Tusi Sites

The Tusi Sites were inscribed as a World Cultural Heritage site in 2015.

The Tusi Sites are located in the Wuling Mountains, where the borders of Hunan, Hubei, and Guizhou provinces converge. During the Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties, the central government implemented the Tusi system in southwestern ethnic minority regions. Under this system, local tribal chiefs were appointed as“Tusi”, hereditary rulers of their people. The property includes the Laosicheng Tusi Domain in Yongshun, Hunan, the Tangya Tusi Domain in Enshi, Hubei, and the Hailongtun Fortress in Zunyi, Guizhou. These sites are remnants of the heyday of the Tusi system, and represent a typical multi-ethnic cultural area, making them exemplary of China's Tusi heritage.

The Tusi Sites testify to ancient China's wisdom in managing the ethnically diverse southwestern mountainous regions as a unified multi-ethnic nation. This governance strategy promoted sustainable development in ethnic minority areas, contributed to the nation's long-term unity, and significantly aided in preserving cultural diversity.