Guanxi New Walled Village

Guanxi New Walled Village

The Guanxi New Walled Village is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

Located in Xinxu Village, Guanxi Town, and Liyuzhai, Yangcun Town, Longnan County, Jiangxi Province, these are two large earthen fortresses where the Hakka people lived together as a clan. Among them, the Guanxi New Walled Village was first built in the third year of the Jiaqing reign during the Qing Dynasty (1798), covering an area of 27,000 square meters, with 20 buildings and a construction area of 7,898 square meters. The walled village includes an ancestral hall, main halls, an inner garden, a theater stage, a small flower islet, and the Meihua Academy. The Yan翅膀 Walled Village was built in the seventh year of the Shunzhi reign during the Qing Dynasty (1650). The fortress has four stories, with a square layout, covering an area of 3,700 square meters and a construction area of 3,741 square meters. The four corners of the walled village are equipped with watchtowers.

The Guanxi New Walled Village was built by Xu Mingjun, a renowned local gentleman from Guanxi. Xu Mingjun was the fourth among his brothers, hence also known as "Old Fourth." Old Fourth Xu made a fortune through the timber business, later opened a pharmacy and a pawnshop, and his wealth continued to grow, making him a prominent local tycoon. Due to the increasing number of his children, the original family walled residence became too cramped. Thus, he spent a million coins and over ten years constructing this walled house. As it was never officially named, and in contrast to the old walled village "Xichang Walled Village," it came to be commonly known as the "New Walled Village." Here is a story about the Guanxi New Walled Village. The total area of the Guanxi New Walled Village exceeds 7,700 square meters. Nestled against mountains and near water, it features green bamboo, ponds, farmland, and blue skies all blending harmoniously. The new walled village is square-shaped, with both length and width measuring 88 meters. The surrounding wall is about 9 meters high and 2 meters thick, with a 15-meter-high watchtower built at each of the four corners. Looking down on the Guanxi New Walled Village from above, its overall structure resembles a giant Chinese character “回” (return), with the central “口” (mouth) part being the ancestral hall of the walled village. This ancestral hall is the “sacred temple” of the villagers, the most exquisitely built and decorated structure within the walled complex. Serving as the central axis, it organizes the symmetrical layout of the buildings inside. The ancestral hall is divided into upper, middle, and lower sections, with the main housing structure expanded from the typical Hakka “three courtyards and three openings” to “three courtyards and six openings,” forming a classic architectural style of nine buildings and eighteen halls, totaling 124 main rooms. The grand space and ornate decorations create a solemn atmosphere. The craftsmanship within the walled village is meticulous, featuring abundant wood carvings and stone engravings. It serves as a public space for collective activities such as celebrating festivals, market gatherings, and ancestral worship.

Pathways inside the walled village connect all rows of buildings. Over a hundred rooms are scientifically arranged with rigorous structures. Consideration for lighting, ventilation, and drainage is meticulously addressed. It not only provides functions such as security defense, windproofing and earthquake resistance, balancing yin and yang, and maintaining warmth in winter and coolness in summer, but also boasts rich Hakka cultural connotations. Each building holds a touching story, and every hall carries a beautiful legend. The main buildings are arranged in five groups, with three courtyards in sequence, fourteen courtyards, and eighteen halls symmetrically distributed. The “three courtyards” refer to the lower hall upon entering the main gate, followed upward by the middle hall and then the upper hall, each level progressively higher. The “six openings” refer to the symmetrical extension from the central hall to both sides, with balanced left and right courtyards and houses, and symmetrical doors and windows. This symmetrical structure centered around the main hall makes it the core of the entire walled village, reflecting strong centripetal force and cohesion.

These are interconnected by corridors, walls, and passageways. Though the layout is complex, it is well-organized, with rich spatial and courtyard arrangements. The Guanxi Walled Village not only showcases ingenious architectural beauty in every detail, but its paintings and decorative arts are also breathtaking. In front of the main hall’s gate stand a pair of exquisitely carved, lifelike stone lions—the male lion on the left, with its head raised and mouth open, looks fierce and majestic, while the female lion on the right appears graceful, dignified, and solemn, demonstrating the artisans’ exceptional carving skills. The gate frame features cylindrical stone carvings of the Qian (Heaven) and Kun (Earth) trigrams from the Bagua. The stone bases under the more than ten large wooden pillars in the hall are engraved with various patterns and characters. The side halls, wing rooms, and courtyards are inlaid with numerous animal wood carvings such as dragons, tigers, qilins, and phoenixes, all vividly shaped and finely carved. The entire walled village not only offers functions like security, windproofing, seismic resistance, yin-yang balance, and climate comfort, but also embodies rich cultural significance. The so-called “nine buildings and eighteen halls” palace-style residences celebrated among the Hakka people are fully exemplified here.

The Guanxi New Walled Village has a plan that is a typical “国” (country) character-shaped fortress. In addition to the surrounding walls, the interior also features grand combinations of halls and houses, as well as living and leisure facilities such as wells and gardens. The residents refer to the front section of the walled village as the “Zouma Tower” (Horse-Riding Tower), which is 8 meters high with 18 rooms on the second floor; the side sections are called the “Longyi Houses” (Dragon Robe Houses), 7.4 meters high with 30 rooms on the second floor; and the rear section is called the “Tuku” (Storehouse), 8.52 meters high with 19 rooms on the second floor, mainly used for storing supplies. The upper floor extends out with wooden beams to form corridors, with rooms connected via these corridors. The rooms are named after Bagua directions, such as Kun House, Zhen House, etc. Four watchtowers are built at the four corners of the walled village—two on the east side are two-story, 10.1 meters high, and two on the west side are three-story, 11.2 meters high. The cross-shaped holes are constructed with specially made uniquely shaped bricks. The eastern watchtowers face open terrain, so their defensive function is slightly simpler, and the adjacent houses are mostly used to store weapons, ammunition, and other military supplies.

The architectural complex within the Guanxi New Walled Village mainly follows a three-courtyard, three-row layout along the central axis. The central buildings are, in sequence, the lower hall, the main hall, and the upper hall. The three rows of buildings parallel to the halls are called the lower building, the middle building, and the upper building. The halls serve as public activity spaces within the walled village, mainly used for discussing communal matters, ancestral worship, as well as weddings, funerals, and celebratory events. The buildings on either side of the halls are called side houses, which are the main residential areas within the walled village. Each building consists of four groups arranged on both sides of the lower, main, and upper halls. Each group has three bays, with the hall in the center and living quarters on both sides. Corridor gates connect each group, and the buildings are separated by courtyards. There are nine courtyards and 18 halls across the three buildings. The architectural structure of the halls and houses is relatively complex. Among the three halls, the upper hall is the smallest, the main hall is the largest, and the lower hall is in between. Locals summarize the overall layout of the new walled village as: “three courtyards, four walls, five buildings, nine courtyards, eighteen halls, one hundred and eight rooms” (actually 14 courtyards, 18 halls, totaling 199 rooms).

Since the mid-Ming Dynasty, southern Jiangxi as well as parts of Guangdong and Fujian were quite unstable, with frequent wars and conflicts. To escape turmoil and defend against enemies, fortified residences integrating home, fortress, and ancestral hall were built, characterized by distinct defensive features. The fortress walls are high and thick, the defenses tight and imposing, creating an impregnable system that instills a sense of deterrence in enemies. Currently, well-preserved walled villages in the area include the Guanxi New Walled Village, Xichang Walled Village (the old Guanxi Walled Village), Penggao Walled Village (Kanxia Walled Village), and Fuhe Walled Village.

Address: Xinxu Village, Guanxi Town, Longnan County, Ganzhou City

Type: Historical Site

Phone: 0797-3631219

Ticket Information:

Door Price: 10.0 RMB

Guanxi Village: Located among the small basins of Guanxi Dong, Guanxi Village sits at the center of a winding north-south Guanxi River. With green peaks to the east, an ancient pagoda to the west, hills rising to the south, and the Guan River flowing north, it is embraced by mountains and water, forming a naturally superior landscape, covering an area of about 2 square kilometers. The Hakka walled village cluster in Guanxi showcases a Hakka culture where “ancient” and “green” blend, presenting its unique charm of “integration of literature and martial arts, farming and scholarship, officials and merchants, and village and fortress.”

The customs of the Hakka walled villages in southern Jiangxi are typical of Hakka residential traditions, widely found in southern Jiangxi, predominantly featuring square-shaped fortresses. “Guanxi Walled Villages” are Hakka residences... Guanxi Village detailed information++

Further Reading:

· Fifth Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units