Tsing Chuen Wai

Tsing Chuen Wai (Chinese: 青磚圍; lit. 'green bricks walled village') is a walled village located in the Lam Tei area, in the northern part of Tuen Mun District, in Hong Kong.[1]

Entrance gate of Tsing Chuen Wai.
Village shrine
Central axis viewed from the entrance gate
Shrine inside the entrance gate

Administration

Tuen Tsz Wai is one of the 36 villages represented within the Tuen Mun Rural Committee. For electoral purposes, Tuen Tsz Wai is part of the Tuen Mun Rural constituency.

History

Several villages of the Lam Tei area were established by the To (陶) Clan. Originally from Poyang, Jiangxi[2] (other sources mention Watlam in Guangxi),[3] the To Clan moved to Ngau Tam Mei and then to Tuen Mun Tai Tsuen. Following the increase of the clan population, the village dispersed and developed into five villages in the Lam Tei area: Nai Wai, Tsing Chuen Wai, Tuen Tsz Wai, Lam Tei Tsuen and Tuen Mun San Tsuen, which were all fortified.[3]

Tsing Chuen Wai, formerly known as Mak Yuen Wai (麥園圍; 'Walled Village of Barley Farm'), was established by the To (陶) Clan about 300 years ago. Its present name came from the fact that the village was surrounded by its protective walls made of green bricks. The Tos had conflicts with the Tang Clan of Ping Shan during the Qing Dynasty, and attacks were carried out against the walled village. Watchmen at the watchtowers were killed but Tsing Chuen Wai was never captured by the Tangs. The enclosing walls and watchtowers were torn down in the 1960s.[4]

Features

The only surviving portion of the original green-brick boundary wall at the main entrance of the Wai gives visitors an insight into the walled village's historical outlook.[1] Tin Hau, Kwan Tai and a Qing official are worshipped in the village shrine.[4]

Transportation

Take LRT route No. 610, 614 or 615 and alight at Lam Tei Stop, or KMB route No. 53, 63X, 68A, or minibus running between Jordan and Yuen Long.

See also

References
  1. Welcome to 18 Districts - Tuen Mun District
  2. Antiquities and Monuments Office. Hong Kong Traditional Chinese Architectural Information System. Tuen Tsz Wai - History
  3. Antiquities and Monuments Office: Historic Building Appraisal. To Ancestral Hall Tuen Tze Wai
  4. Antiquities and Monuments Office. Historic Building Appraisal: Watchtower, Tsing Chuen Wai, Tuen Mun


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