| The Great Wall has the largest scale,the most scattered remains,and the most complex topography in our country’s heritage routes.Compared with other heritage sites such as traditional towns and villages,the Great Wall is a much less active military project with the original grand defense.After the system collapsed and became dusty,it is difficult to reconstruct a variety of defensive facilities scattered around and figure out how the heritage sites were connected.Via reconstructing the original network system with the water,it becomes true to make the heritage resources scattered in various places integrated,as well as,the human resources and natural resources connected.Xuanfu and Datong military regions play an import role in the Great Wall defense system of the Ming Dynasty,which leave the frontiers connected in the west,and become a barrier for the capital in the east.Both of them belong to the upper reaches of the Yongding River,which is selected as a representative section of the Great Wall.Through revealing the closely related characteristics of water and the Great Wall,we demonstrate that the water provides a perfect introduction to the planning principles and site selection strategies of the fortresses in Xuanfu and Datong military regions.As geographical clues and topographical signs,as well as necessities for production,life,and border defense,water has affected the location,orientation,and form of the Great Wall,also shaped the hierarchical space defense network covering the vast areas of northern China,leaving a hold on the urban-rural pattern to this day.Firstly,through quantitative analysis of the spatial distribution characteristics of the two military regions,the coupling of the Great Wall defense system with the spatial structure of the water system was revealed in terms of the direction of the Great Wall,construction process,planning layout,etc.Secondly,we have realized the visualization of microtopographic feature via using a variety of spatial information since modern times and integrating ancient documents to trace the original appearance of the Ming Dynasty of the fortresses and their surrounding environment.Then we have sorted out the original water system structure of the fortresses,and summarized the strategy of selecting the location of fortresses and the construction of urban defense facilities based on water and making the best use.Last but not least,the comprehensive research conclusions have been made,which further refining the important role of the water perspective in cross-regional interpretation of site selection strategies,reappearing historical scenes,discovering hidden heritage values,integrating surrounding natural resources and existing scattered tourist attractions.The paper not only adopts the method of studying the military system of the Great Wall of Ming Dynasty through historical literature retrieval,but also uses the method of digital humanities to study the towns in Xuanfu and Datong military regions.From the perspective of Ming Great Wall water strategy,we have explored the digitalization of Great Wall construction strategies using the quantitative analysis methods of GIS spatial feature analysis and the 3D point cloud model reconstructed.Besides,the gaps in the generalization of water management strategies for the fortresses in the past has been filled with the help of the Ming Great Wall basic information database,historical aerial photos and field low-altitude photogrammetric data.Furthermore,the paper can deepen the understanding of the defense system of the Great Wall from the aspect of construction method,location strategy,etc.,explore the national wisdom behind the concealed Great Wall heritage,guide the connotation value discovery and comprehensive protection of the Great Wall cultural heritage,and assist the construction of the national cultural park governance system. |
