北魏六镇军政地位的考古学观察

Archaeological Observation on the Military and Political Position of Six Towns in Northern Wei Dynasty

北魏建镇置戍,屯兵驻守,尤以六镇地位最为显要。六镇不仅和北方长城共同构成北魏王朝抵御异族的防线,而且是北魏军队主力驻扎的主要地区之一,更是连接漠北与中原的重要关要。克里孟古城不但是北魏建国之初防御北方的军事重镇,在北魏王朝一个半世纪的军事防御和皇帝北巡过程中,也一直扮演着重要角色。在北魏渐次设立六镇之时,作为牛川城的克里孟古城因地处冲要,已有城址存在,正好起到了东、西连接抚冥和柔玄两镇的作用。北魏六镇设立伊始,柔玄镇与怀朔镇即成为东西两个中心城址,其后分别节制东三镇与西三镇,使得北魏六镇军事防御体系成为一个“双核”结构。尽管北魏六镇沿着阴山布列,但其实是一个有层次、有等级的军镇体系,从中反映出北魏统治者对防御体系设计思路的不断完善。

The Northern Wei(386-534 AD)set up garrisoned towns where troops were stationed,among which the six towns were the most prominent.The six towns not only,together with the Great Wall in the North,formed the defense line of the Northern Wei against the aliens,but also were one of the main areas where the Northern Wei army were stationed.Furthermore,they were also the strategic pass between Outer Mongolia(the north of the Gobi Desert)and the Central Plains.The ancient city of Kelimeng was a strategic post defending the north at the founding of the Northern Wei.It also played a vital role in the military defense and the emperors’northern tours for a century and a half.When the six towns were built,Kelimeng,also known as Niuchuan Town,due to its superior geographical position and its city sites already in place,served as a link between Fuming Town and Rouxuan Town to the east and the west respectively.Rouxuan Town and Huaishuo Town became the two central city sites respectively in the east and west,later in charge of three towns respectively in the east and west,making the military defense system of the six towns a“dual-core”structure.Although the six towns were distributed along Mount Yinshan,they were actually a hierarchical military town system,which reflects the Northern Wei rulers’continuous improvement of the design for the defense system.