Jiayuguan Things to Do

The inside of the fortress is now virtually empty, save for the Commanding Officer's Mansion to one side. It was originally built during the reign of the Ming Emperor Longqing (1567 to 1572), and much of it survived through to the present day untouched (despite what the guidebooks say), except for the gateway and one of the front pavilions which have been recreated.
The position of the Commanding Officer was clearly one of some prestige, and the whole complex is substantial with even the side buildings being 5-bay mansions. The large hall at the back was the General's residence.

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Perhaps the most spectacular part of the fortress is the method of entry. There are two outer gateways, both facing south, after which there is a sharp turn to get to the main gate, so preventing a direct frontal attack. Each outer gate has a small attic tower above for observing those coming and going. It is behind one of these attic towers (at the western end) where the single extra brick lies - see separate review.
The huge entrance archways were designed to impress and are lined with huge slabs of stone at the lower level. The doors themselves are wooden, thick and lined with heavy iron sheeting for ptotection against fire-arrows.

In 1506, a master builder, Wang Zhen, started building the huge Guanghuamen and Rouyuanmen towers above the east and west gates. Each stood on a platform 9 metres above the ground, and were 17 metres high. Legend has it that Wang was unsure as to how to build the two towers and gathered all his trusty craftsmen together to discuss the possibilities. This was done under the full moon of the Mid Autumn Festival and the men ate and drank, sitting on one of the two platforms gazing out over the silent desert. Eventually, one old man, who had offered nothing to the debate, suggested building the towers from the top down. The others mocked him, but Wang realized that this would probably be the most effective and cheapest way. So huge mounds of earth were piled up on the platform and after completing each layer,soil was removed and the next level down was constructed. It was all finished by February the following year.

The big open space inside the Jiayuguan Fortress looked very different when Aurel Stein passed by in mid July 1907. He approached from the north-west and saw the fortress as it would have looked down the centuries, stark and forbidding, up on the edge of a low ridge.He described the inner area as being "sadly decayed, half the houses of its single broad streetbeing roofless ruins". Now, these houses have disappeared altogether, and there remains just the commandant's house, partly restored, to one side.

The great brick and stone fortress is not the end of all the fortifications. There is a protective moat around the entire complex, most easily visible from the platform of the outer western gate. The moat is 10 metres wide, with a slight lip that conceals it from a distance. This is the "hidden" Great Wall that would prevent a direct attack on the wall of the fortress, and could also conceal soldiers ready to counter-attack. Further earth fortifications, including pits to trip charging horses, can be clearly seen all around the western gate. Everything was designed to confuse the enemy and deflect any frontal attack. Much of these earthworks predate the fortress itself.

Despite appearances, the fortress at Jiayuguan is not square, but rectangular with the 166 metre western wall the longest, and the two side walls (north and south) sloped in to a shorter, 154 metre eastern wall. Rather than being for any specific military reason, it is likely that this represented the easiest way to construct the fortress on such uneven ground. The end result was a fortress with a total inner wall length of 640 metres; the outer wall runs for 733 metres.

In front of the inner city wall, is what is known as the Luo City Wall, which forms the protective western barrier wall, with the third gate - this is the outer gate and the gate that, in essence, led out of China. This wall is 190 metres long and is no less than 25 metres thick at the base. Each of the crenellations along the top was fitted with a small loophole to allow a rifle to be rested for accurte aiming as any enemy approached the base of the wall.

The rest of the outer city wall, much smaller but firmly protected by the earthworks further out, is only 3.8 metres high but still high enough to be a major deterrent. Remember that this wall was behind the Great Wall so didn't need to be so substantial - if the enemy had got to this point (they never did) then there would be real problems.

Shortly after Emperor Hongwu proclaimed himself the first Ming Emperor in 1368, he sent General Feng Sheng to the West to wipe out the remaining troops of the defeated Yuan dynasty. He ended up at Suzhou in Gansu, where he was tasked by the emperor with closing off the narrow pass that allowed entrance to China. The old Han Great Wall passed by to the north and could be closed off by running a new wall from the Heishan Mountains to the north down to the deep Taolaihe river gorge. On a slight ridge lay the perfect location to build a military fortress. It commanded a great view of the entire 17km wide pass and lay beside a spring and a permanent stream. The first fortress was built in less than 12 months.

The stone flags under the tower gateways are huge - each one 2 metres long and half a metre thick. They were brought from a quarry at Mozigou in the Heishan and it was a difficult task to bring the huge slabs to the fortress. Cleverly, they decided to move them the 10km in the depths of winter by pouring water on the roadway. The water froze solid and the slabs were slid along the road to the building site with ease.

One of the most cunning ideas for easing the construction process came from a child goatherd, who suggested using goats, each carrying two adobe bricks tied at either end of a strap over its back. The bricks were being manufactured some 20km away where the soil was suitable for brickmaking,and the use of wagons over the stoney desert was time-consuming. The idea was a good one, and huge herds of goats were employed in the army of builders.

One of the most crass and obtrusive lighting systems at a heritage system anywhere in the world is all too obvious at Jiayuguan, with arrays of clumsy lighting gantries in every direction. There has been absolutely no attempt to hide this complete eyesore, let alone any consideration given to the growing global problem of light pollution.
Now before running off to the people who run the fortress, or the local Cultural Heritage authorities, note that they detest them as well. The existence of these lights is a local politician's decision and is "final". "Final" that is, until UNESCO gets to hear about it.

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The Great Wall Museum is a fabulous exhibition on the history of the Great Wall - certainly better than the mediocre museum at Badaling near Beijing. Sadly it has simply been built far too close to the wall, and its boiler house actually abuts the wall! It's monolithic, drab concrete architecture is ot exactly sympathetic to the surroundings and even the attempt to hide it with willows and other shrubbery is not successful.
The exhibtion on the fortress and the Great Wall thoughout China is definitely worth seeing. It really is a must.

Just outside the fortress, near where the camel rides offer a bit of a diversion from all the history, a large stele stands alone, 100 metres down the track. In 1809, the commanding general of Gansu Province, paid a visit to Jiayuguan and watched the sun come up behind the fortress as he stood here. He was so impressed that he claimed to his entourage that Jiayuguan was truly the "Impregnable Pass Under Heaven"; local leaders immediately ordered a stele to be created with those words and placed here for all time.