SilverKris
Emperor
Zhu Yuangzhang, the founder of the Ming dynasty,
was of a very Chinese disposition: He loved walls,
the longer the better.
What is it about Chinese emperors and fortification?
They were constructing walls along their borders
from as early as the 7th century BC! So, soon after
he captured Nanjing in 1356 and declared it his
capital, Emperor Zhu, in true Chinese tradition,
ordered the construction of the longest city wall.
The result was an outstanding achievement of architecture,
science, technology and military art.
Over
200,000 labourers toiled at it for 20 long years,
digging up seven million cubic metres of earth to
create this massive battlement that stretches for
33km and stands 20m high. Given that Zhu spent 30
years at war with various warlords to liberate China
from the Mongols, his affection for fortification
was not merely fanciful: the wall is masterpiece
of military defence.
Stories
surrounding the wall are as interesting as the wall
itself. There's one behind how the Zhonghua Gate
got its name. Zhonghua or the Gate of Gathering
Treasure is the strongest among the 13 gates in
the ancient wall. Legend has it that during construction,
the city wall kept collapsing. Emperor Zhu was advised
to borrow a treasure bowl from the Shen clan in
Suzhou and bury it at the foot of the wall to prevent
any more collapses.
Zhu
did more that that. He seized the bowl by force
and buried it. Later the Zhonghua Gate was built
and is the only part of the wall that is still well
preserved. Within the gate there are 27 caves which
were used to store military supplies. The enormous
fortress, covering more than 15,000 square metres,
had several rooms inside, each of which could fit
in a thousand soldiers. At the top of the outer
wall there were 13,616 battlements for city defenders
to observe the enemy or dodge arrows.
And
to think that glutinous rice went into the construction
of this fortress! Into the brickwork joints was
pored a mixture of lime, tong oil and water in which
rice had been cooked. This coagulated mixture was
very strong, which is why the city wall has stood
for such a long time. Battle-scarred from the war
of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom and the 1911 Revolution,
this 14th century city wall was listed as an important
cultural relic under state protection in 1988.
Today,
nearly 21 km of the wall still stands - more than
20 m high at some points - and is dramatic focal
point throughout much of Nanjing city. Nanjing,
the capital of Jiangsu Province, lies on the southern
bank of the Yangtze, and at the foot of the Purple
and Gold mountain.
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The
Nanjing city wall is quite different from
ancient city walls in Beijing and Xi'an, which
were constructed in the traditional style
with square of rectangular structures. Instead,
this one is built in a winding free style
suited to the city's complicated topography.
The
best maintained section of the wall surrounds
Xuanwu Lake Park. The lake, which was once
used for naval exercises during the Song dynasty,
has five tiny islands, connected by bridges,
with elegant teahouses, restaurants, gardens,
pavilions, an open-air theatre and even a
zoo.
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Although
the main entrance to the park is on Zhongyang Lu,
a favourite spot with the locals is the Jiefang
Men (Liberation Gate) as it is less touristy. Inside,
you'll find old men fishing and people picnicking,
paddle-boating or riding tandem bicycles.
Enter
through Jiefang Men, turn right and you will find
a staircase that leads you through a hole in the
city wall. It takes you trough a bizarre dormitory-like
office built inside the wall and eventually up and
back out again.
The
top of the wall makes for a comfortable, even exhilarating
walk, about half an hour in either direction on
a wide, solid path that was rebuilt in the 1980s.
And the view is expansive - the shimmering lake
to the north and the Purple Mountain to the east
where Zhu's tomb still stands, keeping a watchful
eye on the wall that is his lasting legacy to the
city of Nanjing.
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