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Explore the region
About Ming City Wall Relics Park
Its brick ramparts and Southeast Corner Tower show how the walled city was defended before most of the walls disappeared. Green space along the southern face makes the wall readable from ground level, while the tower marks the turn toward the eastern wall. The railway yards immediately north explain why this is a linear historic fragment within modern infrastructure, rather than a complete circuit around an old town.
Beijing's inner city wall was built in 1419 during the Ming dynasty and stood for nearly 550 years until most of it was demolished in the early 1960s to build the Beijing Subway. Because the subway's inner loop line did not need to run beneath the southeast corner, this 1.5 km stretch of the 40 km wall was spared demolition.
In the late 1990s the city government converted the wall remnants into a park, relocating nearby residents and businesses; construction began in November 2001 and the park was completed in September 2003. Courtyard trees from the demolished homes were preserved, and authorities solicited donations of Ming-era bricks so that about one-fifth of the 2,000,000 bricks used in the restoration date from the Ming era.
The Southeast Corner Tower (东南角楼), built from 1436 to 1439, is a major state-protected historical site. Rising 29 m with 144 archery windows, it is the largest corner tower standing in China and could house 200 soldiers. Qing-era bannermen were stationed there, and in 1900 it was attacked and captured by the Eight-Nation Alliance during the Boxer Rebellion, with graffiti left by the invaders preserved inside. Restored in 1983, it opened as a tourist site with an exhibit on the Ming-era walls and became part of the park in 2003.
What to look for
- Southeast Corner Tower: study the dense rows of archery windows and its relationship to the turning city wall.
- Southern wall and projecting bastions: follow the brick face to see how the defensive line was strengthened.
Location & getting there
Getting to Ming City Wall Relics Park
The park runs along Chongwenmen East Avenue toward the Second Ring Road at Dongbianmen. Choose the Chongwenmen end for a wall-side approach or Dongbianmen for the corner tower.
- The railway separates part of the eastern wall from the tower. Follow public streets and signed park paths when changing sections.
Combine your visit
Suggested order within this visit:
-
Southern wall
Read the long surviving defensive line from the landscaped ground below.
-
Wall bastions
Look for the projecting defensive platforms along the outer face.
-
Southeast Corner Tower
Finish at the point where the wall changes direction.
This sequence is an editorial suggestion based on the features described in the sources. Access to individual buildings or areas should be checked locally; no travel time or shared admission is implied.
Find Ming City Wall Relics Park
明城墙遗址公园 · 东城区
The pin marks the area, not the entrance.
More places nearby
Approximate straight-line distances between map pins, not travel distances.
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View guide →Sources & visit information
The linked encyclopedia sources support background and place descriptions. Current opening hours, ticket prices, booking rules and transport schedules have not been independently verified for this guide. Confirm them with the venue or operator before travelling.
Visitor information adapted and edited from Wikipedia contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0. Source revision 1363441554.
Background paragraphs condensed from Wikipedia contributors, "Beijing Ming City Wall Ruins Park", English Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0. Source revision 1363441554.