Hwaseong ancient citadel in Suwon

The United Nations Science, Education and Cultural Organization has recognized the Hwaseong Ancient Citadel in Suwon in Korea as a World Cultural Heritage in 1997.

Suwon is the capital of Gyeonggi-do region, about 30 km from Seoul, South Korea. Suwon attracts international tourists by its cool climate, blue-green waters, mossy citadel and traditional colorful and special cultural festivals here.

Suwon was formed in ancient times in Korea with the original name is Mosu-guk . Through every feudal dynasty, Suwon has a different name.

The name Suwon was placed in 1413 by King Taejong of Joseon Dynasty. According to legend in the eighteenth century, King Yeongjo of the Joseon Dynasty suspected Prince Sado attempted to commit suicide so he executed. At that time, Prince Sado's wife and Jeongjo's son escaped. When King Yeongjo died without a successor, Jeongjo was brought to the throne. King Jeongjo wants to move the capital from Seoul to Suwon - where his father's grave is. He began to build a massive wall of walls surrounding Suwon. But King Jeongjo died early, not yet able to move the capital.

Since then every year, the Joseon kings have come to the Prince Sado ceremony. So Suwon was named the " City of filial piety " by the latter. Suwon today blends ancient and modern features, being an important center of culture, education, tourism, sports and industry in Korea.

Visit Suwon no tourists can skip Hwaseong ancient citadel . Hwaseong Castle was built by King Jeongjo in the late eighteenth century to protect his father's tomb.

Hwaseong's walls were built firmly with bricks and stones. The city has a length of 5.74 km and a width of 4 to 6 meters, the mounds of the walls are 1.2 meters high. Initially, the city wall had 48 buildings surrounding the area of ​​1.3 square kilometers. Experiencing many events of nature and history, the wall today has only 39 buildings including 4 security gates, 1 irrigation culvert, 2 watchtowers, 4 guard stations, 2 command posts, 2 names shooting places , 5 shooting stations, 5 guard posts, 4 families, 1 signaling tower, 9 turrets.

The four gates to Hwaseong all have small fortresses around them, distributed in four directions East, West, South and North. The north and south gates have 2-storey wooden stations, which are larger than the east and west. The two watch towers have 3 floors, the top is the observation deck with many apricot holes. The signal tower has 5 chimneys, used to create different fire or smoke signals. According to the convention of the city, a column of smoke is meant to be peaceful, 3 columns of smoke are approaching, 5 columns of smoke are war started.

Every year, starting from March to November, the walls are the place where performances of martial arts performances are performed, namely 24 martial arts that Jeongjo soldiers used to practice.

Haenggung Palace was built in 1789 in the east of Paldalsan Hill in Hwaseong City Wall.This was the residence of King Jeongjo when he went to Suwon to visit his father's grave.Haenggung Palace was built in rectangular form with 22 buildings with 600 rooms.The main entrance to the palace is located in the center of Suwon.When the king did not stay, CungHaenggung used as the main headquarters of the officials of Suwon region;organizing the royal life celebration, banquet for elders and national examinations.

Today, in front of the palace entrance is repaired to become a 3-floor tourist service center with a 3D gallery and cinema. Near Haenggung Palace is Hwaryeongjeon Shrine, built in 1801, keeping the portrait of King Jeongjo.

Hwaseong ancient citadel in Suwon is recognized by Unesco according to criteria (ii), (iii).

Criterion (ii): Fortress and Hwaseong Castle are the culmination of 18th-century military architecture. The city was built on the best scientific ideas from Europe and Asia. The city is also an important demonstration of the development of the construction industry when applying scientific and technical achievements to the design and construction. Besides, the city is also a beautiful architectural work that has much influence on the architecture and landscape of other architecture in the region.

Criterion (iii): The Hwaseong Ancient Town in Suwon is a city built perfectly with excellent defensive functions but still suitable for commercial and political activities. Hwaseong Citadel is also a testament to the development of Korean society in the 18th century.