Qiu Chang Hakka Walled Villages

Qiu Chang Hakka Walled Villages

A millennium of Hakka culture and a century of revolutionary heritage. Qiu Chang boasts profound cultural roots, abundant historical relics, and distinctive local characteristics. The phrase “Autumn waters blend seamlessly with the boundless sky” is a brilliant interpretation of Qiu Chang inspired by the “Preface to the Tengwang Pavilion.” With its splendid history and cultural legacy, Qiu Chang has been successively designated as a provincial and national historic and cultural town, becoming Huizhou’s first national-level historic and cultural town. It is home to one national key cultural relics protection unit and 35 municipal-level ones, among which the Hakka walled villages are the most historically and culturally significant representatives.

Hakka walled villages integrate traditional rites, ethical concepts, the philosophy of Yin-Yang and the Five Elements, feng shui principles, philosophical thought, and architectural art, showcasing the profound sophistication of architectural craftsmanship. The village architecture formed in Qiu Chang over centuries, especially various styles of Hakka walled houses, carries rich cultural and folk information. Within these walled villages, you can feel the charm of Hakka culture everywhere. Qiu Chang is the region in eastern Guangdong where Hakka culture is best preserved. According to statistics, there are over 200 Hakka walled houses in Qiu Chang—renowned as one of China’s four major distinctive folk architectural styles—with the largest covering an area of more than 20,000 square meters.

Qiu Chang’s Hakka walled villages come in diverse forms, including those with a walled dragon structure, four-corner tower layouts, Lingnan-style designs, and even Western-influenced aesthetics. Their variety nearly encompasses all historical forms and styles of Hakka walled houses, earning them the title “Exhibition Garden of Hakka Walled Villages in Eastern Guangdong.” These walled houses also incorporate artistic elements from Cantonese and Chaoshan architecture, enhancing safety features and significantly improving their defensive capabilities. Their spatial layouts are meticulously planned to maximize functionality. Most of these structures are grand in scale, featuring front moon ponds and rear enclosed groves, built along the contours of hills and enduring for centuries. Among them, the former residences of Ye Yalei (Biyan Lou), Ye Ting (Huishui Lou), and Hui Long Lou stand out as the most representative, showcasing the highest achievements in Hakka walled house construction.

The existing historical buildings in Qiu Chang are mainly from the Qing Dynasty, particularly from the Qianlong era and the late Qing period, making it the area where Hakka dwellings were most directly influenced by Cantonese architecture. Notable examples include Nanyang Shiju, Hui Long Lou, Biyan Lou, and Tingshu Academy, academically referred to collectively as the Guide-style Hakka walled towers. Their outer walls are predominantly made of rammed earth mixed with lime (sanhetu), with some constructed entirely from compacted raw earth—thick, simple, and solid. The walls feature watch windows and gun ports, complemented by open ponds and high embankments at the front, creating an easily defensible and strategically superior position with top-tier defensive functions. During revolutionary war times, these Hakka walled villages often played pivotal roles on the battlefield and provided the warmest sanctuaries for warriors. These grand and imposing structures often include corner towers on the rooftops, serving not only as strategic vantage points and lookouts but also as individually managed watchtowers. The interior main structures are built with brick and wood, with beams, pillars, and corridors showcasing exquisite craftsmanship. Interior murals are vividly colored, lifelike, deeply symbolic, and captivating, radiating the Hakka people’s reverence for culture and pursuit of art. The internal living systems are comprehensive, equipped with courtyards, wells, and drainage systems. Courtyards provide both ventilation and lighting, with ingenious and fully functional designs.

An exemplary structure is Biyan Lou, funded by the renowned Malaysian overseas Chinese leader and “King of Kuala Lumpur” Ye Yalei. Located in Zhoutian Village, it was built in 1884, covering an area of about 2,000 square meters, with a symmetrical central axis layout—a typical Hakka four-sided walled house in the Huizhou area. Its main entrance faces a spacious open area, with a semicircular pond at the front, flanked symmetrically at both ends by pairs of flagpole stands (achievement steles).

Upon entering the gatehouse, you reach a courtyard connected by three inner gates. The walled house is divided vertically into three sections. The central inner gate leads to a traditional three-courtyard ancestral hall, while the other two gates open to living quarters separated by broad courtyards. The living area is further divided into units, each with its own “courtyard,” creating the refined layout known as “nine heavens and eighteen courtyards.” The gatehouse, ancestral hall, living quarters, and watchtowers are all interconnected via corridors, walkways, and verandas. The courtyards are staggered in a highly rational and practical spatial arrangement, making the entire structure cohesive and majestic.

The artistic embellishments of the walled houses focus on the exterior and the interior of the ancestral hall, while the living quarters emphasize functionality. Outer walls and four-corner watchtowers feature upturned eaves, adding layers of depth while protecting the walls. For instance, the main gate of Biyan Lou is adorned with a stone plaque inscribed with the characters “Biyan Lou,” handwritten by the renowned Qing Dynasty literatus Jiang Fengchen from Huizhou, framed by an ornamental archway. The upper wall is shaped with double-curled ridge ornaments, and the watchtower ridges are decorated with antique-style gray sculptures and curled ornaments, adding vibrancy. The central ancestral hall employs a post-and-lintel structure, noted for its elegant style and meticulous decoration. Both the front hall and central chamber feature screen doors, with carved screens placed in the side rooms, central hall, and along the front eaves. Beams, columns, bracket arms, and spandrels are adorned with bas-reliefs and openwork carvings themed around flowers, birds, animals, all highlighted with gold lacquer and colorful paintings, exuding luxury. The inner walls display traditional-themed calligraphy and paintings, which are not only aesthetically pleasing but also refined and elegant.

Qiu Chang’s Hakka walled villages are not only treasured relics of traditional Hakka architecture but also embody deep historical and cultural significance. For example, the former residence and ancestral home of “Northern Expedition General” Ye Ting are typical Hakka walled houses. Biyan Lou, besides being donated by “King of Kuala Lumpur” Ye Yalei, was also the former home of Ye Qifeng, a famed Chinese seal engraving expert and former deputy director of the Palace Museum. The gatehouse of Hui Long Lou features a relief inscription reading “为善最乐” (“Doing good is the greatest joy”), and during the early liberation period, it served as the site of the Dongjiang Revolutionary School. In the Anti-Japanese War era, the Huiyang County Committee and Special Committee once operated here.

Hakka walled villages are a crystallization of Hakka wisdom, fully reflecting their exceptional architectural artistry and encapsulating millennia of Hakka cultural spirit. It is precisely because of these enduring Hakka walled houses that Hakka culture has thrived and been passed down through the ages.

Source: Local Chronicles Office of Huiyang District, Huizhou City

Qiu Chang Subdistrict: Located in the central-southern part of Huiyang, Qiu Chang Subdistrict borders Danshui Subdistrict to the southeast, connects with Pingshan, Kengzi, and Longtian Subdistricts of Shenzhen to the southwest, and neighbors Sanhe Subdistrict of Xinxu Town to the north. It enjoys notable geographical advantages and excellent transportation links, with roads such as S358, X225, Huinan Avenue, and Huiyang Ring Road crisscrossing the area. The subdistrict covers a total area of 109.9 square kilometers, comprising 10 village committees and 1 community neighborhood committee, with 184 villager groups and 5 resident groups. It has a registered population of 32,542 and a floating population of approximately 170,000. There are 182 Party branches and 15... Qiu Chang Subdistrict detailed information++