Ningguta, located in Gucheng Village, Changting Town, Hailin, Mudanjiang City, Heilongjiang Province, is an important town in the northeast frontier region ruled by the Qing Dynasty, the seat and residence of the Qing Dynasty General Ningguta, and the military, political and economic center of the Qing government in the vast area of Heilongjiang and Jilin under the jurisdiction of the Qing government north of Shengjing (Shenyang). It was the first of the three sides of Jilin in the Qing Dynasty (Ningguta, San surname, Hunchun), and later, its jurisdiction was reduced to the ruins of the old city.
Ninggu Pagoda is the "nightmare" place of every Qing Dynasty prisoner, in fact, it is not a tower, but the name of a city, which gathers prisoners who were exiled to Guanwai during the Qing Dynasty. Later, General Ninguta was set up here, which was the predecessor of General Jilin. Ninguta, located in a remote area, has a very harsh environment, and even, there is no grass and no grain, which is very suitable for prisoners to come here for "reform".
In Manchu, Ninguta means "six", and according to legend, ningguta in ancient times was occupied by each of the "six" brothers, hence the name. Ninggu Pagoda has a long history, was once the capital of the Jin Dynasty, the land of Longxing in the Qing Dynasty, and an important town in the north of the Qing Dynasty. General Ningguta was stationed here all year round, and they were previously stationed in the area of Hailin City, Heilongjiang, and later moved to the Area of Ning'an City.
Moreover, during the Kangxi Dynasty, they moved back to Jilin Uladi, so General Ningguta also became General Jilin Province. The Ninguta station was relocated to Jilin because of its critical geographical location. Ninggu Pagoda became a key base for the Qing Dynasty to control the Heilongjiang River Basin, not only protecting and governing the entire Heilongjiang area, but also responsible for collecting tribute from the residents of the area, so a large number of Qing soldiers were stationed here to defend the area.
At that time, among the eight banners of Manchuria, there were mainly three types of people. The lowest is "Aha", whose status is equivalent to that of a slave, while "Qiding" is the highest status, equivalent to that of nobility. People in between are called "armored men". Among them, many armored people were stationed at Ninguta. The members of the Phi Jia are complex, mostly members of the Northeastern tribes from the Jin Dynasty, which brings together people from all over the world.
In the barbaric land of Ninguta, the armored people had to put away their "delicate" side in order to survive, and they showed extraordinary combat effectiveness, so they were called "wild people". Although these people are not of high status, they can be called "militia" compared to the prisoners escorted here. Although they were not the upper rulers of the Northeast, they had direct jurisdiction over the prisoners of Ninguta. Therefore, the daily life of the armored people was also "served" by the Ninguta prisoners.
The Phi Jia people were a kind of help to the Qing Dynasty to guard the frontier, so the Phi Jia people lived on the frontier for generations. After all, these people had to defend the northern defense line for the Qing Dynasty and live hard in the bitter cold. Therefore, those in power only "turned a blind eye" to the situation of the armored enslavement of prisoners. After all, it is necessary to give some "welfare" to the armored people, so as to stabilize the morale of the army.
Due to the sparse population of Ningguta, in order to increase the construction of this place, the Qing Government usually escorted those prisoners here as slaves, doing military and hard labor. However, once the distribution arrives here, life and death are in the sky, because it is very hard here, and only those who have strong survival ability have a chance to survive. And those who are less able to survive will die before long.
In fact, leaving aside the fact that these prisoners are suffering from being far away from home, the bitter cold here is also unbearable for many people. In the wet and cold weather of minus thirty or forty degrees, in that era of lack of materials, it was difficult for ordinary people to survive the winter. Those exiled Guannei people, before the "crime", most of them were noble princes or relatives of the emperor and the state, how could they endure this severe cold, so many people fell down as soon as they arrived at Ninguta.
After the prisoners are exiled here, they generally go to work as coolies, cultivate grain in this wilderness, dig mountains and dig holes, build bridges and pave roads, and undergo high physical exercise every day. Wu Zhaoqian, an exiled scholar of the Qing Dynasty, once described life here: all year round, it was either farming, or laying sieges, burning lime, and burning charcoal, and there was no time for rest.
Ninguta is located in the northeast region of China, inaccessible, the climate is harsh, here except for the prisoners assigned to this place, there is no human figure at all. There are swamps, wild beasts, and forests everywhere, and even if you run, you can't run, and it is very easy to be besieged by wild beasts and get lost in the forest. Therefore, when you arrive at Ninguta, you will also be sentenced to death, unless the emperor pardons you, you will have the opportunity to return to your hometown.
Ninguta is very remote, with long journeys along the way, wind and food, and many people die before they reach the ground. The Qing Dynasty scholar Fang Gonggan once said: "When you arrive at Ninggu Pagoda, there will be ten yellow springs and you will not be afraid!" "The horror of Ninguta is self-evident. At first, the prisoners were escorted to Shenyang and Shangyang fort, later, to Jilin Ula, Ningguta, and finally to Heilongjiang, Qiqihar and other places.
Among them, the most famous exile area is Ninggu Pagoda, only during the Shunzhi period of the Qing Dynasty, thousands of criminals were convicted of literary prisons, all of whom were exiled to Ninggu Pagoda, where many unjust souls were buried.
It can be said that both Ningguta and other prisons in the Qing Dynasty were remnants of feudal society and disregarded human rights in order to safeguard the interests of the authorities. They do not just punish prisoners, but they deprive them of their human rights and humiliate them in an extreme way. With the subversion of the feudal dynasty, these remnants of the dross have gradually disappeared completely on the stage of history.
History has made amorous choices in a cruel way, and the people have carried out cultural enlightenment of this land and continued the endless spiritual pulse. As Mr. Yu Qiuyu said: "Why does the land in the northeast always appear frank and open without covering up?" Why is it that there is not much rich history but it has quickly entered a state of enlightenment? At least part of it comes from the nobility of the exile's heart. ”
Resources:
["Ninguta Jiluo", "The Land of exiles", "Miscellaneous Records of The Observations of the Research Hall"]