....
.

Philippines

The big flagpole west of the Rizal Monument in Rizal Park

Rizal Park

Rizal Park is situated in the heart of the city of Manila, Philippines. It is at the northern end of Roxas Boulevard, overlooking Manila Bay....
is Kilometer Zero for road distances on the island of Luzon

Luzon

Luzon is the largest and most economically and politically important island in the Philippines and one of the three island groups in the country, with Visayas and Mindanao being the other two....
and the rest of the Philippines

Philippines

The Philippines, officially known as the Republic of the Philippines, is a country in Southeast Asia with Manila as its capital city. It comprises 7,107 islands in the western Pacific Ocean....
.

Romania

Main article: Kilometre Zero (Bucharest)
Kilometre Zero (Bucharest)

The Kilometre Zero monument located in central Bucharest, Romania, in front of Saint George's Church, was created by Constantin Baraski in 1938....

The Kilometre Zero of Romania is marked by a monument located in front of Saint George's Church in central Bucharest

Bucharest

Bucharest is the capital city, industrial and commercial centre of Romania. It is the largest city in Romania, located in the southeast of the country, at , and lies on the banks of the D?mbovita River....
.

Russia

The bronze plaque marking Russia's Kilometre Zero is located in Moscow

Moscow

Moscow is the capital and the largest types of inhabited localities in Russia of the Russian Federation. It is also the largest European cities and metropolitan areas, with the Moscow metropolitan area ranking among the largest urban areas in the world....
, just in front of the Iberian Chapel

Iberian Gate and Chapel

Resurrection Gate is the only existing gate of the Kitai-gorod in Moscow. It connects the north-western end of Red Square with Manege Square and gives its name to nearby Voskresenskaya Square ....
, in a short passage connecting Red Square

Red Square

Red Square is the most famous city square in Moscow, and arguably one of the most famous in the world. The square separates the Moscow Kremlin, the former royal citadel and currently the official residence of the President of Russia, from a historic merchant quarter known as Kitay-gorod....
with Manege Square

Manege Square

Manege Square is a large pedestrian open space at the very centre of Moscow bound by the Hotel Moskva , the State Historical Museum and the Alexander Garden , the Moscow Manege , and the 18th-century headquarters of the Moscow State University ....
and flanked by the State Historical Museum

State Historical Museum

The State Historical Museum of Russia is a museum of History of Russia wedged between Red Square and Manege Square in Moscow. Its exhibitions range from relics of the prehistoric tribes inhabiting present-day Russia, through priceless artworks acquired by members of the Romanov dynasty....
and the City Duma.

Slovakia

Slovakia . It was amended in September 1998 to allow direct election of the president and again in February 2001 due to EU admission requirements....
has its Kilometre Zero in Bratislava

Bratislava

Bratislava is the capital of Slovakia and, with a population of about 427,000, also the country's largest city. Bratislava is in southwestern Slovakia on both banks of the Danube River....
under Michael's Gate

Michael's Gate

In Bratislava, Slovakia, Michael's Gate is the only gate that has been preserved of the medieval Bratislava Fortifications and ranks among the oldest town buildings....
in the Michalská veža (St. Michael's tower).

Spain

Spain or the Kingdom of Spain , is a country located in Southern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.The Spanish constitution does not establish any official denomination of the country, even though Espa?a , Estado espa?ol and Naci?n espa?ola are used interchangeably....
has its Kilometre Zero in the centre of the Puerta del Sol

Puerta del Sol

The Puerta del Sol is one of the most well known and busiest places in Madrid.This is the centre of the radial network of Transportation in Spain....
in Madrid

Madrid

Madrid is the Capital and largest city of Spain. It is the Largest cities of the European Union by population within city limits in the European Union after Greater London and Berlin, and its Madrid metropolitan area is the Largest urban areas of the European Union in the European Union after Paris aire urbaine, Greater London Urban Area, a...
(incidentally, the clock of the old Royal House of the Post Office, in front of which the plaque is located, marks the official time in Spain, according to the urban legend). The plaque that marks this point was turned around 180 degrees in 2002, because the map of Spain depicted on it was upside-down in relation to reality.

Switzerland

Switzerland is a landlocked Swiss Alps country of roughly 7.7 million people in Western Europe with an area of 41,285 km?. Switzerland is a federal republic consisting of 26 states called Cantons of Switzerland....
's Kilometer Null is located in Olten

Olten

Olten is a town in the Cantons of Switzerland of Solothurn in Switzerland and capital of the Olten .Olten is within 30 minutes of Zurich, Bern, Basel, and Lucerne by public transport, and is a rail hub of Switzerland....
. It was made in the 19th century to mark the point from where the Swiss railway system was measured. Because of the dimension of the Swiss railway system its Kilometer Null is not in use anymore.

United Kingdom

Although the term Kilometre Zero is not used in the United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom , the UK or Britain,is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe....
, all distances from London

London

London is the capital of both England and the United Kingdom, and the most populous municipality in the European Union. An important settlement for two millennia, History of London goes back to its founding by the Roman Empire....
are measured from Charing Cross

Charing Cross

Charing Cross denotes the junction of the Strand, London, Whitehall and Cockspur Street, just south of Trafalgar Square in City of Westminster within Central London, England....
, making this effectively London's Kilometre Zero.

United States

The metric system

Metric system

The metric system is an international decimalised systems of measurement, founded by France in 1791, that is the common system of Unit of measurement used by most of the world....
is not the common system in the United States, but Pierre Charles L'Enfant

Pierre Charles L'Enfant

Pierre Charles L'Enfant was a France-born United States architect and civil engineer....
, the original architect of Washington, D.C., proposed an otherwise unnamed reference marker in the form of a pole to be located one mile

Mile

A mile is a Units of measurement of length, usually used to measure distance, in a number of different systems. In contemporary English contexts, mile most commonly refers to the statute mile of 5,280 Feet or the nautical mile of 1,852 meters ....
east of the Capitol

Capitol

Capitol may refer to:* A set of buildings in which a legislature meets, including:**Capitoline Hill in Rome **United States Capitol in Washington, D.C.; see also, List of state capitols in the United States...
that was never built. Although not generally used for measurement on United States roads, the Zero Milestone

Zero Milestone

The Zero Milestone is a zero mile marker monument in Washington, D.C. intended as the initial milestone from which all road distances in the United States should be reckoned when it was built....
near the White House

White House

The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the President of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, D.C., it was built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the late Georgian architecture and has been the executive residence of every U.S....
was proposed in 1919 and a permanent marker placed in 1923 by the federal government, funded by the Good Roads Movement

Good Roads Movement

The Good Roads Movement occurred in the United States between 1880 and 1916. Advocates for improved roads led by bicyclists turned local agitation into a national political movement....
.

Media

Kilometer Zero
Kilometer Zero

Kilometer Zero is a collective of international artists and writers that produces magazines, theatre, and artistic performances. It was founded in Paris, France at the Shakespeare and Company bookstore in the year 2000....
is also the name of a literary journal once published from the famous book shop Shakespeare and Company

Shakespeare and Company (bookshop)

Shakespeare and Company is an independent bookstore located in the Ve arrondissement, in Paris's Rive Gauche. Shakespeare and Company serves as both a bookstore and a reading library, specializing in English-language literature....
.

The 2000 film Km. 0
Km. 0

Km. 0 is a 2000 in film film from Spain. It tells several intertwining tales of mistaken identity and coincidental meetings that take place near the Kilometre Zero marker in the Puerta del Sol in Madrid....
was a romantic comedy set in Madrid.

Kilometre Zero

Countries

Chile

China

Cuba

France

Hungary

India

Italy

Japan

Panama

Philippines

Romania

Russia

Slovakia

Spain

Switzerland

United Kingdom

United States

Media

Images

See also

External links