The Qiang people is an old ethnic minority group living in western China.

The castles, which are mostly built near residential houses in villages, are used by the Qiangs to resist the enemy and store food, wood and grass. Made of gallets and loess, Qiang castles are usually 10 to 30 meters high and shaped like quadrangles, hexagons or octagons. The walls have a foundation of 1.35 meters high, and are also made of gallets. The inside of the wall is vertical to the ground and the outside leans a bit inwards. The Qiang people never sketch a draft of the construction but solely depend on their outstanding craftsmanship and rich experience. Even after many years the castles are still intact. The Yongping Castle, built during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) in Yong'an Village of Qiang Town in Beichuan County of Sichuan Province, is still in good condition after hundreds years.

There are castles in every Qiang village, making the whole village take on a third dimension. Inside the building are wooden stairs leading to the top level which offers a panoramic view of the entire village. The castles remained safe and sound even after being struck by lighting and earthquakes. Visitors are very amazed by the scientific location, overall arrangement, safety and practicality of the buildings.

Most of the Qiang stone houses were built on a mountainside level near a body of water. The flat-roofed houses are also made of gallets and shaped like quadrangles. Most of them have three stories, each three meters high. At the base of the flat roof is a wooden board or flagstone that functions as the eaves. The wooden board or flagstone is densely covered with twigs or bamboo branches and then rammed with loess and chicken droppings 0.35 meters thick. Water drainage grooves on the eaves prevent snow and rain leakage. The houses are warm in the winter and cool in the summer. Qiang's residential houses usually have a well-sealed round window that can both keep warm and prevent theft. The house furnishings are simple and unsophisticated, instilling a nostalgic mood.