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City Wall of Nanjing

城墙

The City Wall of Nanjing was designed by Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang (r. 1368-1398) after he founded the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) and established Nanjing as the capital. To consolidate his sovereignty and keep out invaders, he adopted the suggestions of advisor Zhu Sheng to build a higher city wall, to collect grain and to postpone the coronation. Building the wall took 21 years, and involved 200,000 laborers to move 7 million m³ of earth. The city wall is the most complete one in China, after decades of erosion, vandalism and destruction.

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Listing from Wikivoyage: Nanjing, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Updated 28 Sept 2026. Something wrong? Tell us.

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The Gate of China (Zhonghuamen)
中华门
The southern gate of Nanjing's city wall; this massive gate is one of the best preserved parts of Nanjing's city wall, and one of the best remaining examples of early Ming defensive architecture extant anywhere. The wooden castle at top was destroyed by fire, but the immense masonry (each complete with the mason's name and home province by order of the emperor) substructure remains. Two courtyards contain an archery range and vegetable gardens. The main gate has three immense depots within where, long emptied of provisions, you can find some scale models and exhibits about the gate. In one depot you can find an air raid siren used during the Japanese attack on the city.
¥50 to enter
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Great Bao'en Temple Ruins Park
大报恩寺遗址公园, 大报恩寺遗址景区
Once one of Nanjing's greatest Buddhist temples, the Great Bao'en Temple was destroyed by the Taiping rebels when they occupied the city in the mid-19th century. There is now a museum at the site. The Porcelain Tower, which is said to have been one of the seven wonders of the medieval world, has been reconstructed and affords great views over the city.
Closed · opens 9 am¥120 (discounted to ¥80 if you buy the ticket on the website)
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Jinling Art Museum
金陵美术馆
50 Jianzi Lane, Qinhuai District (秦淮区剪子巷50号)
09:00-17:00, no entry after 16:30, closed on MondaysFree
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Taiping Kingdom History Museum
太平天国历史博物馆
A small museum focusing on the Taiping Rebellion (1843-1868), a piece of history not well known in the West. This was one of the bloodiest conflicts in recorded history — some estimates put the death toll higher than for World War I, and it was certainly much worse than the American Civil War at about the same time, even though the Chinese used more primitive weapons. It was a crucial moment in China's relationship with the West, modernity, and its relationship to its own imperial history. It was partly a religious movement (see Christianity); the leader claimed to be God's second son, Jesus' younger brother. The quasi-Christian, peasant-led rebellion overran an area greater than Texas with Nanjing as its capital. At different times it threatened both the foreign settlements in Shanghai and the Qing government in Beijing, though it did not take either. On exhibit are documents relating to Taiping history and the grinding reduction of their movement by enterprising Qing generals and their European auxiliaries, culminating in the siege of Nanjing. Most documents and artifacts are replicas. Item descriptions are in Chinese and English, but only the Chinese text gives historical context and transcription of some of the handwritten documents. Next door are the beautiful Zhanyuan Gardens.
Daily 08:00-17:30, 17:30-20:30¥30 (day time), ¥70 (night time, with tour guide). Fees are waived for children and persons over 70. Visitors aged between 60 and 69 pay half price