The Tianxinge is located on the ancient city wall. Over the past hundreds of years, it has been repeatedly repaired and moved. The present structure was rebuilt in 1983. it is a wooden structure, with brown tiles and upturned eaves, and red columns and painted pillars. There are three pavilions, including the main one. Linked to each other by long corridors. The whole structure is of an arched design. The main pavilion is supported by 60 timber pillars. On the pillars, there are 32 heads of huge turtles, 32 brass bells, and 10 dragons. A total of 62 stone lions are carved on the stone railings in front of and behind the pavilion, in addition to other carved chariots, horses, dragons, plums, bamboo, and lotus. Many works of calligraphy and paintings by well-known celebrities are also exhibited in the pavilion.
What to see:
(1). Moon wall:
The “moon wall” which looks like a half-moon,another name is called “wengcheng”. The battery contains two floors of long-range cannon and near-range cannon in the “moon wall”. Another important military secret is that there are two secret paths for the means of escape or for the foods and ammunition transportation in emergency.
(2). An introduction to Chonglie Gate Pailou:
Chonglie Gate was built in 1946 that in order to commemorate victims in Changsha Battles during the Anti-Japanese invasion war. The donation for construction was initiated by Jiangjieshi, Chencheng and Zhangzhizhong. The gate was made of pure granite, 8.5 m wide and 5.9 m high. There are two couplets on the Pailou. The one in the middle is: Smash Invaders, Guard Nation. And the other one which by Zhuan style of Chinese Calligraphy, reads: Fight for Our Country Forgetting Our Safety. Devote Ourselves to the Lofty Cause. The two couplets highly praise the servicemen of their courage to fight and even to sacrifice for the sake of the sublime Chinese spirit.
(3). The Martyr-Worshipping Pavilion:
It was formerly known as the Noon Chronophing Pavilion and then the National Shame Pavilion. In the 1910’s, a copper cannon was set here to give the correct time for the whole city: at 12 am every day the cannon was fired 3 times. In 1929, the Noon Chronophing Cannon was removed, and the pavilion was turned into the National Shame Pavilion to commemorate those Chinese people killed in May 3rd Massacre. There in the pavilion was a cement map of the national shame, in which Chinese territories rent to, ceded to or occupied by foreign powers were painted clearly in color in order to awaken the nation’s patriotism. Yet the pavilion was ruined in the 1938 Fire. In 1946, to keep the memory of those officers and soldiers killed in the Changsha Campaigns from 1939 to 1944, then the provincial government ordered the constructions, at the original site, of the Martyrs-Worshipping Pavilion, which has a octagonal saddle roof supported by brackets resting on 16 columns. Its horizontal tablet was inscribed by Jiang Jieshi.
(4). Red Robe General Cannon:
In 1850, the Governor of Hunan province Luo Bingzhang had ordered to melt down two baddha statues in order to build two cannons, the bigger one which weighed 2500 kilograms was named as “Red Robe General”, and was set up on the “Caochaomen” walls. In 1852, the “Red Robe General” was used for defending the city from attacks of “Taiping” army, during the combat, the southern camps of “Taiping” army were destroyed, and the “West King of Taiping” Xiao Chaogui was killed in the cannon fire.