Atlas
Tongguan Pass
Backed by the Qinling range to the south and the Yellow River to the north, Tongguan was long called the 'lock and key of the Three Qin'; the gate towers of the old pass town were pulled down, and the old town has been restored on its remains in recent years.
Prefecture: Weinan
Province: ShaanxiTongguan's gray-tiled courtyards and walls surround a gray stone gate tower with three tiers of eaves; green hills rise to the left, a muddy-yellow river bends beyond toward flat banks, and one driver leads a small cart along a dirt path across the scrubby, grassy slope in front.
Gate & Wall1
- Old Tongguan Pass Town
Guarding the eastern entry to the Guanzhong plain where the Wei meets the Yellow River, the pass was first built in 196 CE, taken down for the Sanmenxia reservoir, and rebuilt as a heritage town from 2011.
On its attractions1
- Meditations at Tongguan PassDramaOld Tongguan Pass TownZhang Yanghao
Mountain peaks gather close, wild billows surge in wrath; fortress pass of Tongguan framed by mountains and rushing stream. Gazing toward the Western Capital, hesitation weighs upon my soul. Sorrow strikes traversing the ancient lands of Qin and Han: ten thousand palace halls have all turned to dust. In imperial rise, the common people suffer; in imperial fall, the common people suffer.
Authors1
- Zhang Yanghao1270–1329 CE
Wrote of Old Tongguan Pass Town in “Meditations at Tongguan Pass”. Yuan official and sanqu poet from Jinan who rose to minister of rites and died while directing famine relief in Shaanxi in 1329
In its history7
- Li Longji685–762 CE
Part of Tongguan Pass's history: An Lushan Rebellion. Tang emperor of the Kaiyuan and Tianbao eras who took power in the coups of 710 and 713 and fled to Sichuan when An Lushan rebelled
- Guo Ziyi697–781 CE
Part of Tongguan Pass's history: An Lushan Rebellion. Tang general who recovered both capitals from the An Lushan rebels as commander of the Shuofang army and later turned back Tibetan and Uyghur invasions
- Shi Siming703–761 CE
Part of Tongguan Pass's history: An Lushan Rebellion. Tang frontier commander who joined An Lushan's rebellion, briefly submitted to the throne, then rebelled again and ruled as emperor of Yan until his son had him killed
- An Lushan703–757 CE
Part of Tongguan Pass's history: An Lushan Rebellion. Frontier commander of Sogdian and Turkic descent, favoured by Emperor Xuanzong, who held three northern commands and in 755 launched the rebellion that bears his name
- Li Guangbi708–764 CE
Part of Tongguan Pass's history: An Lushan Rebellion. Tang general of Khitan descent who held Taiyuan and Heyang against Shi Siming and was paired with Guo Ziyi as the commanders who saved the dynasty from the An Lushan rebels
- Yang Guifei719–756 CE
Part of Tongguan Pass's history: An Lushan Rebellion. Yang Guifei (Yang Yuhuan) became an emblem of Tianbao court culture through Nishang Yuyi and Pear Garden performance; after Mawei in 756, her story was repeatedly retold in works such as Chang Hen Ge.
- Yang GuozhongBirth unknown–756 CE
Part of Tongguan Pass's history: An Lushan Rebellion. Tang chief minister who rose through his cousin Yang Guifei's favour, goaded An Lushan into revolt and was cut down by mutinous guards at Mawei in 756
Tang2
- An Lushan Rebellion
After An Lushan's revolt, rebel armies seized Luoyang and Chang'an. Eight years of war weakened Tang finances and central authority; the Mawei crisis and postwar military governorships marked a lasting imperial rupture.
- Tong Pass Breaks and Chang'an Falls756 CE
In 756 Tang forces lost Tong Pass and Chang'an fell during the An Lushan Rebellion, forcing the emperor westward.
