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The fortifications of Xi'an (), also known as Xi'an City Wall, in Xi'an, represent one of the oldest, largest and best preserved
Chinese city wall Chinese city walls () refer to defensive systems used to protect towns and cities in China in pre-modern times. In addition to walls, city defenses often included towers and gates. Meaning of the word ''Chengqiang'' The most specific Chinese w ...
s. It was built under the rule of the Hongwu Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang as a military defense system. It exhibits the "complete features of the rampart architecture of feudal society". It has been refurbished many times since it was built in the 14th century, thrice at intervals of about 200 years in the later half of the 1500s and 1700s, and in recent years in 1983. The wall encloses an area of about . The Xi'an City Wall is on the tentative list of
UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
's
World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...
under the title "City Walls of the Ming and Qing Dynasties". Since 2008, it is also on the list of the State Administration of Cultural Heritage of the
People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones an ...
. Since March 1961, the Xi'an City Wall is a heritage National Historical and Cultural Unit.


Location

Xi'an City Wall is located in the urban district of Xi'an City, which at one time was an imperial city during the periods of the Sui and Tang dynasties. It is situated at the end of the ancient
Silk Road The Silk Road () was a network of Eurasian trade routes active from the second century BCE until the mid-15th century. Spanning over 6,400 kilometers (4,000 miles), it played a central role in facilitating economic, cultural, political, and rel ...
.


History

Zhu Yuanzhang, the first Emperor of the
Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last orthodox dynasty of China ruled by the Han peo ...
(1368–1644), was advised by Zhu Sheng, a sage, to build a fortified high wall around the city, create storage facilities for food and then establish his empire by unifying all the other states. Following the hermit's advice, Zhu established the Ming dynasty, and then built a highly fortified wall over a previously existing palace wall of the Tang dynasty (618–907). He started building the Xi'an City Wall, as the capital of northwestern
Shaanxi Province Shaanxi (alternatively Shensi, see § Name) is a landlocked province of China. Officially part of Northwest China, it borders the province-level divisions of Shanxi (NE, E), Henan (E), Hubei (SE), Chongqing (S), Sichuan (SW), Gansu (W), Ningxi ...
in 1370. He incorporated the ancient fortified embankments built by the Sui and Tang dynasties by including them in the wall's western and southern parts, enlarging the eastern and northern parts. The edifice was built over an eight-year period and was well maintained during both the Ming dynasty, and the
Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...
, which followed. The wall was initially built solely from tamped earth. During the
Longqing Emperor The Longqing Emperor (; 4March 15375July 1572), personal name Zhu Zaiji (朱載坖), was the 13th Emperor of the Ming dynasty, reigned from 1567 to 1572. He was initially known as the Prince of Yu (裕王) from 1539 to 1567 before he became th ...
's period (1568) the wall was strengthened by laying blue bricks on the top and exterior faces of the earthen walls. During the reign of
Qianlong The Qianlong Emperor (25 September 17117 February 1799), also known by his temple name Emperor Gaozong of Qing, born Hongli, was the fifth Emperor of the Qing dynasty and the fourth Qing emperor to rule over China proper, reigning from 1735 t ...
of the Qing dynasty (1781), the wall was enlarged; drainage features, crenels and other modifications were made; and the structure as it is now seen came into existence. By the end of the Qing dynasty rule, the structure had begun to deteriorate. In a limited degree the Republican Authorities carried out maintenance of the wall, which was in a poor state. In the first decade of the 20th century, the wall's defense system was considered to be of strategic importance, even though demolishing of similar walls in other regions of the country was undertaken following the
1911 Revolution The 1911 Revolution, also known as the Xinhai Revolution or Hsinhai Revolution, ended China's last imperial dynasty, the Manchu-led Qing dynasty, and led to the establishment of the Republic of China. The revolution was the culmination of a ...
. In 1926, the wall was attacked with bombs by enemy forces resulting in serious structural damage, but the city within the wall was not affected. During the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...
, when the
Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
ese carried out air bombings from 1937 to 1940, the residents built around 1,000 bunkers, as anti-aircraft shelters within the wide base (thickness of more than ) of the wall. A few escape openings were also made through the wall as passageways. Even later, new gates to allow traffic through the Xi'an Wall were constructed during the Republican rule. According to the Shenboo Atlas of 1933, in the 1930s most people lived within the perimeter of the Xi'an Wall but still there were a lot of unoccupied open areas. Among the visitors who came to see the Xi'an Wall were American captain (later general) Stilwell in 1922 and the Czech
sinologist Sinology, or Chinese studies, is an academic discipline that focuses on the study of China primarily through Chinese philosophy, language, literature, culture and history and often refers to Western scholarship. Its origin "may be traced to t ...
Jaroslav Průšek Jaroslav Průšek (1906–1980) was a Czech sinologist. He was considered as the founder of the Prague School of Sinology. He trained as an historian, with an interest in the history of ancient Greece, Byzantium and Roman Empire at Charles Univer ...
(1906–1980) in 1933. In 1983, the administration of the Xi'an municipality carried out more renovations and additions to the wall. At that time, the Yangmacheng tower, the Zhalou sluice tower, the Kuixinglou dipper tower, the Jiaolou corner tower and the Dilou defense tower were all refurbished; the crumbling parts of the rampart were changed into gates; and the moat was restored. In May 2005, all of Xi'an's ramparts were inter-connected. The Xi'an City Wall was proposed as a
UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
World Heritage Site by the State Administration of Cultural Heritage of the
People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones an ...
in 2008. UNESCO included the site in the tentative
List of World Heritage Sites This is a list of the lists of World Heritage Sites. A World Heritage Site is a place that is listed by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) as having special cultural or physical significance. General l ...
under the title "City Walls of the Ming and Qing Dynasties" as a cultural heritage designee under Criterion iii & iv. In March 1961, the Xi'an City Wall was fully approved as a heritage site as a National Historical and Cultural Town.


Features

The Xi'an Wall is rectangular in shape and has a total length of , with almost all stretches subjected to some kind of restoration or rebuilding. Along the top of the wall is a walkway, which would typically take four hours to cover. It is built in the
Chinese architecture Chinese architecture (Chinese:中國建築) is the embodiment of an architectural style that has developed over millennia in China and it has influenced architecture throughout Eastern Asia. Since its emergence during the early ancient era, the ...
style. As a defense fortification, it was constructed with a
moat A moat is a deep, broad ditch, either dry or filled with water, that is dug and surrounds a castle, fortification, building or town, historically to provide it with a preliminary line of defence. In some places moats evolved into more extensive ...
,
drawbridge A drawbridge or draw-bridge is a type of moveable bridge typically at the entrance to a castle or tower surrounded by a moat. In some forms of English, including American English, the word ''drawbridge'' commonly refers to all types of moveabl ...
s, watch towers, corner towers, parapet walls and gate towers. The wall is in height with a width of at the top and base width of . Ramparts are built at intervals of , projecting from the main wall. There are
parapet A parapet is a barrier that is an extension of the wall at the edge of a roof, terrace, balcony, walkway or other structure. The word comes ultimately from the Italian ''parapetto'' (''parare'' 'to cover/defend' and ''petto'' 'chest/breast'). Wh ...
s on the outer side of the wall, built with 5,984 crenels, which form "altogether protruding ramparts". There are four watch towers, located at the corners and the moat that surrounds the wall has a width of and depth of . The area within the wall is about , enclosing the small area of occupied by the city. The southern embrasured watchtower constructed in 1378, was destroyed by fire in 1926 during the civil war of 1926, and was restored in September 2014. This was done after a careful historical review of documents related to the historical features that existed before it was damaged. The other three watchtowers forming the northern, eastern and western gates of the wall were also examined during the planning phase of the modifications done for the South Tower. They were modified, without affecting the integrity of the wall, by an encompassing hall offering protection to the structures by using steel, wood work and the ancient-type tiles and bricks structure. Major gates have ramp access except the South Gate which has entry outside the walls. There is an "Archery Tower", which provides security to one of the four gates of the Xi'an wall. Created as a large trap-like chamber, capped by a tower filled with windows, it gave an advantageous position for archers to shoot arrows (in the initial years of building the wall) and later cannonballs at the opposing revolutionary forces. In the event that the enemy was able to breach the walls through the main gate they would become trapped in the small chamber that faced yet another gate and thus be easy targets for the defending troops.


References


Bibliography

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Xian City Wall Buildings and structures completed in the 14th century City walls in China Major National Historical and Cultural Sites in Shaanxi Buildings and structures in Xi'an Tourist attractions in Xi'an World Heritage Sites in China