Beacon Towers

Beacon Towers

Beacon Towers

There are 28 beacon towers in Barkol County, four of which were built during the Tang Dynasty, while the rest were constructed during the reigns of Emperors Kangxi, Yongzheng, and Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty. Extending eastward from Han City, a tower (beacon tower) was placed every ten li (a traditional Chinese unit of distance), with the spacing increasing to every twenty li farther out, all the way toward the Yiwu River Valley and into Gansu Province. Westward from the county seat, the beacon towers turn southwest toward Qijiaojing, and another route turns northwest toward Mulei. In Santanghu Township, along the route leading northeast toward Outer Mongolia, there are also five beacon towers.

During the Qing Dynasty, beacon towers were used to transmit military intelligence. In the event of an emergency, smoke signals were lit during the day and fires were set at night. If around a hundred enemies invaded, one column of smoke (or one fire at night) would be raised. For invasions involving over a thousand enemies, three columns of smoke (or three fires) would be sent up. If the enemy numbered more than five thousand, four columns of smoke (or four fires) would be lit. Using smoke and fire to send messages, intelligence about enemy movements even 300–400 li away could quickly reach the local military command. On the well-preserved beacon towers still standing in the county, remnants such as charcoal and scorched straw ash used for lighting fires and raising smoke in the past can still be found.