Qinghe Fort City

Qinghe Fort City

　Qinghe City, also known as Qinghe Fort.

The ruins of the Ming Dynasty military city of Qinghe are located 35 kilometers north of the county seat of Benxi Manchu Autonomous County. It was a key military stronghold in Liaodong during the Ming Dynasty and has a history of over 500 years.

Qinghe Fort City was built in the fourth year of the Chenghua era of the Ming Dynasty by Han Bin, the deputy commander of Liaoyang. The fort is square-shaped, with a perimeter of 500 meters, walls 6 meters high, and a width of 3 meters. It was constructed using strip stones and blue bricks, with crenellations on the inside, watchtowers at each of the four corners, and battlements along the walls. There were one gate each on the northern and southern sides of the eastern wall. Today, apart from a section of the southern foundation that remains relatively intact, only raised earthen walls are left. During the Ming Dynasty, Qinghe City was an important military site in the Liaodong region. In the 39th year of the Jiajing era (1560 AD), the position of commander at Qinghe City was changed to that of a garrison officer, overseeing seven forts including Jianchang, Gushan, and Dongzhou, as well as 66 watchtowers, with over 4,500 stationed troops. A border wall over 100 kilometers long and the Yahu Pass were also constructed. A horse market was once established here for trade between the Han and Jurchen peoples. In the 46th year of the Wanli era (1618 AD), Nurhaci personally led the Later Jin army to attack Qinghe City. The Ming defending deputy commander Zou Chuxian led 10,000 troops in a firm defense, but the Later Jin forces tore down the walls and breached the city. Zou Chuxian was killed after the city fell. “Once Qinghe was lost, all of Liaodong was shaken.” As a result, in 1619, the Ming Dynasty appointed Yang Hao as the military commissioner of Liaodong and launched a four-pronged campaign against the Jin. The right-center wing, led by the Liaodong commander Li Ruzhang, commanded 60,000 troops who marched out of Qinghe City through the Yahu Pass. However, before engaging in battle, they heard that the other three wings had been defeated, so Yang Hao urgently ordered Li Ruzhang to retreat without fighting.

In 1905, during the Russo-Japanese War, Japanese Commander Nogi Maresuke moved to engage Russian forces via Qinghe City on his way to advance toward Fushun. The frequent wars throughout history plunged the people of Qinghe City into great suffering. It was not until after the liberation that Qinghe City returned to the people and began to take on a new look.

Over 500 years have passed. Although Qinghe Fort City has been eroded by wind and sun and repeatedly damaged by war, parts of the city walls can still be faintly discerned. It stands as a witness to historical change and an important heritage of ancient culture. In 1961, it was listed as a municipal-level cultural relics protection unit.