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The Xi'an Ancient City Wall
The Xi'an City Wall is the best
preserved, oldest and largest ancient city defence system
in China. It is also one of the most important landmarks
of the Xi'an city.
The original foundation of the Xi'an
City Wall was based on the ruins of the Imperial City Wall
of Chang'an City--the capital of the Tang Dynasty. In 904
A.D. when the capital of the Tang Dynasty was moved eastward,
the Governor-general Han Jian had the city renovated and
turned it into an army garrison and named it "New City".
Since then the city was used continuously
by Song and Yuan Dynasties, and its features kept unchanged.
The Ming Dynasty was set up in 1368 and the Ming army entered
the city in 1369. Afterward the city was renamed as "the
Prefecture of Xi'an".
In 1370 the First Ming Emperor Zhu Yuan Zhang conferred
the title of "King of Qin" on his second son Zhu
Shuang and sent him to rule in Shaanxi. The King's official
residence was chosen and built in Xi'an City. According
to the Ming Dynasty's stipulation, when the title of King
was conferred upon the Emperor's son, his costume, Carriage,
flag and residence had to be one grade lower than the emperors'.
The old city was dilapidated and its size was small, so
it was not up to the standard. In 1370, the government began
to extend the size of the Xi'an City, and build the huge
project of the residence for the Ding of Qin. It was completed
within eight years.
When the city began to take shape,
it was divided into inner city and outer city. The outer
city is 13.7 km. in circumference and it occupies an area
of 11.5 square km. The structure of the City Wall was earth-rammed.
Around the City Wall there are jutting ramparts, sentry
towers, corner towers, gate towers, battlements and a series
of city defensive fortifications which were scientifically
and compactly laid out with very strong defence capability.
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The inner city was the residence
for the King of Qin. It was built at the high terrain in
the north-eastern part of the city, from where the whole
city could be well under control by its advantage of geographical
position. The residence was enclosed by two successive walls
and a protective moat. The principal part of the architectural
complex was built according the traditional pattern of "Palace
in the front and bedchamber at the back". The important
palaces and temples were longitudinally arranged in a round
pivot order. They looked magnificent and splendid. During
the 200 years reign of the Ming Dynasty, the inner city
continuously served as the millitary and political center
of Shaanxi, where the successive 14 Kings of Qing acted
on the order of the Emperor to rule Shaanxi.
The Xi'an City Wall has a history
of over 600 years since it was built in the early Ming Dynasty.
Nowadays, this old historical relic is not only an important
material object for the study of ancient military science
but also a sightseeing and entertainment resort for the
visitors.
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