Cheongdo Eupseong Fortress

About this place

Cheongdo Eupseong (town fortification) is a stone fortress of the Joseon period built using valley terrain on the alluvial fan of Hwayang-eup in the central area of Cheongdo-gun, with the higher ground to the south and lower ground to the north. Town walls (eupseong) were erected for the protection of the county population. It is estimated to have been built during the Goryeo period, with a perimeter of about 2 km and a height of 1.7 m. It is a flatland hill castle (平山城), an intermediate form between a mountain fortress and a flatland fortress, rectangular in plan. The walls are double-leaf stone walls (협축벽) using natural stone. The east, west, and north gates were burned and the walls destroyed during the Imjin War. During the Japanese colonial period, the town wall demolition policy again caused the walls to be torn down and the gate towers removed. Today, only part of the walls and the foundations remain. Every year in March, the Cheongdo Eupseong Marching Festival (청도읍성 밟기) is held; in this custom, women walk along the castle walls in line, said to ward off misfortune and grant long life. According to tradition, one circuit of the walls brings health, two circuits grant longevity, and three circuits fulfill wishes.