Historical Evolution of Wenchang Pagoda in Qiyang

Wenchang Pagoda, also known as Wenbi Pagoda, is usually seven stories high, and the Emperor Wenchang is often enshrined in the pagoda. According to legend, Emperor Wenchang is the god in charge of things in the upper world, so ancient academies in China often offer sacrifices to Confucius and Emperor Wenchang. "Three Essentials of Yangzhai" said: "Where provincial capitals and prefectures are unfavorable places for literati, it is advisable to write towers on the letters A, Shen, C and D. As long as they are higher than other mountains, they will be sent to Fujian; Or writing on the mountain, or building a tower on the ground, are all Wenfeng. " In ancient times, "everything is inferior, only reading is high". The ancients attached great importance to Wenchang and were keen to build Wenchang Tower to make up for the shortage of local Wenfeng. I hope there are many literati, talents and cultural prosperity here.

The Wenchang Tower in Qiyang was built in the first year of Wanli in Ming Shenzong (1573). Deng Qiu, an official of Qiyang who was then the magistrate of Tongren, proposed to build Wenchang Tower on the "Qianshu Cliff" on the coast of Xiangjiang River in the east of the city, in order to bring forth a large number of talents in Qiyang. It has been ten years since the planning and construction of this tower, and it was after its completion. By the twelfth year of Wanli, the academy and the tower were built at the same time. In the 16th year of Wanli, the Academy was completed and named Wenchang Academy. Guan Daxun inscribed Wenchang Academy, and the tower was also completed that year. Later, Deng built a small hole called Meihuadong on the right side of the tower, with the purpose of reading Yi and writing books such as Cheng Zhu's Neo-Confucianism.

During the reign of the Ming Emperor, Chen, the son of the Yi people (officials in the late Ming Dynasty, officials in the past, criminals, ministers of the Ministry of Household Affairs, and Governor He Cao), saw that he was becoming more and more popular. He was worried that future generations of students might surpass his father, thinking that this would damage his father's reputation. He incited his people to tear down the pagoda and destroyed it in an instant. In the 11th year of Emperor Gaozong in the Qing Dynasty (1746), Chen Dashou, a sage of Qiyang (the first prime minister of Hunan in the Qing Dynasty) visited Qianshu Cliff in his hometown, worried about the declining style of study in his hometown, and said that Wenchang Tower "benefited from the cultural development in He Yi", and donated 1500 silver to revitalize nature. Wang Xianzhang, a master craftsman of Hengyang, was hired to make detailed planning and exquisite design, so the construction began in February. The tower body is made of Hengyang specialty sandstone, and the tower foundation is made of Qiyang local bluestone. With the joint efforts of the county officials and people, it was completed in December of the 13th year of Qianlong (1748) and took three years to complete.