Ancient City Ruins of Wankou

Ancient City Ruins of Wankou

The Ancient City Ruins of Wankou is a cultural heritage site protected by Anqing City.

Wankou refers to the confluence where the Wan River meets the Yangtze River. It currently belongs to Shankouzhen Village, Shankou Township, Daguan District, Anqing City, about fifteen Chinese miles from downtown Anqing. Though Wankou today is merely a small fishing town, it was historically a prominent military, political, and cultural hub. It is the earliest ancient market town in all of Huaining County to be recorded in official history, and is mentioned in the "Records of the Three Kingdoms · Book of Wu · Biography of Sun Quan."

Wankou was an important ancient military stronghold. This small ancient town saw four significant military events recorded in historical texts. In 228 AD, Sun Quan and Lu Xun annihilated over ten thousand soldiers of the Wei general Cao Xiu here. In 550 AD, Hou Jing, a rebel general of the Liang Dynasty, sent his subordinates Wu Yue and Lu Jinghui to assassinate Xiao Si, the heir of Prince Xiao of Poyang. The Liang generals Wang Seng and Xu Wensheng launched a campaign against Hou Jing, who personally led troops to Wankou, resulting in a three-month standoff in the area. In 903 AD, Tian Jun, the military governor of Xuancheng, held a grudge against Yang Xingmi, King of Wu, and conspired with Zhu Quanzhong to attack Yang. Yang dispatched Li Shenfu to fight back. In 975 AD, Emperor Taizu of Song sent General Cao Bin to build a pontoon bridge at Shipai, crossing the river to conquer the Southern Tang. The military governor of Hongzhou in the Southern Tang, Zhu Lingbin, led 150,000 troops to reinforce Jinling but was intercepted by Song forces at Wankou. His warships were burned, Zhu Lingbin was decisively defeated and captured.

Wankou was also an ancient political center of Huaining County and served as the county seat twice. The first time was in 622 AD (the fifth year of Wude during the reign of Emperor Gaozu of Tang), when Huaining County was divided into four counties: Wancheng, Anle, Meicheng, and Wanyang. Among them, the county seat of Wanyang was located at Wankou for about a year. The second period was from 1217 AD (the tenth year of Jiading during the Southern Song Dynasty) to 1260 AD (the first year of Jingding), lasting 43 years. Wankou was also an ancient cultural hub of Huaining County, attracting literati and poets throughout the dynasties who visited and composed poetry. Li She of the Tang Dynasty wrote the quatrain "Meeting a Night Visitor at Jinglansha" — “Dusk rain whispers o’er riverside village fair, / Green-wood outlaws are known here night and day. / No need to dodge when we chance to meet here— / Half the world’s rogues, so folks nowadays say.” Wang Anshi of the Song Dynasty wrote poems such as "Farewell to Wankou," "Passing Through Wankou," and "Crossing Chang’an Ridge to Wankou." Huang Tingjian wrote "Composed on the Way from Shuzhou to Wankou, Sent to Li Desou." Ming dynasty’s Cao Xuequan wrote "Two Poems on Being Windbound at Wankou," and Liu Ji wrote "On a Yangtze Boat Trip, for Yu Tinxin." Qing dynasty’s Wang Zongzhou wrote "Boat Passing Wancheng," and Shi Runzhang wrote "From Liyang Post to Wankou" and "Anchored at Wankou." There is also a Town God’s Temple in Wankou, built about 700 years ago. Locals call the Wankou Town God’s Temple the "Prefectural Town God’s Temple," while the one in the east gate of Anqing has always been the "County Town God’s Temple." The Wankou temple is considered one rank higher, possibly due to the town’s unique historical status.

Bricks from counties such as "Huaining County," "Taihu County," "Tongcheng County," and "Qianshan County" can be found, some even inscribed with personal names. To the west of the town on Taling Mountain, ancient trenches can be seen, along with the ruins of Song dynasty houses, ancient coin mints, and Qing dynasty wells. On Baizi Mountain to the west of the town lies the joint tomb of Yang Rugu and his wife, both Jinshi degree holders of the Kangxi era in the Qing dynasty. There is also the former site of the Baizi Mountain District Committee of the Chinese Communist Party during the Anti-Japanese War, and a county-level key cultural relic protection site — the stone carving "Exterminate All Han Traitors." Wankou, backed by Baizi Mountain and facing Shimen Lake, is nestled between mountains and water with enchanting scenery. "Baizi Clear Haze" and "Shimen Autumn Cruise" were two of the famous Twelve Scenic Spots of ancient Huaining. Time moves on, but charm remains. Today’s Wankou greets guests from all over with its simple, gentle elegance.

Shankou Township: Named after Shankouzhen within its borders, historically known as Wankou. Located in the western suburbs of Anqing City, 12 kilometers from National Highway 206, it borders Shili Township to the east along Shimen Lake, faces Haikou Town across the Wan River to the south, neighbors Hongpu Town to the west, and connects to Yueshan Town to the north. It is a shallow hilly region. The township covers an area of 55.5 square kilometers, with 4,869 mu of arable land and a total population of 11,700. It administers 6 administrative villages, 1 neighborhood committee, and 101 villager groups. There are currently 290 party members, 15 party branches, 16 administrative and public institutions, 5 enterprises and institutions directly under county-level or higher authorities, and various private enterprises... For more detailed information on Shankou Township ++

Further Reading:

· The Fourth Batch of Municipal-Level Cultural Relics Protection Units in Anqing City