Recently, the ‘Beijing (Tongzhou) Grand Canal Cultural Tourism Scenic Area 5A Level Scenic Area Improvement Implementation Plan’ has been launched. This initiative aims to introduce a vibrant cultural and historical experience with the phrase, “Until the pear blossoms bloom under the bright moon, music and songs are abundant at Daguang Tower.”
As a key construction site within the Plan, the Tongzhou Daguang Tower, originally built in the seventh year of the Jiajing era of the Ming Dynasty, will employ modern techniques to recreate the bustling scene of ‘thousands of sails passing through the lock’. Historically, the Tongzhou Daguang Tower served as the hub for officials managing grain transport during the grain transport period, acting as the economic pulse of the canal during the Ming and Qing dynasties.
The tower carries four names: the official title ‘Daguang Tower’, ‘Grain Inspection Tower’ due to its role in accepting grain, ‘Ba Tower’ as it was constructed on the high embankment of the stone dam wharf, and ‘River Tower’ because of its proximity to the Grand Canal. Today, the two-story tower stands majestically on the west side of the seven-hole sluice bridge at the confluence of five rivers.
However, it is important to note that the current ‘Daguang Tower’ is not the one documented in historical records. Ren Deyong, a specially invited member of the Tongzhou District Political Consultative Conference, clarified that the historical Daguang Tower was situated east of the north gate of Tongzhou’s old city and at the south end of the stone dam wharf.Daguang Tower, a landmark building at the northern end of the Grand Canal, was more than 10 meters high and about a thousand meters away from the current ‘Daguang Tower’. Like the Burning Lamp Pagoda, it held significant historical and landscape value. Unfortunately, it was completely burned down when the Eight-Nation Alliance captured Tongzhou.
In 2007, recognizing the tower’s importance, the Beijing Municipal Water Affairs Bureau constructed an ancient-style, mountain-shaped barrel tile top two-story water conservancy facility, also named ‘Daguang Tower’. This restoration brought back a magnificent historical and cultural landscape at the north end of the canal.
The tower is open to the public all year round, with operating hours from 06:00 to 21:00.
