Atlas
Shanhaiguan Pass
Shanhaiguan took its name in 1381, when a Ming pass and garrison were founded here; its gate tower bears the plaque 'First Pass Under Heaven', and at Laolongtou the Great Wall meets the sea.
Prefecture: Qinhuangdao
Province: HebeiA thick brick wall base has a deep arched passage in the middle and tufts of grass along its top, with a red-railed two-storey tower above and pine branches hanging in from the right.
Vista1
- Shanhaiguan Gate Tower & Laolongtou
Where the Ming Great Wall plunges into the sea, Shanhaiguan sits between mountains and coast, guarding the Liaoxi Corridor as the First Pass Under Heaven.
Gate & Wall1
- First Pass Under Heaven (Zhendong Gate Tower) in Shanhaiguan
Built in 1381 by Xu Da as the first pass of the Great Wall, the gate tower bears a huge plaque proclaiming the First Pass Under Heaven.
In its history5
- Dorgon1612–1650 CE
Part of Shanhaiguan Pass's history: Qing Army Enters the Pass. Manchu prince and regent for the young Shunzhi emperor who led the Qing army through Shanhai Pass in 1644 and moved the court to Beijing
- Li Zicheng1606–1645 CE
Part of Shanhaiguan Pass's history: Qing Army Enters the Pass. Late Ming rebel leader from Mizhi who founded the Great Shun regime, captured Beijing in 1644 and was routed by Wu Sangui and the Qing at Shanhai Pass
- Wu Sanguic. 1612–1678 CE
Part of Shanhaiguan Pass's history: Qing Army Enters the Pass; Part of Shanhaiguan Pass's history: The Beauty that Shook the Dynasties. Ming general who admitted Qing forces and later led the Revolt of the Three Feudatories
- Chen Yuanyuan1623–1695 CE
Part of Shanhaiguan Pass's history: The Beauty that Shook the Dynasties. A celebrated late-Ming stage performer of the Suzhou area, later counted among the Qinhuai Eight Beauties, whose image was repeatedly rewritten in later memories of the 1644 crisis and Yuanyuan Qu.
- Wu Weiye1609–1672 CE
Part of Shanhaiguan Pass's history: The Beauty that Shook the Dynasties. Late Ming and early Qing poet from Taicang who placed first in the 1631 metropolitan examination and wrote long narrative ballads such as the Song of Yuanyuan
Ming1
- Xu Da Establishes Shanhaiguan Pass1381–1382 CE
The Ming established Shanhaiwei in 1381 under Xu Da's northern defense command; the walled pass was built and named Shanhaiguan the following year.
Qing3
- The Beauty that Shook the Dynasties
Chen Yuanyuan's Kunqu fame entered the memory of Wu Sangui's Shanhai Pass decision, while later poetry made her a symbol of the Ming-Qing dynastic turn.
- Qing Army Enters the Pass
Dorgon led Eight Banner forces through Shanhai Pass, joined Wu Sangui against Li Zicheng, and occupied Beijing as the Qing conquest began.
- Wu Sangui Opens Shanhai Pass Gate1644 CE
In 1644 Wu Sangui sought Qing aid at Shanhai Pass and defeated the Shun forces; making Chen Yuanyuan the sole motive is a later popular explanation.
Modern Era3
- Six Sites Join the World Heritage List
China became a State Party to the World Heritage Convention in December 1985, and in December 1987 six Chinese properties, among them the Great Wall, the Forbidden City and the Mogao Caves, were inscribed on the World Heritage List.
- Great Wall Inscribed as World Heritage1987 CE
In 1987, the Great Wall was inscribed as a defensive work and cultural landscape developed across successive historical periods.
- Shanhaiguan Inscribed with the Great Wall1987 CE
In 1987, the Shanhaiguan section was inscribed as an eastern component of the Great Wall World Heritage property.
