Xuanhua Ancient City is located in Xuanhua District, Zhangjiakou City, Hebei Province.The ancient city was built in the Tang Dynasty. After the Ming Dynasty established the Great Wall of nine towns, Xuanhua became the command center of Xuanfu Town.Xuanfu City in the Ming Dynasty was built on the basis of the old Tucheng during the Hongwu period.The city is 12 kilometers in circumference, surrounded by 7 gates.The gate is set outside the gate, surrounded by the urn city, which is connected to the Moon City. Corner towers are built at the four corners of the city, and God's cutting, moat, suspension bridge, etc. are set outside the city.[9]
In 1992, Xuanhua Ancient City was announced as a famous historical and cultural city by the People's Government of Hebei Province, enjoying the reputation of "the first city in western Beijing".[2]On May 25, 2006, the State Council of the People's Republic of ChinaXuanhua City WallAnd the third batch of national key cultural relics protection unitsQingyuan TowerIncorporated into Xuanhua Ancient City and announced asThe sixth batch of national key cultural relics protection units。[1]
In the 27th year of Hongwu (1394), on the basis of the original city wall, the King of Valley expanded the city into a large city with an area of 12 square kilometers and seven gates, which was equivalent to Xi'an at that time.In the 20th year of Yongle (1422), four more city towers and four corner towers were built.[10]
In the Yongle period of the Ming Dynasty (1403-1424), the Gongji Tower began to be built.[4]
In the fifth year of the Zhengtong period of the Ming Dynasty (1440), Luo Hengxin, the right and deputy governor of the Duchayuan, made a great effort in the Xuanfu Prefecture to widen and raise the old city wall and build bricks and stones outside the city.At the four gates of Changping, Taixin, Anding and Guangling, we built the Barbican City and Moon City, dug moats and built more than 20 city platforms.[10]At the same time, Luo Hengxin built Zhenshuo Tower in the city.[3]
In the 18th year of Chenghua in the Ming Dynasty (1482), Qingyuan Tower, also known as the Bell Tower, was built.[4]
Zhenshuo Tower was repaired in the fifth year of Qianlong's reign (1740).After the renovation in the fifth year of Qianlong's reign in the Qing Dynasty (1740), the south plaque of Zhenshuo Tower was preserved and the north plaque was changed to "prepare for the border and enjoy the scenery".[3]
In the ninth year of Qianlong's reign in the Qing Dynasty (1744), Emperor Qianlong passed Xuanhua Mansion in the north and invested 100000 taels of silver to rebuild Qingyuan Tower.[4]
In the fourth year of Tongzhi in the Qing Dynasty (1865), Zhenshuo Tower was repaired again.[3]
Architectural characteristics
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Xuanhua Ancient City
Xuanhua Ancient City, located in Xuanhua District, Zhangjiakou City, Hebei Province, was built in the Tang Dynasty and expanded in the 27th year of Hongwu's reign (1394).The expanded Xuanhua City is a square, more than 6 miles on each side and 24 miles in circumference.The bottom width of the city wall is 14 meters, the top width is 5.4 meters, and the height is 10 meters.There are 7 gates around the city, including Changping, Xuande and Cheng'an in the south;There are two gates in the north, Guangling and Gaoyuan;There is an Anding Gate in the east;There is a Taixin Gate in the west, with a gate outside the gate. There is a Barbican City around the gate, which is connected to the Moon City outside the Barbican City.There are turrets in four corners of the city, and outside the city, there are Huangchan, moat, suspension bridge, etc.[8]
Main buildings
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Qingyuan Tower
Qingyuan Tower, also known as the Bell Tower, is located in the middle of Xuanhua, the ancient city. It was built in 1482, the 18th year of Chenghua in the Ming Dynasty. It is a building with multiple corners and cross ridges.Qingyuan Tower is 25 meters high and built on the 8 meters high cross coupon hole.The exterior of the building is 3 floors, the interior is 2 floors, the overall height is 25 meters, and the pavilion is 17 meters high. It is a 3-bay building with 6 tower rafters. The front and rear open rooms go out of the building. There are corridors around it, and 24 thick colonnades are erected.The upper lining is green glazed tile top, the waist lining and the lower lining are cloth tile top.[7]Qingyuan Tower forms an axis with Zhenshuo Tower and Gongji Tower in the city.The door opening is five fold and five volt. The arches and openings intersect into a dome, and the eight petal lotus pattern is built with blue bricks.[6]
Qingyuan Tower
Zhenshuo Tower
Zhenshuo Tower, also known as Drum Tower, is located on the central axis of Xuanhua District, echoing Gongji Tower in the south and Qingyuan Tower in the north.It was built in the fifth year of the Zhengtong period of the Ming Dynasty (1440). It has two floors and double eaves on the top of the mountain. It is five rooms wide, three rooms deep and has an cloister. The building area is 1052 square meters.[5]The building is 17 meters high, and the platform is 8 meters high. There are clepsydra, drum horn, and bell and drum upstairs, which can be used to tell the time.There are omissions in the building, and there is a big drum with a diameter of 1.5 meters under the outdoor east wall.[3]
Zhenshuo Tower
Circumpolar floor
The Gongji Tower, also known as the South Gate Tower, was built on the Changping Gate of the South City Wall of Xuanhua, and was first built in the Yongle Period of the Ming Dynasty. The city wall is 24 meters high, with a south-north coupon hole underneath.[4]
Circumpolar floor
Xuanhua City Wall
Xuanhua Ancient City, built for the Great Wall, is an important part of the Great Wall defense system.Xuanhua Ancient City was built in the 27th year of Hongwu in the Ming Dynasty (1394), and is the first of nine towns on the Great Wall of the Ming Dynasty.Later, it was reinforced in the fifth year of the orthodox era (1440). It was built with rammed earth, covered with bricks and stones, surrounded by a urn outside the four doors, and built with a trench and a suspension bridge. It became the strongest town in the nine sides of the Ming Dynasty.The current city site is basically preserved. The plane is rectangular, with a circumference of 12.12 kilometers. The bottom of the city wall is 14 meters wide, the top is 5.4 meters wide, and the height is 10 meters. The old site of the four gates still exists.[12]At present, the ancient city wall is seriously damaged.[11]
Cultural relics
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Qingyuan Tower Cultural Relics
The upper layer of Qingyuan Tower is lowered and four pieces of prayer are hung. To the south, it is called "Qingyuan Tower"; to the north, it is called "Sound Connecting to the Sky"; to the east, it is called "Standing in the Strict Frontier"; to the west, it is called "Shaking the Border Atmosphere".[7]
On the second floor of Qingyuan Building, there is a "Xuanfu Town Bell" cast in the 18th year of Jiajing's reign in the Ming Dynasty (1539). It is 2.5 meters high, 1.7 meters in diameter, and weighs about 10000 kg. It is erected in the middle of the upper floor of the building with four sky columns.[6]
Zhenshuolou Cultural Relics
On the Zhenshuo tower, there is a large plaque written by the Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty, which means Xuanhua is the barrier of Beijing.The border of the large plaque is carved with flying clouds and sea going mosquito dragons in different states.[3]
Zhenshuo Tower "Shenjing Pinghan" plaque
protective measures
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In 1986, the State Administration of Cultural Heritage invested 560000 yuan in overhauling Zhenshuo Tower, comprehensively repairing its tile roof, beam frame, decoration, ground, piers and abutments, and ticket holes, and repainting the painting. It also copied the side of a 2.2 meter long and 1.5 meter diameter drum and placed it on the Zhenshuo Tower.[3]
In 1956 and 1982, Zhenshuo Tower was twice announced by the People's Government of Hebei Province as a provincial key cultural relics protection unit.[3]
In 1992, Xuanhua Ancient City was declared a famous historical and cultural city by the People's Government of Hebei Province.[2]
In 1996, Zhenshuo Tower was announced by the State Council as a national key cultural relics protection unit.[3]
Since 2006, Xuanhua District has successively repaired some of the west and north city walls, as well as the east and northwest corner towers.[11]
