This attraction introduction is compiled from historical materials in the "Zhangjiajie Tour Guide Network" (33519.com · Scenic Spots section). Ticket prices, opening hours, transportation, and contact information mentioned in the text may be outdated. Please refer to the latest official announcements from the scenic area before traveling; some content consists of historical background/cultural introductions and is for reference only.
Long renowned for the saying "Dongting's water is the finest under heaven, Yueyang Tower is the finest under heaven," Yueyang Tower stands atop the west gate of the ancient city of Yueyang. Its grandeur and majestic construction make it the foremost of the three great towers of Jiangnan. The world-famous Yueyang Tower has a unique structure and singular style. The tower has three stories, flying eaves, a helmet-shaped roof, and a pure wooden structure. The entire tower is 25.35 meters tall, rectangular in plan, 17.2 meters wide, 15.6 meters deep, and covers 251 square meters. Four columns rise high within the tower, and the eaves of the roof peak upward, resplendent in gold and jade. Viewed from afar, it resembles a giant peng bird about to soar into the sky, appearing especially majestic and magnificent.
Yueyang Tower was built upon the foundation of the Three Kingdoms-era "Lu Su Military Review Tower" and evolved through successive generations. Before the Tang Dynasty, its function was primarily military. From the Tang Dynasty onward, Yueyang Tower gradually became a renowned destination for tourists and talented scholars of successive dynasties to sightsee and compose poetry. By this time, Baling City had been renamed Yueyang City, and the Baling City Tower was accordingly called Yueyang Tower. In the fourth year of the Kaiyuan era of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang (76 AD), Zhang Yue—hailed as a "master of grand prose"—was demoted to Yueyang and, immersing himself in the landscape, often climbed the tower with literati and exiled officials to compose poetry. Thereafter, great poets such as Li Bai, Du Fu, Li Shangyin, and Li Qunyu followed one after another, writing hundreds of famous verses with refined language and fresh meaning, cloaking Yueyang Tower in a rich cultural atmosphere.
Yueyang Tower truly became world-famous after Teng Zijing rebuilt it in the Northern Song Dynasty and Fan Zhongyan wrote "Record of Yueyang Tower." Teng Zijing was worthy of being a far-sighted and insightful minister. He believed that "a tower cannot endure without a written record to proclaim it, and a record cannot become famous unless written by a person of great talent and stature." So he invited the great literary master Fan Zhongyan to write the eternally famous "Record of Yueyang Tower." Once this essay appeared, it was widely recited. Though only 369 characters, its content is vast, its philosophy profound, its momentum magnificent, and its language sonorous—truly a work of unique craftsmanship and an absolute masterpiece. The line "Be the first to bear the world's worries, and the last to enjoy the world's joys" became an enduring maxim. From then on, Yueyang Tower became even more renowned at home and abroad. In subsequent dynasties, poets and writers left a great number of beautiful poems and essays here. Figures such as Yu Ji, Yang Weizhen, Yang Quan, Li Dongyang, He Jingming, Yuan Mei, and Yao Nai all came to raise their cups in the breeze and climb the tower to recite poetry.
In its over one thousand years of history, Yueyang Tower has weathered many storms, repeatedly destroyed and rebuilt, with more than 30 recorded renovations. After each reconstruction, "the layered eaves stood like ice pavilions, towering above, where men of letters climbed to gaze and linger"; when it collapsed, "great waves and huge billows surged below, where exiled officials and poets raised their heads and sighed deeply" (Zhang Derong of the Qing Dynasty, "Record of Rebuilding Yueyang Tower"). By the end of the Republic of China period, the tower had become dilapidated beyond repair. "The rooster crows and the world turns bright"—Yueyang Tower welcomed its first ray of dawn. After the founding of New China, the Party and government treasured Yueyang Tower greatly and carried out a thorough reconstruction. The rebuilt tower maintained its original scale and structure, preserving its original architectural art and historical appearance. The granite base at the bottom was raised by 30 centimeters, making the Xianmei Pavilion and Sanzui Pavilion in front of the tower more clearly distinguished in hierarchy and well-arranged. The floor was repaved with ancient blue bricks. The four nanmu columns in the hall are original from the old tower; the four large Song Dynasty stone bases still squat beneath the great columns. The original three-sided brick walls built in the 21st year of the Republic of China were replaced with carved and gold-gilded doors and windows in imitation of Ming and Qing styles. On the second floor, the veranda space was enlarged to give visitors a broader view. On the front of the hall hangs "Record of Yueyang Tower" written by the famous Qing calligrapher Zhang Zhao, composed of 12 pieces of red sandalwood. The third floor displays a poem by the great leader Mao Zedong in his own handwriting, Du Fu's "Climbing Yueyang Tower." Each floor hangs original wooden plaques and couplets, with additional couplets by famous ancient and modern writers praising Yueyang Tower. On the first floor is a couplet 102 characters long. The upper line reads: "What is so remarkable about this tower? Du Shaoling's five-character masterpiece, Fan Xiwen's two characters of sentiment, Teng Zijing's revival of all endeavors, Lü Chunyang's three visits and certain drunkenness. Poet? Scholar? Official? Immortal? I see no ancients before me, and tears fall in desolation!" The lower line reads: "Gentlemen, look: Dongting Lake reaches to Xiaoxiang in the south, the Yangtze River connects to Wu Gorge in the north, Baling Mountain brings refreshing air from the west, Yuezhou City commands the cliff frontier in the east. What stagnates, what flows, what stands, what guards—there is true meaning here; who can grasp it?" On the third floor is a short couplet of just eight characters: "Water and sky merge in one color; wind and moon know no bounds." Signed "Changeng Li Bai."
