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Tie Suo Pass (Iron Lock Pass)

Although Chinese history has spanned many centuries, the importance of Yangtze River from the military perspective has been rarely mentioned and discussed - Iron Lock Pass is one of the rare that is the remains of a military setup left from the South Song Dynasty (1127-1279).

In the north bank where an anabranch Caotang River meets the Yangtze River, you can see two iron pillars which are two to three meters high above the river, erected on a reef. In the cliffs opposite across the Yangtze River, chiseled holes can be found homogeneously spread out across the cliff walls. As the iron chains were linked between the pillar and the holes, the possibility of passing by through the Yangtze River was small. Xu Zongwu, a general of the South Song Dynasty, once deployed seven iron chains to prevent the invasions of the Mongolia Tribe in the year 1264. It was recorded that the chains measured a total length of 920 meters (3018 feet).

This military setup to deny passage across the river originated in the Tang Dynasty (618-907) but it was often used as a 'toll-gate' system in peacetime as well. Traders on the Yangtze at that time were required to pay taxes when they crossed the river. Although the Iron Lock Pass lacks the grandeur of the Great Wall or the exquisiteness of the Dunhuang grottos, it is nevertheless an epitome of the Yangtze civilization.