Huáiróu

Huairou guarded the mountain approaches northeast of Beijing, where routes crossed the ridges of the northern frontier. The Ming re-established the county in 1368, built its earthen county wall in 1381 and founded a county school the following year. From 1403 it belonged to Shuntian Prefecture, the administration surrounding the imperial capital.

The county's military role extended well beyond its town. The passes at Mutianyu, Zhuangdaokou and Nanyekou were completed in 1404; local households were ordered to maintain horses, and quarries supplied stone for the construction of Beijing's palaces. These obligations tied village labour to the capital's defence and building works. Warfare nevertheless reached the district. Huairou suffered during the crisis of 1449, and its walls were rebuilt in brick and stone in 1467. In 1502 officials reduced the oversized circuit to a more defensible eastern section. Religious life also drew patronage: Princess Shunde restored Hongluo Temple in 1437, and the Kangxi emperor visited it in the Qing period. Fortifications, schools and monasteries together made Huairou part of the capital's inhabited and cultivated mountain hinterland.