Archaeological studies show that Chinese
civilizations can be traced back to 5,000 years ago. Since China has seen in its
long history several societies and many dynasties, its administrative divisions
and their names have changed a great deal. This is true to Hebei. However, Hebei
has held an important position in China's long historical evolution.
|
The Tanshan stone inscription made in
the Zhou Dynasty.According to legend it was carved for recording the date
when the King Muwang of Zhou State visited Zanhuang. |
China has a
long history and is one of the origins of mankind. In Hebei, a province with a
long history, cultural remains of ancient people are scattered all over the
land. Primitive people began to live and multiply on the land more than 2
million years ago. They experienced the primitive society, matriarchal society,
patriarchal society, etc. Yan Di and Huang Di, two emperors in Chinese legend,
once lived in Hebei. Yao, Shun and Yu, the earliest emperors in Chinese history
left their footmarks in the land as well.
The Xia Dynasty, which began in 21st century B.C, was the first dynasty with
chronological records in Chinese history. After the Xia came the Shang, which
set up its capital once in southwest Xingtai City, Hebei Province. In 11th
century B.C., Zhouwuwang overthrew the Shang Dynasty and a new dynasty, the Zhou
Dynasty, began. From then on, China began to have the record for its
administrative divisions. The Zhou is divided into the Eastern Zhou and the
Western Zhou. In 770 B. C. Emperor Ping Wang moved his capital to Luoyi
(present-day Luoyang City, Henan Province). The Zhou, before the removal of the
capital, is called the Western Zhou and after that, it is called the Eastern
Zhou. The Eastern Zhou is divided into two periods: the Spring and Autumn Period
and the Warring States Period. In the Western Zhou, a system of enfeoffment was
carried out. King Zhou granted his sons and brothers, heroes or chiefs of those
tribes who submitted to his rule conquest land and people, and allow them to set
up dukedoms or small states. By the Spring and Autumn Period (770 B.C.- 476
B.C.) of the Eastern Zhou, there were over 100 dukedoms on record. After long
years of battle for annexation, only seven states remained by the Warring States
Period (475 B.C.-221 B.C.), that is, the noted “Seven Powerful States in the
Warring States Period”, namely the Wei, Zhao, Han, Qi, Qin, Chu and Yan states.
Of the 7 states the Yan set up its capital in north Hebei, and the Zhao in the
south. In central Hebei, there was the Zhongshan State, a state founded by the
Di people (a minoritynationality in northern
China).
|
The stele carved in A.D.481 for recording the patrol
and hunting by the King Xiaowen of the Northern Wei
Dynasty |
After China was unified by emperor
Qin Shi Huang in 221 B. C., the system of “Jun and Xian” or prefectures and
counties was carried out, and China was divided into 36 Jun or prefectures at
first, and then into 40. In Hebei there were 8, namely the Shanggu, Yuyang,
Youbeiping, Guangyang, Handan, Julu, Dai and Hengshan
Jun.
In the Han Dynasty, China was divided
into 13 “Cishibu” or provinces. The north part of Hebei belonged to Youzhou
Cishibu, while the central and south parts belonged to Jizhou Cishibu, and a
small fraction of the northwest part belonged to Bingzhou Cishibu. The land
north of Zhangjiakou was a place where the Xiongnu people and Wuhuan people
moved about.
After the Han, came the Wei
State, Jin Dynasty and Southern and Northern Dynasties. You Zhou and Ji Zhou
remained as the highest local administrations in Hebei.
As a kind of administrative division, the
system of Zhou (provincial level administration) was adopted during Emperor Wen
Di’s reign of the Sui Dynasty. During the reign by Emperor Yang Di, the system
of Zhou was changed to the system of Jun, or prefecture. Counties were put under
direct jurisdiction of a prefecture. There were 14 prefectures in Hebei such as
the prefectures of Beiping, Hengshan, and so on. As a kind of administration in
Hebei, Ji Zhou and You Zhou disappeared from then
on.
In the first years of the Tang
Dynasty, China was divided into 10 Dao in accordance with the lay of mountains
and the flow of rivers. Most parts of present-day Hebei belonged to Hebei Dao
and the rest belonged to Hedong Dao and Guannei Dao. The term “Hebei” came
into being in the Western Han Dynasty some 2,000 years ago. But as the name of a
large administration, Hebei came into existence in the first year of the reign
of Zhenguan (627 A.D.) of the Tang when Emperor Taizong ordered the merging of
provinces and establishing Dao, a kind of provincial level administration.
|
The Yili stele set up by the order of emperor
Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty in commemoration of the victory in quelling
the rebellions of the Zhunger Mongolia
Tribe. |
After the collapse of the Tang, China
entered the period of “Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms”. Hebei was under the
jurisdiction of the Liang, Tang, Jin, Han, and Zhou dynasties.
In early Song Dynasty, China was divided
into 15 Lu and Hebei belonged to Hebei Lu. Later on Hebei was divided into two
parts: East Hebei Lu and West Hebei Lu.
In the Yuan Dynasty, the system of provinces was adopted and China was divided
into 11 provinces. Most part of present Hebei was under the jurisdiction of
Zhongshu Province because it was around the Grand Capital of the Yuan (today’s
Beijing).
In early Ming Dynasty, the
capital was in Yingtian Fu (present-day Nanjing, Jiangsu Province). Most areas
of today’s Hebei were under North Zhili Province. When the capital was moved to
Shuntian Fu (present-day Beijing) in the 19th year of the Yongle’s reign of the
Ming (1421) Beijing was called Jingshi and most areas of today’s Hebei Province
were under Jingshi.
In the Qing Dynasty,
Hebei was called Zhili Province.
Hebei was
given the present name in June 1928. When the Republic of China was founded in
1911 its capital was in Nanjing (then called Nanking). Hebei, at that time, was
called Zhili but was not around the capital. So Zhili Province was renamed Hebei
Province later.
The People's Republic of
China was founded on October 1,1949 and the name of Hebei Province remained
unchanged. In 1952, Pingyuan Province was put to an end and 3 of its counties,
namely wu’an, Shexian and Linzhang, were put under the administration of Hebei.
In the same year, Chahaer Province was put to an end and two of its prefectures,
namely Chanan and Chabei, were incorporated into Hebei. In 1956, Rehe Province
was put to an end and most of its areas were incorporated in to Hebei. In 1958,
8 counties under Hebei (namely Shunyi, Yanqing, Pinggu, Fangshan, Tongxian,
Miyun, Huairou, and Daxing) were incorporated into Beijing, and in 1973 another
5 counties (Jixian, Baodi, Wuqing, Jinghai and Ninghe) were incorporated into
Tianjin. Thus formed the present scale of Hebei’s administration
divisions.
|
