Using graphic comparison to explore the dynamic relationship between social conflicts and Fujian Defense-Dwellings in China

Figures & data

Figure 1. Defense settlements in Fujian.

Figure 2. Map of pirates invasion range and citadel distribution.

Figure 3. Map of national coastal defense layout.

Figure 4. Schematic diagram of Fujian coastal defense system.

Figure 5. Construction manuals of Village Fort.

Source: Chen Shou Chou Lue

Source: Gantan Bao SuoZhi

Table 1. Types of defense settlements.

Photo	Plan	Introduction
		Surrounded by rampart and moats: Yi’an Village was built in 1687, with an outer wall 1200 m in circumference and a bridle path 2.1 m in width. There are 365 crenels and murder holes, four gates, two urn cities, and two turrets on the walls.
		Surrounded by adjacent houses: Caipu Village was built in 1623 and was surrounded by moats. The outer perimeter is 600 meters. The walls are symmetrically arranged with gun holes of different sizes and four prominent turrets.
		Irregular encirclement of the terrain: Zhuangshang Village was built by Zhuang’s ancestors in the Jingtai Period (1450–1456) and was later expanded during turmoil to increase defense facilities. The perimeter is 533 m and covers an area of 34,650 square meters.
		Walled Villages: Shanhe village is 120 m long and 120 m wide. There are more than 120 houses. The walls are all rammed with triple earth. There are three layers of enclosures, the most central of which is the family temple. At the peak of the turmoil, it could accommodate nearly a thousand people.

Table 2. Types of Tulou.

Aerial photo	Features photo	Plane sketch
Circular Tulou (Jiqing Lou, Chuxi Village): It was built in 1419 of the Ming Dynasty and rebuilt in 1744. It is a double circle with an ancestral hall in the middle. The building covers an area of 2826 m^2, the diameter of the outer ring is 66 m, the height is 4 floors, each floor has 56 rooms. The whole building has only one gate and 9 lookouts, first and second floors without windows, only the third and fourth floors had windows.
Square Tulou (Yonggui Lou, hekeng Village): the plane is square or rectangular. Yonggui Lou was built in the Chongzhen period of the Ming Dynasty (1638–1643), covering an area of 1680 m^2. It is three-stories with 36 rooms on each floor and an ancestral hall in the middle. There is only one gate into the building, first and second floors without windows, third floor with small windows.
Semilunar Lou (Yongchun Lou, Huangtian village): Also known as horseshoe-shaped Tulou, the plane form is the front-square – back-circular, which evolved from Square Tulou and appeared after it. Yongchun Lou was built in 1776 of the Qing Dynasty. It was built by Zeng E, the magistrate of Zhaoqing in Qianlong’s reign. It is three stories high, 75.54 m wide and 77.8 m deep, covering an area of 5008 m^2.
Wufeng Lou (Fuyu Lou, hongkeng Village): It is a kind of defense-dwelling that pays more attention to appearance, and the hierarchy system is obvious in the form. The Fuyu Lou was built in 1880 and was funded by Lin Zhongshan, Lin Renshan, and Lin Deshan. It was completed in three years and covers an area of over 7,000 m^2

Table 3. Types of Tubao.

Aerial photo	Features photo	Plane sketch
Square Tubao: It is the most common, accounting for 50% of the total number of Tubao. Qingshizhai in Sanjie Village is a typical residence-defense-type Square Tubao. Its outer ring is a protective thick wall, the bridle path connects various combat facilities, the interior is a mansion-style building. They are mainly distributed in the south of central Fujian, with Sanming, Quanzhou, and Fuzhou as the most concentrated areas.
The front-square -back-circular Bao: Some of them have turrets at the front two square corners, some also have a circular bridle path on the outer ring wall. Another common type, like Fanglian Bao in Xusikeng Village, is that the outer ring is raised step by step, and the tail is the commanding height of the whole building, so the surrounding areas, such as the Anliang Bao in Dongpu Village, can be kept under surveillance.
Irregular Tubao: The construction of irregular Tubao is mostly influenced by geomantic concepts or harsh terrain. For example, Zhongpu Zhai in the shape of eight trigrams has a symmetrical central axis layout and a mansion courtyard inside; the exterior wall is made of bluestone, rammed with raw soil, with 64 bucket windows and 64 well concealed shooting holes, there is also a one-meter-wide bridle path in the wall. Another example is Pipa Bao in Jianguo village, built on the top of a hill, which occupies the most advantageous terrain in order to control the safety of the area.

Table 4. Types of defense facilities.

Fengyang Bao	Pipa Bao	Aijing Zhuang
Outer walls: Most defense-dwellings have thick and solid external walls, with thickness ranging from 1 to 5 meters. These walls are mainly made of raw soil and pebbles, mixed with soil, bamboo bars, wood strips, rubble, lime, fine sand, yellow sugar, glutinous rice paste, and other self-made adhesives. They are very solid and durable. The shape of the wall is mainly trapezoid, large at the bottom and small at the top, and had considerable stability.
City of Congwu	Yi’an Village	Anzhen Bao
Sentry walk: There were sentry walks on military walls, as a quick way to watch, defend, and mobilize personnel. It is a kind of concealed circular corridor embedded in the interior of the external wall, this channel is used to connect various defense facilities, cooperate with lookout shooting holes opened on the wall, and attack the enemy.
Luyang Zhai	Taian Bao	Fanglian Bao
Turrets: The four corners of many square defense-dwellings had high turrets, which are the commanding heights of the whole building complex. The turrets are densely covered with shooting holes. In case of turmoil, residents could watch the outside situation in shifts and could also effectively attack enemies who tried to invade from the wall or roof. Some corners on the top floor are built overhanging the wall, expanding shooting range and eliminating blind spots.
Zhongpu Zhai	Tancheng Bao	Anzhen Bao
Gates: The gate is the weak spot of the defense. Only the thickest and most solid stone materials were used. The depth of the entrance wall base varied from 2–6 meters. The wooden gate was covered with iron to prevent intruders from using fire. Some entrances were also equipped with multiple doors, and were two or three stories high with rooms above the doors. The gatehouse itself could be used as a fortification to stack weapons, observe the situation, and counterattack from a high place.
Jiqing Lou	Fanglian Bao	Anzhen Bao
Murder holes (windows): generally, the fewer doors and windows for the defense-dwellings, the better. Most Tulou did not even have windows on the first and second floors with only small windows on the third floor and above. They could also be used for looking out and shooting. The window is a trapezoid with large inside and small outside to prevent the enemy from easily drilling in. There are usually water injection holes beside windows, in which boiling liquids could be poured down to stop enemies from climbing the wall.

Figure 6. Time axis of major historical events in ming and qing dynasty.

Figure 7. Distribution map of enclosed villages.

Figure 8. Distribution map of tulou.

Figure 9. Structure comparison between Minnan Tulou and Hakka Tulou.

Figure 10. Distribution map of Tubao.

Figure 11. Quasi defense-dwellings.

Figure 12. Distribution of defense-dwellings.

Figure 13. Distribution of quasi defense-dwellings.

Figure 14. Map of driving mechanism.

Figure 15. The evolution path of defense-dwellings in Fujian.