Treatise on Armament Technology: Coastal Defense of Liaodong

Treatise on Armament Technology, Volume 218

Section on Divination and Mensuration: Coastal Defense, Part 10

Page 2

Treatise on Armament Technology, Volume 218 Divination and Mensuration Mensuration: Coastal Defense, Part 10 Page 2

---

This page is a coastal defense map from the Treatise on Armament Technology (Wubei Zhi), depicting the coastline, rivers, and the distribution of military "Guards" and "Posts" in the Liaodong region. In the original woodcut, waves represent the sea, while rectangular frames mark regional names, military garrisons, and strategic geographical bottlenecks.

Map Annotations

Inland Administrative and Geographical Names:

• Xingzhong and Dading Historical administrative regions dating back to the Liao and Jin dynasties.
• Jianzhou The ancestral territory of the Jurchen people who would eventually establish the Qing Dynasty.
• Liuzhou River
• Great Ling River
• Small Ling River
• Shanhai Pass original: "山海關" (Shanhaiguan). The strategic "First Pass Under Heaven" where the Great Wall meets the sea, guarding the narrow corridor to Beijing.
• Songshan, Xingshan, and Tashan These "Three Hills" were the sites of decisive battles between Ming and Manchu forces in the 1640s.

Guards and Military Fortifications:
The Ming military used the "Wei-Suo" (Guard-Post) system, where a "Guard" (Wei) consisted of roughly 5,600 men, and a "Post" (Suo) roughly 1,120.

• Daning Guards: Front, Middle, Left, Right, and Rear Guards.
• Yizhou Guard
• Jingzhou Guard
• Ningyuan Guard The primary northern defense center that successfully withstood early Manchu sieges.
• Front-Garrison Guard
• Intermediate Posts: Middle-Front Post, Middle-Rear Post, Middle-Left Post, Middle-Right Post.
• Guangning Guards: Central, Left, Right, Front, and Rear Guards. Guangning was the highest military headquarters for the Liaodong frontier.
• Southern Coastal Guards: Haizhou Guard, Gaizhou Guard, Fuzhou Guard, Jinzhou Guard.

Coastal and Island Landmarks:

• Sheep-Head Stone
• Sanguan
• Red Beak
• Kulan