Hailongtun Fortress

Scenic Area Introduction

Perched atop Longyan Mountain in Huichuan District, Zunyi, Hailongtun was first constructed in the fifth year of the Baoyou era of the Southern Song Dynasty (1257). It served as the administrative and military center for the Yang family chieftains of Bozhou in Southwest China during the Song, Yuan, and Ming dynasties. Far from a solitary fortress, it forms a comprehensive mountain defense system spanning approximately 1.59 square kilometers and featuring nine formidable passes. Renowned as one of the best-preserved ancient military architectural sites in China and Asia, it was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2015 under the name “Ancient Tusi Sites of China,” becoming Guizhou's first World Cultural Heritage site.

To visitors from afar, Hailongtun resembles an Eastern “medieval hilltop castle.” Its core value lies in vividly embodying ancient China's governance wisdom of “harmonizing politics and cultivating virtue, adapting to local customs.” The Yang family hereditary chieftains ruled the Bozhou region here for 725 years. The rise and fall of Hailongtun bears witness to the grand historical process of the central government and the southwestern frontier regions—from initial clashes and gradual adaptation to eventual deep integration over the long course of time. Today, ascending the ancient trail and conquering the 45-degree “Thirty-Six-Step Heavenly Ladder” to reach Feihu Pass not only lets you experience its “cliff-like peril where even birds and monkeys cannot cross,” but also offers a direct window into the historical testimony of this unique political system. 

Modern Hailongtun has transformed from a site of war into a place of cultural rebirth. At the site museum, you can touch history through unearthed artifacts; Annual events like the International Image Culture Week foster dialogue between ancient heritage and modern art. Standing among the crumbling walls, touching the cool, massive stones, you might just hear the echoes of that pivotal battle from 1,600 years ago. Though ultimately consumed by war, this place has frozen time, becoming a cherished, eternal allegory of power, culture, and integration.

Address

Hailongtun Village, Gaoping Town, Huichuan District, Zunyi City.