West Lake (Chaozhou)
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| West Lake | |
|---|---|
| 西湖 (Chinese) | |
 An aerial view of West Lake. | |
  West Lake | |
| Location | Chao'an District, Chaozhou, Guangdong, China |
| Coordinates | 23°40′17.03″N 116°38′17.55″E / 23.6713972°N 116.6382083°E |
| Type | Lake |
| Basin countries | China |
| Built | Tang dynasty |
| Surface area | 2.67 square kilometres (660 acres) |
| Max. depth | 5 m (16 ft) |
West Lake (Chinese: 西湖; pinyin: Xī Hú) is an artificial lake in Chao'an District of Chaozhou City, Guangdong Province, China.[1][2]
According to Fang Yu Ji Yao (方舆纪要), the lake was about 5,000 m (3.1 mi) long during the Tang dynasty (618–907). At that time, the local government built the North Dyke (北堤), breaking the link between Hanjiang River and West Lake.
In the Southern Song dynasty (1127–1279), military official Lin Guangshi (林光世) made a positive contribution to West Lake, especially the Mount Hulu (葫芦山) within the lake park. His article Jun Hu Ming (浚湖铭) has been circulated to the present.
In the Yuan dynasty (1271–1368), most of the temples, pagodas and other halls or pavilions were destroyed in the battle of Chaozhou during the Mongolian invasion of the 13th century.
In the early Ming dynasty (1368–1644), in order to erect the city wall, the local government filled the a half of West Lake with stones.
In the Qing dynasty (1644–1911), many literati landscapes were devastated by wars between the Qing army and rebel forces.
During the Republic of China, warlord Hong Zhaolin (洪兆麟) appropriated West Lake as his own garden and named it "Hong Garden" (洪园).
