The ancient capital of China untrained man can surprise you with its number. There were four of them, but in the last century the list was expanded to 7 capitals. We will briefly review each of them.
Beijing
The first capital of ancient China, like everyone else, was located near a mountain range. The first settlements in this area existed from the first millennium BC. e. During the reign of the Zhou Dynasty, a military fortress was built here. In 1368, the Ming Dynasty was created . For some time, the capital was moved to Nanjing, but Emperor Yongle returned the capital of the Ming Dynasty to Beijing. The architecture of modern Beijing is largely a legacy of the rule of the Ming and Qing Dynasty. During the reign of the last of them, the famous Beijing gardens, the Old Summer Palace were built. During the reign of the Ming Dynasty, the Temple of Heaven, the Imperial Palace, was built. It was Emperor Yongle who transformed Beijing, making it look like a chessboard.
Nanking
By the way, the capital of Ancient China since the time of the first emperor is Shanghai. However, scientists did not list this city and Shanghai is not considered one of the historical capitals.
Nanjing is one of the most ancient cities of China. He was the capital of ten dynasties and the Republic of China. Today is the capital of Jiangsu. Nanjing successfully located between the other two capitals of ancient China - Beijing and Shanghai. Translated, the name Nanjing means "southern capital." The city was founded in the V century. BC e. It was here that the greatest number of the most dangerous rebellions took place. By the way, the founder of the Ming Dynasty was buried here. In 1853, the city became the capital of the Taiping State, which was ruled by Hong Xiuqiang. In 1912, under the pressure of revolutionaries, the city became the capital of the Republic of China.
Today, Nanjing is a developed center. Every day more and more foreigners come here. The city is replenished with hotels, skyscrapers and luxury shopping centers. Like Shanghai, it is turning into a cosmopolitan city.
Changyaan
The list of the ancient capitals of China continues with the city of Chang'an, whose name in translation means "long peace." During its existence, managed to visit the capital of several states in China. However, today in its place is the city of Xi'an.
The first settlements appeared during the Neolithic. The capital of Chang'an became during the reign of the Tang Empire. As in Beijing, the building resembled a chessboard. In the middle of the VIII century, more than 1 million people lived here, which by that time made the city the largest in the world. During the reign of the Ming Dynasty, the capital was moved to Beijing, and Changyan was renamed Xi'an.
Luoyang
The capital of ancient China, the history of which we will now examine, was also one of the most ancient cities. Luoyang city was the capital of various Chinese states. The history of the city begins in the XI century. BC e. It is believed that this is the first metropolitan Chinese city that was built according to a well-planned plan, taking into account cosmological semantics. In 770 BC e. Luoyang became the capital of the Zhou empire. After that, he was the capital of the kingdom of Wei, the Three Kingdoms and the Western Jin Dynasty.
It flourished during the era of Sui, Tang and Song. Luoyang became the cultural capital of Chang'an. The construction of the Eastern capital, as Luoyang was then called, began during the reign of the Sui Dynasty. In just 2 years, it was possible to build a completely new, transformed city. However, all buildings were significantly damaged during the end of the Tang era, which was indicated by frequent wars. Luoyang's revival began during the reign of the Yuan and Ming dynasties. Today it is a small, relatively modern province.
Kaifeng
The historical capitals of China were supplemented by three more cities. One of them is Kaifeng. He had a great many names: Bianyang, Dalian, Liang, Banjing. The capital of the city was during the rule of the Song Dynasty from 960 to 1127. During the reign of the Han Dynasty, the city was of great military importance. However, soon the kingdom of Wei built its capital on this territory, calling it Dalian. When the Wei kingdom was defeated by the Qin kingdom, the city was destroyed and abandoned. During the reign of the East Wei empire, the city was again called Kaifeng. Many times the city changed its name at the request of the rulers. Kaifeng under various names was the capital of the states of Late Han, Late Qin, Late Zhou. According to scientists, in the period 1013-1027 the city was the largest in the world.
During its existence, the city was destroyed many times by military intervention or natural disasters. This did not prevent the rulers from rebuilding it every time and making it the capital of their state.
Hangzhou
The list of the ancient capitals of China continues with the town of Hangzhou, which today is a province. In ancient times, before the Mongol invasion, the city was called Linan. It was the capital during the reign of the Southern Song Dynasty. At that time it was the most populated city in the world. Today the city is known for its natural beauties, huge tea plantations and Lake Xihu. There are two important historical monuments here - the 30-meter Baochu Pagoda and the Yue Fei Mausoleum. As before, the city remains a historical center. Hundreds of Chinese people come here every weekend to see famous monuments. In addition, Hangzhou is a powerful industrial center. It is also called the city of a thousand Chinese corporations. It produces a huge amount of goods. The international airport makes it possible to get from Hangzhou to any major city located in Southeast Asia.
Anyang
Today the city is a small urban district. Anyang was created after the kingdom of Qin united China into a single empire. Under the Sun empire, Anyang's administrative division became two-tier. In addition, the city became the center of Xiangzhou authorities ’gathering. At the end of the Sui empire, it was here that an astonishing uprising began against the government. The city was greatly impoverished due to the fact that it became the scene of hostilities during the An Lushan rebellion.
In the summer of 1949, after the victory in the civil war, the Communists organized a province, the city of whose submission became Anyang. For many years, Anyang was part of different districts and regions. In 1983, Anyang City District was established.
Today we learned about the seven ancient capitals of China. A history book can tell much more, but the history of China is incredibly huge and complex, so investing in the scale of an article is very difficult. However, we learned the most important and most interesting about the historical capitals of China, and also plunged a little into the historical roots of cities and learned their current state. In any case, the capitals of ancient China are of great interest not only for researchers, but also for ordinary tourists. China is a mysterious country that fascinates with its diversity and brightness.