Chengde >> Jinshanling Great Wall

Attraction Typ: Historic Site

Location: about 90 km from city

Recommend: 5 Star

Jinshanling Great Wall

Jinshanling Great Wall is the best preserved part of the Great Wall with many original features.

Jinshanling Great Wall (Chinese: 金山岭长城; pinyin: Jīnshānlǐng Chángchéng) is the best preserved part of the Great Wall with many original features. The Great Wall is the symbol of China and it fully merits its designation as a wonder of the world.

The Jinshanling Great Wall lies in the mountainous area of Luanping County, Hebei Province. It has a total length of 10.5 kilometers, starting from the Wangjinglou Tower in the east and ending at Longyukou in the west.

The Jinshanling Great Wall was built in the sixth century during the Northern and Southern Dynasties. Along it are 67 watchtowers, all in different styles, at average intervals of 150 meters. Featuring various structures and having various functions, those watchtowers are either one tiered or two-tiered. Viewed from a distance, the Jinshanling Great Wall is like a giant dragon, curving its path over the mountain peaks whose line it follows. Among the watch towers, the most celebrated are the Big and Small Jinshanling Watchtowers.

When travel to the Jinshanling Great Wall, the Wangjinglou Tower, the General Tower, the Black Tower and the Taochun Tower are must-sees for their unique and interesting legends. Legend has it that the stone bars used to build the Wangjinglou Tower were carried to the mountain top by Er Lang Shen, the nephew of the Jade Emperor. The general tower was named to commemorate Wu Guihua, a heroine who sacrificed herself to resist northern invader's invasion in the Ming Dynasty. The Black Tower and the Taochun Tower were christened to commemorate two girls, Heigu and Taochun, who made great contributions to the construction of the Great Wall.

People also say that anyone who has climbed Jinshanling is not interested in seeing any other part of the Great Wall, as it retains its original Ming Dynasty outlook, and so vividly reflects the full ethos of that epoch.