Perched between mountains and sea, Chongwu Ancient City features winding walls that coil like dragons and serpents, harmoniously contrasting with the azure sea and sky. This Ming-dynasty coastal fortress formed a complete military system with its stone walls, watchtowers, and beacon towers. As tides ebb and flow, the weathered ramparts silently recount the heroic yet tragic epics of frontier soldiers. The bold stone inscription “Wei Wu” (Mighty Valor) above the East Gate powerfully testifies to the city’s glorious past as a strategic maritime defense stronghold; the West Gate’s barbican, concealed with arrow slits, still seems to echo with the clangor of ancient armor and warhorses. Within the city, Minnan-style red-brick houses interweave with military relics along historic lanes, narrating a millennium-old legend of the Maritime Silk Road.
Renowned as a luminous pearl of the “Great Wall on the Sea,” Chongwu served as a frontline bastion against Japanese pirates during the Jiajing era of the Ming dynasty. The famed anti-pirate general Qi Jiguang once stationed troops here, implementing his “military-agricultural colonization” strategy that transformed the city into an ironclad bulwark against foreign invasion. Surviving structures such as the Drill Hall and Zhen Dong Pavilion still embody the sophisticated military defensive wisdom of the Ming period. Even more stirring is the inscription “Hu Zhen” (Tiger Guard) carved onto offshore rocks—a symbolic tribute to the garrison soldiers’ resolute ambition to “guard the sea with tiger-like might.”
This monumental testament to history serves not only as a fusion of Minnan culture and maritime civilization but also as a living witness to China’s coastal defense heritage. When waves lap against the base of the ancient walls, one can almost hear the distant bugle calls of Zheng Chenggong—the late Ming/early Qing military hero—resounding through time as he reclaimed Taiwan, stirring eternal patriotism and devotion to homeland.
