Zongtai Mountain Beacon Tower

Zongtai Mountain Beacon Tower

Zongtai Mountain Beacon Tower is a Zhejiang Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

Zongtai Mountain Beacon Tower

Zongtai Mountain Beacon Tower Zongtai Mountain Beacon Tower is located in Guoju, in the southeastern part of Beilun District. It borders the Ayuwang Mountain Range to the west, faces Chuanshan Mountain to the north, and overlooks the East China Sea to the south. It is one of the important military bases in eastern Zhejiang. A garrison was established here as early as the early Ming Dynasty, where the Guoju fortress was built and the stone house of the Zongtai Mountain Beacon Tower in Guoju was constructed.

The stone house of the Guoju Zongtai Mountain Beacon Tower is situated at the summit of Zongtai Mountain, on the northern outskirts of Baifeng Town in Beilun District. Also known as Santai Mountain, Zongtai Mountain has an elevation of 309.2 meters and is the highest peak at the eastern end of the Chuanshan Peninsula. It faces Zhujiajian Island of the Zhoushan Archipelago across the sea. From its summit, one can clearly overlook the majestic view of the Beilun Port docks, ships in Meishan Port, the Luotou Channel, and sailing vessels on the Zhitouyang waters.

The beacon tower stone house was first built in the 20th year of the Hongwu reign during the Ming Dynasty (1387). It was originally constructed following the layout of the Guoju Fortress and was called Santai Mountain Platform, which continued to be used through the Ming and Qing dynasties. It was later promoted to the status of Zongtai (Main Platform), overseeing five other beacon towers including Gaoshan, Tuzhe, Guanshan, and Meishan. The architectural structure of the Zongtai Mountain Beacon Tower in Guoju is unique—the base is rammed from sand and soil, with the stone house built atop it. The base is trapezoidal, measuring 7 meters on the upper side, 8 meters on the lower side, and 3.7 meters in height, making it very solid. The stone house is built close to the mountain top, covered with strip stones, with stone pillars and beams joined using mortise-and-tenon techniques. Its four walls are built with hole stones, featuring a south hall with observation window holes. It remains largely intact to this day.

According to the 1912 edition of the "Zhennan County Annals," the Zongtai Mountain Beacon Tower stationed flag soldiers to watch for signals and respond to smoke and fire day and night. Due to its uniquely far-reaching line of sight, it was designated as the main tower. Since the mid-Ming Dynasty, Qi Jiguang led troops to resist Japanese pirates. The smoke signals for resistance against Japanese pirates, the British, and the French—wars against foreign invasions—were lit from this very place. The stone house of the Zongtai Mountain Beacon Tower stands as historical evidence of the people’s fearless and heroic fight against foreign invaders. It serves as a rare site for patriotic education.

Owing to the site's significant historical, artistic, scientific research, and educational value, Baifeng Town has organized voluntary visits to the Zongtai Mountain Beacon Tower for Party members, Communist Youth League members, and primary and middle school students every year since the 1950s. These visits serve as patriotic revolutionary tradition education, incorporating the historical facts of the local people of Guoju suffering bombings, burnings, and massacres by Japanese pirates and the Japanese army. They also learn about the indomitable spirit of the revolutionary predecessors in their resilient fight against the enemy.

On November 23, 1994, the People’s Government of Beilun District issued a document designating the Zongtai Mountain Beacon Tower as a district-level cultural relics protection unit. In June 1997, the Guoju Zongtai Mountain Beacon Tower was designated as a provincial-level cultural relics protection unit by the People’s Government of Zhejiang Province.

Further reading:

· Fourth Batch of Zhejiang Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units