方鳴謙，浙江台州人，元末群雄方國珍的姪子，隨其父伯降於朱元璋，日後被收編成為明軍衛、所的將領。明初時，因倭寇為患沿海，洪武帝一開始僅遣將率船出海巡捕而已，並無一套完整的海防佈署計劃，直至召來方鳴謙詢問對策後，才有了重大的改變。方所提出的海防的主張，其戰略思惟的主要核心是「倭自海上來，則在海上備禦之」，就是對付倭寇佈防重點應在「海上」而非「陸地」，主張於岸上佈署衛、所和巡檢司，海中佈署水寨和兵船，亦即在「海上」構築一道的防線，來迎擊由「海上」入犯的倭人，另外，並徵調民戶四丁者出一人納入軍籍，用以屯守新設的衛、所及其堡城，做為海防兵力的主要來源，亦因沿海的衛、所、巡司、水寨兵船錯落遍佈，讓倭寇無法隨意登岸劫掠，如此，即可達到「倭不得入海門，入亦不得傅岸」的海防主要目標。方上述的主張，洪武帝深表贊同，且決意付諸實施，遂派遣信國公湯和與江夏侯周德興二人，根據此一主張，各自往赴兩浙和福建的邊海推行之，而方本人亦隨湯和前往兩浙沿海，協助其擘建海防的工作。今日民間還流傳著，方指揮兩浙百姓建造金山、乍浦、柘林……等堡城的故事，而且，方死後還升格為神明，成為金山衛的城隍爺──「方大老爺」，是附近民眾追思膜拜的對象。

Born in Tai-Jou, Je-Jiang, Ming-Chian Fang was the middle-ranking military officer in the early years of the Ming Dynasty. At that time, the Japanese pirates robbed the coastland of China seriously; as the result, the Emperor Hung-Wu consulted Ming-Chian Fang about this problem. Fang proposed that the way to resist the Japanese pirates is to dispose the military force around the coastline to prohibit their landing and invasion. Fang's proposal also included building many fortresses garrisoned by troops around the coastline and disposing warships to intercept the pirates on the sea. The Emperor Hung-Wu was satisfied with Fang's proposition and put it into practice. Moreover, Fang also went to the coastland of Je-Jiang and Jiang-Su to assist the high-ranking military officer Tang-He in establishing the coast defense. Today, some legends that Fang built the fortresses in Jin-Shan and Ja-Pu are still circulated around people. Besides, after Fang passed away, he is regarded as a deity worshiped by people around Jin-Shan.