Tong Pass
| Tong Pass | |
|---|---|
Remote view of the Tong Pass (Ming) | |
| Traversed by | Longhai railway, G30 |
| Location | Tongguan County, Shaanxi, China |
| Range | Gap between Qinling and Taihang Mountains |
| Coordinates | 34°36′22″N 110°17′10″E / 34.606°N 110.286°E |
| Tongguan | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Traditional Chinese | 潼關 | ||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 潼关 | ||||||||
| Literal meaning | High Pass | ||||||||
| |||||||||
Tongguan or Tong Pass, was a former mountain pass and fortress located south of the confluence of the Wei and Yellow Rivers, in today's Tongguan County, Weinan, Shaanxi, China. It was an important chokepoint, protecting Xi'an and the surrounding Guanzhong region from the North China Plain. Tong Pass was built in 196 AD by the warlord Cao Cao during the late Eastern Han dynasty. The fortress was the seat of Tongguan County, but was demolished in the 1950s to make way for the Sanmenxia Dam and reservoir.