A visit to Wang Family Grand Courtyard

Acclaimed as the First Folk Residence in Cathay, the Grand Courtyard of the Wangs is the largest-existing folk residence cluster in China and a model of the merchant family's residence in North China's Shanxi Province, demonstrating the quintessence of Chinese architectural art and cultural values. The famous architect Zheng Xiaoxie researched the place six times, describing it as a priceless treasure not only for the nation, but also for the entire world.
Situated in Jingsheng Town, 12 km east of Lingshi County in the province, the Wang's Grand Courtyard is only 35 km from the Ancient City of Pingyao, which is a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site and make contribution to China tourism.


This luxurious residence covers about 45,000 square meters with 123 compounds and 1,118 rooms and took about half a century (1762-1811) to build. It always contained in the packages of China tour deals.
The Wangs
Besides the unique constructions and the cultural bearings, what attract tourists most are the legends and tales about the Grand Courtyard's owner, the Wangs. The Wang clan originally lived in Taiyuan, capital of Shanxi Province, before their ancestor Wang Shi moved to Jingsheng during the reign of Emperor Huangqing (1312-1313) of the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368).
After moving to Jingsheng, Wang Shi mainly engaged in agriculture, but also made bean curd. The business gradually thrived as a result of the family's hard work and business virtues. Some members began to attend school, making the Wangs a distinguished family in the town.
The Wangs prospered during the reigns of Emperors Kangxi (1662-1722), Qianlong (1736-1795), and Jiaqing (1796-1820) in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). The family conducted large-scale constructions at the time, building many houses, ancestral temples, graveyards, stores, and workshops. Besides, they also set up some free private schools and barns, built roads and bridges, dug channels, offered relief to those people struck by disasters, and did some other philanthropic works. In this period alone, the family produced 12 top-ranking government officials.


The Wangs began to decline during Emperor Daoguang's Reign (1820-1850). Besides the social and political reasons, another important factor that led to their decline was the later generations' abandonment of the family's traditional values like diligence and thriftiness. They became increasingly luxurious; some gave up attending school, choosing instead to bribe their way into government positions; while others indulged in opium, leading to the erosion of the once-prosperous family. The few members of the family who still had shops and stores within the province or other big cities like Beijing and Tianjin before the outbreak of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression (1937-1945) lost what little they had after the outbreak. The whole family moved southward after the Lugou Bridge Incident (or Marco Polo Bridge Incident, staged by Japanese imperialists in their attempt to control the whole of China, which marked the beginning of China's war against Japan).
With a history of more than 680 years, the Wangs have lived on for 27 generations throughout all the ups and downs. Now there are some newly emerged talents in various fields from the Wangs. Upon gazing at the Wang Grand Courtyard, one can vividly feel the history of China in the past few centuries through the legend of one common family.
The Construction Style and Folk Customs

With a time-honored history, Jingsheng is a famous historical and cultural town. Archeological finds have revealed a painted pottery site of the Neolithic Age in the town, demonstrating that Chinese ancestors have dwelt in the place a long time. The tomb cluster dating form the Shang Dynasty (About 16th - 11th century BC) boasts a lot of precious relics from the Bronze Age. The cultural relics from the Qin and Han dynasties (221BC-220AD, obtain more about Chinese history via China guide) also abound in the town. Currently, there are still many buildings in Jinsheng that were built in the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368).
The Grand Courtyard of the Wangs, deliberately protected and left from the Qing Dynasty, boasts strong ethnic Chinese flavor and occupies an important position in Chinese construction history.


The mansions of the family are rather luxurious, as the family paid little attention to the production cost. In the Kangxi Reign of the Qing Dynasty, the Wangs built the first two lanes named Yongcui and Suorui for their mansions in Jingsheng. In the Qianlong Reign, the Zhongling lane was built, and the Hongmen, Gongji, and Dongnan fortresses were also built to form a dwelling area for the Wangs. During the Yongzheng Reign, the Chongning Fortress was built. Two Wang members, Wang Rucong and Wang Rucheng, built the Gaojiaya dwelling area, the last construction cluster.
Gaojiaya began to be built in 1796 and finished in 1811. After 16 years, the whole construction covered 11,728 square meters with 26 courtyards and 218 rooms. The features of the mansion are as follows:

First, the whole construction faces the river, away from the mountain. The buildings were established upon the fully advantages of the landscape of the hills, which makes the whole compound appear scattered in a graceful manner. Layers of gardens on different heights of the hill give the compound more levels and the hill more vibrancy and glamour.
Second, the compound walls of are very tall, and there are four gates on four circles of walls that enclose the buildings on different layers. This style inherited the construction mode of the Western Zhou Dynasty (11th century-771BC) that employs halls in the front and rooms in the rear part, as well as many rows of houses. There are a multiple of spaces, which strengthens safety.
The main body of each building strictly follows feudal rules about the construction styles of different ranks, reflecting the class differences in the feudal society as well as the notions and thoughts of the scholar-officials.
The third feature is the magnificence and the complete functions of the compound. The main body of the construction is symmetrical in its layout. Inside one courtyard, there always seems to be another; behind one door, there always seems to be another door. Rooms, pavilions, studies, gardens, and kitchens are all stationed in the places that are most suitable to them.
Stone carvings, brick carvings, and woodcarvings have various themes and rich content. Known for their exquisite skills, the carvings incorporate folk customs and folk arts, and best represent the fine and dense artistic style of the Qing Dynasty. Many experts and scholars think that the place is suitable for traveling, dwelling, and just plain appreciating.
If you are interested in the courtyard, you can head to there after your Xian tours.