As one of the ancient battlefield of the Opium Wars, Weiyuan
Fortress is a main position for defense in Haikou , Humen, and one of the best-preserved ancient fortresses
with certain scale. Crescent-shaped in flat surface, the
magnificent fortress is 6.2 meters in height, 7.6 meters in width
and 360 meters in length. The bottom layer is all made of granite,
while the top made of concrete, firm and soild. The fortress has 40
hidden and 4 outdoor places for cannons, which is the largest
command fortress with the most cannons in Humen in the Opium Wars
period. National hero Li Yanyu once commanded Shuishi naval fleet
of Guang Dong Province resisting British troops’ invasion on this
fortress. It was also filmed as an actual scene in the movie
<<The Opium Wars>>, conducted by famous Chinese
director Xiejin.
Weiyuan Fortress lies on the southwest beach in front of the south
hill of Weiyuan island in Humen. Closing to the sea, it is right
controlling the main waterway of the Pearl River. It is the
“throat” of the Pearl River connected with Zhenyuan Fortress and
Jingyuan Fortress. In the fortress there are 1 official hall, 3
temples, 12 soldier barracks, 1 health bureau and 1 pier. In the
past, there was one city gate each on the east and west side of the
fortress, controlling the only path on the two sides of the
fortress. Strategically and precisely constructed, the fortress is
facing the sea with hills for a background, and has spacious flats
inside for circling.
In order to enhance the middle naval force, in the 15th year of
Emperor Daoguang (1835), governor Guan Tianpei of Shuishi fleet of
Guang Dong Province built Weiyuan Fortress as a major position of
defense on the sea. Before the Opium Wars, the defensive system
frightened British troops. However for fawning on Britain, courtier
Qishan dismantled military defensive systems to open up to the
outside. In the 21st year of Daoguang (1841), Weiyuan Fortress was
destroyed. In the 23rd year (1843) it was rebuilt, then destroyed
again on 16th Oct in the 6th year of Emperor Xian feng (1843). Until the 8th year of Emperor Guangxu (1882), it
was restored with approval of governor Zhang Shushen and mostly
well preserved to the present. The Opium Wars Museum established a
management center here, opening to the publisc all year long. In
1982, it was granted key national cultural heritage protection
unit. You can observe the splendid Humen Bridge on Weiyuan Fortress
and from naval battle museum.
