Zhengding Ancient City

Zhengding, formerly known as Hengshan, Changshan, Hengzhou, Zhenzhou, Zhendong, and Zhending, is a historic city in the north of Shijiazhuang, the capital of Hebei Province. It is located on the central Hebei Plain on the north bank of the Hutuo River, with the Taihang Mountains to the west. It has long been a military stronghold controlling the traffic between Shanxi and Hebei. 🗺️ Zhengding's history can be traced back to the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, when the Xinshi Ancient Site was the capital of the Xianyu people. The county was established in the Qin Dynasty, and the ancient city was built in the Northern Qi Dynasty. In the late Tang Dynasty, it became the seat of the Jiedushi, and in the Song Dynasty, it was the seat of the Hebei West Road. In the Song Dynasty, Zhengding was a major city and military stronghold in the north. 🏰 During the Sui, Tang, Song, and Jin dynasties, Zhengding was one of the most important cities in Hebei Province. Its development began to rise gradually in the late Southern Song and early Yuan dynasties. Before Baoding City (Qingyuan County, Baoding Prefecture), the capital of Later Yan, Zhongshan (today's Dingzhou), was the largest city in the Baoding area, and for decades during the Sixteen Kingdoms period, it even surpassed Beijing at the time. 🏯 In the Yuan Dynasty, Zhengding was the seat of Zhending Road, and in the Ming and Qing dynasties, it was the seat of Zhending Prefecture. In the early Qing Dynasty, the capital of Zhili Province was briefly located here. During the reign of Emperor Yongzheng of the Qing Dynasty, the name was changed to Zhengding to avoid the emperor's name, Yinzhen. From the late Northern and Southern Dynasties to the late Qing Dynasty and early Republic of China, Zhengding was the political and economic center of the Shijiazhuang area. 🏛️ Although Zhengding's history is not very long, due to the relatively small war damage after the Tang Dynasty and the relocation of the administrative center, there are now nine national treasure units preserved in the ancient city, most of which were built before the Yuan Dynasty, making it a county with rich cultural relics. 🏺