The Research On The Construction Of Jiangsu Coastal Defencebattery In The Late Qing Dynasty

Fortifications were once very important military constructions located along the coast to resist the enemy from the sea. As time went by, fortifications had been abandoned in modern warfare due to its poor flexibility. While it is undeniable that fortifications played an important role in modern history of war. The construction of fortifications in China dates back to Ming Dynasty, they helped a lot in resisting the Japanese pirates. But in Qing Dynasty, it is neglected because of less naval warfare. In modern era, the invasion of western countries are mostly from the sea, so the importance of fortifications appears.The Opium War make the Qing government recognize that fortifications are the only thing can help to offensive at sea, so they begin to build fortifications by learning the design and technology from the western countries and introduce artillery from abroad.Jiangsu has long become one of the nation’s economic and commercial centers because it has a long coastline and the Yangtze River passes through the southern part of the province. Obviously, it is an important part of our costal defense. In Ming Dynasty, a large quantity of fortifications was built to resist the intrusion of Japanese pirates. After the Opium War, Qing government attached greater importance to the construction of fortifications in Jiangsu.There are six chapters in this thesis. The author introduces the site selection, design, construction technology and artillery configuration of Jiangsu Province during late Qing Dynasty, thus to show the fortification construction of the whole country in the meantime.