How was the construction of the Jidong Great Wall in the late Ming Dynasty?

Historically, the construction of the Great Wall in the later period of the Ming Dynasty was from 1621 to 1644. This stage was the end of the construction of the Great Wall in the Ming Dynasty.

In the late Ming Dynasty, many famous ministers, good generals, and frontier officials were sent by the imperial court to Shanhaiguan to supervise divisions and manage strategies, mobilize heavy troops, and strengthen defense. Xiong Tingbi and Sun Chengzong, both ministers of the Ministry of War, served as governors and generals of Liaodong twice.

In 1621, Sun Chengzong led his troops to build a "new building" on the east wall of Shanhaiguan City to strengthen the eastern defense line.

The next year, Sun Chengzong set up Longwu Camp in the South China Sea to strengthen maritime defense forces. In order to transfer a large amount of military supplies to eastern Liaoning and western Liaoning, Sun Chengzong sent troops to renovate and reuse the Nanhai dock port and dredge the Haikou river.

Sun Chengzong was in office for 4 years, training troops and farming, building 9 large cities such as Ningyuan, 49 forts, and training 110,000 troops.

In 1633, Governor Yang Sichang built north and south wing cities in the south and north of Guancheng to enhance the defense capabilities of the north and south wings of Guancheng, echoing the left and right sides of the city. In the same year, Ninghai City was built on the old dragon head south of Chengguan. The terrain is steep and it is a fortress city located at the strategic point of coastal defense. Weiyuan City was built on the highland of Huanxi Ridge, 1 kilometer outside the pass. It is condescending, easy to defend and difficult to attack, and became the outpost of Shanhaiguan East City defense.

In 1643, Xiluo City was built on the west side of Chengguan, echoing Dongluo City in front and back, and became the front defense guard of Guancheng.

At the same time, Yang Sichang also sent troops to strengthen the defense measures of the nearby Great Wall. For example, the Jiumen Gate located northeast of the Chengguan was also repaired and reinforced. The majestic Great Wall is integrated and forms a solid defensive barrier in the east of Beijing. It plays a certain role in protecting the capital and consolidating the rule of the Ming Dynasty. For this reason, generally speaking, the Great Wall construction projects in the late Ming Dynasty were mainly the reconstruction and rerouting of the Great Wall in the early Ming Dynasty.

Throughout the history of the construction of the Great Wall in the Ming Dynasty, later generations believe that the purpose of building the Great Wall in the Ming Dynasty was mainly to defend against harassment by the nomadic rulers in the north. The Ming Dynasty attached great importance to the construction of northern defense from beginning to end.

The construction of the Great Wall, passes, and piers was almost uninterrupted during the more than 270 years of the Ming Dynasty, and a system of "nine-sided" divisional defense, segmented management and construction of the Great Wall was gradually formed.

According to the "History of the Ming Dynasty·Military Chronicles", four towns were initially established: Liaodong, Xuanfu, Datong, and Yansui, followed by three towns of Ningxia, Gansu, and Jizhou. The government is located in Guyuan, also known as the Second Town, which is the "nine sides".

The general military garrison of this nine-border town and the section of the Great Wall under its jurisdiction are as follows:

Among them, the Liaodong general garrison is located in Liaoyang, Liaoning, and later moved to North Town, Liaoning. The Great Wall under its jurisdiction starts from the Yalu River in the northeast of Dandong in the south and ends at Shanhaiguan in the west, with a total length of 975 kilometers. The Great Wall in this town was rarely repaired after the mid-Ming Dynasty. Most of it was not covered with bricks and the remains were poorly preserved.

The headquarters of the Xuanfu General Army is in Xuanhua, Hebei. The Great Wall under its jurisdiction stretches from Juyongguan in the east to Xihun River in the northeast of Datong, Shanxi Province in the west, with a total length of 511.5 kilometers. The Great Wall of Xuanfu Town is located in the northwest of the capital of the Ming Dynasty. The situation is very important, so the city wall is very strong. In some places, there are nine inner and outer walls. The military equipment is also very strong, and under the main town, it is divided into four "roads" of defense.

The Datong General Army is stationed in Datong, Shanxi. The Great Wall under its jurisdiction starts from Kootai, Tianzhen, Shanxi in the east, and reaches Yajiao Mountain in the northeast of Pianguan, Shanxi in the west, with a total length of 335 kilometers.

Yansui Town is also called Yulin Town, and the general military base is in Yulinbao, Shaanxi Province. The Great Wall under its jurisdiction starts from Qingshuiying, Fugu, Shaanxi Province in the east and ends at Huamachi, Ningxia Province in the west, with a total length of 885 kilometers.

The Ningxia Town General Military Station is located in Yinchuan City, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. The Great Wall under its jurisdiction starts from the Great Salt Pond in the east and reaches Gaolan, Jingyuan and other places in Gansu Province in the west, with a total length of more than 1,000 kilometers. The general headquarters of Gansu Town is located in Zhangye, Gansu. The Great Wall under its jurisdiction starts from Lanzhou in the east and ends at Jiayuguan at the foot of the Qilian Mountains in the west, with a total length of more than 800 kilometers. Jizhou's general army is stationed in Santunying. The Great Wall under its jurisdiction starts from Shanhaiguan in the east and ends at Huiling Pass of Juyongguan in the west. It is more than 600 kilometers long and is the most complete section of the existing Great Wall. The wall-mounted enemy tower built by Qi Jiguang when he was the commander-in-chief of Ji Town improved the defenses of the Great Wall, which not only enhanced the defensive capabilities, but also made the Great Wall more spectacular. The main project is on this section.

Taiyuan Town, also known as Shanxi Town, has the headquarters of the general army in Pianguan. The Great Wall under its jurisdiction starts from the bank of the Yellow River in Shanxi Hequ in the west, passes through Pianguan, Laoyingbao, Ningwu, Yanmenguan, Pingxingguan, Longquanguan and Guguan to Huangyuling, with a total length of more than 800 kilometers. Its function is to strengthen the defense of the capital. Because it is within the Great Wall of Datong and Xuanfu towns, it is also called the Inner Great Wall. The Great Wall in this town is extremely strong and has stone walls, with more than 20 stone walls in some places.

The general military station of Guyuan is in Guyuan, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region today. The Great Wall under its jurisdiction starts from Jingbian, Shaanxi Province in the east and connects with the Great Wall of Yulin Town, and reaches Gaolan and Gansu Town in the west, with a total length of about 500 kilometers. The Great Wall in this town also has several layers.

The total length of the Great Wall under the jurisdiction of the above nine towns is more than 6,300 kilometers. However, these data are only the length recorded in our country's historical documents, and the actual length is more than that. The Great Wall of the Ming Dynasty played a positive role in the consolidation of the Ming Dynasty's regime, the stability of agricultural and animal husbandry production in the northern region, and the country's security.