Controversy continues over China’s distortion of history by erasing traces of Goguryeo’s Bakjak Fortress and instead labeling it as the Hushan Great Wall. Currently, in Liaoning Province, China, a large stone monument has been erected inscribed with “Hushan Great Wall.” At the bottom, it is marked as the “Eastern Starting Point of the Great Wall of China” (萬里長城 東端起点).
The original name of the site was Hushan Mountain Fortress. Its renaming as the Hushan Great Wall is part of China’s “Northeast Project,” aimed at extending the length of the Great Wall and absorbing Korean history into Chinese history. This overturns the long-accepted position in Chinese academia that the eastern terminus of the Great Wall was Shanhaiguan in Hebei Province.
The Samguk Sagi records the historical fact that Goguryeo fought against the Tang Dynasty at Bakjak Fortress. In 648, Tang General Xue Man-che stationed troops 40 li south of Bakjak Fortress, and at the time, the fortress lord So Buson resisted. Historical accounts also state that Bakjak Fortress was located in a rugged mountainous area on the north bank of the Yalu River, about 100 li from the river’s mouth.
Between 1990 and 1993, China itself conducted four surveys of Hushan Mountain Fortress, during which Goguryeo relics were unearthed. Artifacts from various countries, along with a large number of Goguryeo relics, were found in a 23-meter-deep well. Stone fortifications were also discovered, built with meticulously shaped wedge stones on both inner and outer walls, a distinctive feature of Goguryeo fortress construction that clearly sets them apart from Chinese walls.
Despite this historical evidence and archaeological findings, China continues to distort history through the Northeast Project. Signs once designating the remains as Goguryeo relics have been removed, and China now asserts that Hushan Mountain Fortress is part of the Great Wall.
This campaign against China’s Northeast Project highlights that the issue of historical distortion is not merely a matter between Korea and China but one that concerns the global community. In response, Cyber Diplomacy Organization VANK has produced posters in both Korean and English to raise international awareness.
The posters emphasize the message: Distortion of history is no different from destruction of cultural heritage. This underscores how China’s actions are not only distorting history but also negatively impacting cultural heritage.
VANK has consistently worked to address distortions of Great Wall history. In 2022, it launched the website The Great Wall Paradox, which explains the true location of the Great Wall, the ways it was deliberately extended, the reasons behind such extensions, and why the issue of Great Wall historical distortion matters.
In addition, VANK analyzed 40 world history textbooks and discovered that most contained the error of depicting the Great Wall as extending into the Korean Peninsula. The organization has since been working to correct these inaccuracies.