Dushikou Great Wall

Dushikou Great Wall

The Dushikou Great Wall is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Dushikou is located in the north of Chicheng County, Hebei Province, and was an important pass on the Xuanfu Town section of the Ming Dynasty Great Wall. It is known as the "Throat of Shanggu and the Right Arm of the Capital." The pass got its name from a solitary rock that rises abruptly at the site. On this prominent rock in front of the pass are carved two large inscriptions: “Lofty and Unique Beauty” and “A Rock Flown from Afar.” Dushikou Town is situated between two rivers flowing from north to south—the Huanglong River on the left and the Qinglong River on the right—and is backed by Spider Mountain, hence the saying “Two Dragons Playing with a Pearl.” By the late Yuan and early Ming dynasties, it had already gained fame as the “Shield of the Northern Frontier.”

Dushikou lies at the boundary between the mountainous region of northern Hebei and the Bashang Grassland. It served as the mountain pass where the Gu River entered the frontier, the strategic gorge of the Yuan Dynasty's Wangyun Road leading from the grasslands into the mountains, and a key defensive point in the northern sector of the Xuanfu (Regional Military Command) defense zone during the Ming Dynasty, requiring full military efforts to guard. In 1424, Emperor Chengzu of the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Di, camped at Dushikou while personally leading a northern campaign and reviewed his troops there. In 1430, the Kai Ping Wei (a military garrison, now Dolon in Inner Mongolia) was relocated here, leading to the initial construction of the pass town. Initially built with rammed earth, it was later reinforced with blue bricks. Over the more than 200 years of the Ming Dynasty, the area saw frequent warfare and few peaceful days. During the Tumu Crisis, Dushikou was breached by the Mongolian Oirat tribe, and the pass town was damaged. At that time, a garrison commander named Tian Kun died in battle. His daughter led soldiers in a bloody resistance but, outnumbered, was eventually cornered on the cliffs south of the pass. Refusing to be captured or humiliated, she leapt off the cliff to her death. Later generations, in honor of this heroine, named the cliff “Leap of Sacrifice Cliff.”

Emperor Kangxi, in the 35th year of his reign (1696), personally led six armies on a campaign against Galdan in March. Both his departure and return journeys took the ancient Wangyun Road, and he stayed at Dushikou, inspecting the perilous terrain and frontier defenses. Since the Qing Dynasty, Dushikou once hosted a council hall, governing the north up to Dolon and the south down to Yanqing—roughly equivalent to today’s Zhangjiakou City. During the Republican era, Dushikou County was established here.

The Dushikou Great Wall was fully constructed during the Jiajing era of the Ming Dynasty. It starts from Dajian Mountain (north of Suoyang Pass) at the junction of present-day Xuanhua, Chongli, and Chicheng counties, heads southeast from Dushikou, follows the watershed between the Heihe and Baihe rivers, passes through Zhen’an Fort, Longmen Suo, and reaches Madao Liang in Houcheng before connecting with the Yongning-Sihai and Badaling sections in Yanqing. The total length exceeds 460 li.

The Ming Dynasty Great Wall on Changning Mountain in Dushikou’s Xigou is a largely well-preserved stone structure, about 5–7 meters high, 1 meter wide at the top, and 4 meters wide at the base, stretching approximately 5 kilometers. At its highest peak, there remains a grand and well-outlined brick watchtower. Its features include being built along the mountain’s contours using locally sourced materials, predominantly stone, following the ridgeline in a circular distribution. There are two layers of the Great Wall: inner and outer. The outer wall is about 255 kilometers long, starting from Xinning Watchtower under the jurisdiction of Dishuiya Fort to the east, heading north through Longmen Suo, Zhen’an Fort, and Qingquan Fort to reach Dushikou, then westward to—then south through Zhenning Fort, Chicheng Fort, and Longmen Wei into Xuanhua territory. Starting from Zhennan Watchtower at Dishuiya, the inner wall runs west through Diaoe, Dongxing Fort, and Liutai Zi of Longmen Wei (Longguan), spanning 84.5 kilometers. It rises abruptly from the plains, mostly earthen, serving as the second line of defense outside of the Juyong Pass for the capital.

Today, within Chicheng County, apart from the Xigou area of Dushikou Town, the southern section of Yaojiawan is also relatively well preserved. The rest has largely collapsed. However, watchtowers and beacon towers can still be seen everywhere. These great ancient military defense structures have become testimonies to history for future generations.

Transportation Guide

Scenic Area Address: Within Dushikou Town, Chicheng County, Zhangjiakou City, Hebei Province

Transit Routes: Take a bus from Chicheng bound for Dushikou or Guyuan, get off at Dushikou, and walk westward to reach the site.