Shenzhen Chiwan Left Fort

Shenzhen Chiwan Left Fort

Shenzhen Chiwan Left Fort serves as a patriotic education base.

The Left Fort, also known as Chiwan Left Fort or Shenzhen Left Fort, is located on Yingzui Mountain in Chiwan, Shenzhen. It is one of the city's key cultural heritage sites under protection.

The ancient Chiwan Fort in Shenzhen is situated at the tip of the Shekou Peninsula, described as "a mountain ridge by the sea commanding three sides of strategic importance." It was first built in the eighth year of the Kangxi reign during the Qing Dynasty (1669), originally divided into left and right forts, with a total of twelve cast-iron cannons. Nowadays, only the Left Fort remains well-preserved. It was restored in 1985. Two building foundations can still be seen today—they were the barracks for soldiers who once guarded the fort. The Chiwan Forts, situated against the mountain and facing the sea, formed a pincer-like strategic position with the left and right forts working in tandem to control the Chiwan Harbor and oversee the Lingding waters. They served as a major maritime defense line during the Opium Wars. In 1839, when Lin Zexu, then Viceroy of Huguang, deployed defenses at the Pearl River Estuary, he renovated the Chiwan Forts, which played an important role in the anti-opium campaign. Guan Tianpei, the Commander-in-Chief of the Guangdong Navy, utilized the forts to inflict major defeats on British forces in the Lingding and Chuanbi waters. Today, it is a patriotic education base.

Chiwan holds a strategically important location. Historical records indicate that ancient ships traveling between Guangzhou and various Southeast Asian nations all passed through this area. Starting from the Ming Dynasty, the government had already set up watchtowers near Nanshan to guard against pirates. During the Kangxi reign of the Qing Dynasty (1662–1722), construction of forts in Chiwan began, with the Chiwan Forts being built in the fifty-sixth year of Kangxi’s reign (1717). At that time, Yang Lin, the Fujian Regional Commander, was transferred to serve as Governor of Guangdong. He oversaw the construction of 126 military facilities including coastal forts, city walls, and defensive positions, among which 26 were artillery forts. The Chiwan Forts were among them. Records state that the Chiwan Left and Right Forts were manned by thousands of soldiers and equipped with six cast-iron cannons, along with twelve other large cannons known as "Folangji" cannons—Western-style weapons whose manufacturing technique was introduced to Guangzhou from the Northern Song Dynasty. During the Opium Wars, Lin Zexu reinforced the defenses at the Pearl River Estuary and renovated the Chiwan Forts. Guan Tianpei, Commander-in-Chief of the Guangdong Navy, led troops to defeat the British in battles at Lingdingyang and Chuanbiyang. The Chiwan Forts made significant contributions to Lin Zexu’s anti-opium efforts.

Location: Chiwan Left Fort Road, Shekou, Nanshan District, Shenzhen, Guangdong Province

Transportation: Take bus No. 226 within Shenzhen and get off at the Left Fort stop.