Malanguan

Chinese: 马兰关
Pinyin: Mǎ lán guān
English: Ma Lan pass
Coordinates: 40°13'14"N 117°40'22"E

Malanyu and Malanguan are some of the westernmost parts of the eastern Hebei Great Wall before the wall crosses over the border into Tianjin.

The Malanguan Great Wall was built early in the Ming Dynasty and was named after a general Ma Lan who guarded the pass. No renovation was done later in the Ming Dynasty, so the original stone construction can still be seen today. The wall here is rarely visited and has very few towers in the immediate area.

Stone wall at Malanyu
Photo by Kim Siefert

In Malanyu, the valley to the east of the pass, there are two adjacent stone fortresses. They are known locally as the eastern camp and the western camp. These fortresses are relatively well-preserved, and therefore are interesting to examine. The eastern fortress is located at 40°13'16"N 117°40'27"E, and the western fortress is located at 40°13'8"N 117°40'21"E.

Malanyu was an important location during the Qing Dynasty due to its proximity to the eastern Qing Tombs. Much construction was done in Malanyu during the Qing Dynasty. Unfortunately, significant destruction was done here too. To the west, the Great Wall atop Mount Changrui (40°12'23"N 117°38'34"E), from which the tombs can be seen, was mostly destroyed by the Qing Dynasty because it was believed to have negative influence on the tombs.

Fortress at Malanyu
Photo by Kim Siefert

The Nianyushiguan Great Wall is located about 6 kilometers (3.8 miles) northeast of Malanyu and about 4.8 kilometers (3 miles) northeast of the Great Wall at Malanguan. Like Panjiakou, Nianyushiguan has a reservoir that has submerged the lower parts of the pass, but the reservoir at Nianyushiguan is much smaller than the one at Panjiakou. At Nianyushiguan, 60 meters (200 feet) of the wall at the east side of the lake has been rebuilt. Beyond this short rebuilt span, the wall is very steep. On the west side of the lake, which is less steep than the east side, the wall is highly deteriorated until you follow it beyond the road and up the mountain.

Location summary: Nianyushiguan is about 120 kilometers (74 miles) east of downtown Beijing. It is about 51 kilometers (32 miles) west of Panjiakou and about 23 kilometers (14.5 miles) east of Taipingzhai, Tianjin. The path of the Great Wall from Nianyushiguan to Malanguan is about 4.4 kilometers (7.1 miles).

Malanyu is about 115 kilometers (72 miles) east of downtown Beijing. It is about 176 kilometers (110 miles) west of Shanhaiguan. It is about 23 kilometers (14 miles) east of Taipingzhai, Tianjin.

Driving directions: From Beijing, drive east on the G1 Jinghua Expressway for 139 kilometers (86 miles). Exit at G25 and drive north for about 20 kilometers (12 miles) to G112. Continue north for about 29 kilometers (18 miles) to Zunhua. From Zunhua, drive west on S356 for about 10 kilometers (6.2 miles). Turn right at Buzidianzhen and drive for about 450 meters (1500 feet). Turn left and drive for about 12 kilometers (7.5 miles) to Malanyuzhen.