Located in the mountainous areas of south-west China, this property encompasses a series of remains of tribal domains whose chiefs were appointed by the central government as ‘Tusi’, hereditary rulers from the 13th to the early 20th century. The Tusi system arose from the ethnic minorities’ dynastic systems of government dating back to the 3rd century BCE. Its purpose was to unify national administration, while allowing ethnic minorities to retain their customs and way of life. The sites of Laosicheng, Tangya and Hailongtun Fortress that make up the site bear exceptional testimony to this form of governance which derived from the Chinese civilization of the Yuan and Ming periods.
Patriarch temple complex, Laosicheng - Tusi Sites (China)
© Management Office of Tangya Tusi Domain
