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Suzhou
KNOWLEDGE OF Suzhou
Suzhou (Simplified Chinese: è‹?å·ž; Traditional Chinese: 蘇州; Hanyu Pinyin: SÅ«zhÅ?u; Wade-Giles: Su-chou; sometimes seen transliterated as Su-chow, Suchow, or Soochow) is a famous city on the lower reaches of the Yangtze River and on the shores of Lake Taihu in the province of Jiangsu, China. The city is renowned for its beautiful stone bridges, pagodas, and meticulously designed gardens; Suzhou has also been an important center for China's silk industry since the Song Dynasty (960-1279), and continues to hold that prominent position today. It is part of the Golden Triangle region. The GDP per capita was Â¥57992 (ca. US$7249) in 2005, ranked no. 5 among 659 Chinese cities.
Suzhou, the cradle of Wu culture, is one of the oldest towns in the Yangtze Basin. 2500 years ago, local tribes who named themselves "Gou Wu" in the late Shang Dynasty lived in the area which would become Suzhou.
In 514 BC, during the Spring and Autumn Period, King Helu (阖闾) of Wu established "Great City of Helu", the ancient name for Suzhou, as his capital. In 496 BC, Helu was buried in Huqiu (Tiger Hill).
In 473 BC, Wu was defeated by Yue, another kingdom to the east that was soon annexed by Chu in 306 BC. The golden era of Suzhou was over.
By the time of Qin Dynasty, the city was known as Wu County. Xiang Yu (项羽) staged his historical uprising here in 209 BC; Qin was overthrown.
During Sui Dynasty, the city was renamed Suzhou in 589 AD.
When the Grand Canal was completed, Suzhou found itself strategically located on a major trade route. In the course of the history of China, it has been a metropolis of industry and commerce in the south-eastern coast of China.
During Tang Dynasty (825 AD), the great poet Bai Juyi (白居易) constructed the Shantang Canal to connect the city with Huqiu for the tourists. In 1035 AD, the Confucius temple was founded.
In February 1130, the advancing Jin army from the north sacked the city and committed a holocaust, which was to be followed by Mongol invasion (1275) and destruction of the royal city (in the centre of the walled city) in the beginning of Ming Dynasty (1367).
Afterwards, the city had a more prosperous time; many of the famous private gardens were constructed by the gentiles of Ming Dynasty and Qing Dynasty. However, the city was to see another disaster in 1860 when Taiping soldiers advanced on and captured the city. In November 1863 the Ever Victorious Army of Charles Gordon recaptured the city from the Taiping forces.
After this, the next crisis was the Japanese invasion (1937). Many gardens were devastated by the end of the war. In the early 1950’s, restoration was done on Zhuo-Zheng Yuan (Humble Administrator's Garden), Dong Yuan (East Garden), and others, to bring them back to life. Consequently, most of the existing gardens reflects the architecture style of Qing Dynasty (1616-1911 AD), albeit many of had a history dating back to Ming Dynasty (1368-1644 AD).
In 1981, this ancient city was listed by the State Council as one of the four cities (the other three being Beijing, Hangzhou and Guilin) where the protection of historical and cultural heritage as well as natural scenery should be treated as a priority project.
Suzhou, the cradle of Wu culture, is one of the oldest towns in the Yangtze Basin. 2500 years ago, local tribes who named themselves "Gou Wu" in the late Shang Dynasty lived in the area which would become Suzhou.
In 514 BC, during the Spring and Autumn Period, King Helu (阖闾) of Wu established "Great City of Helu", the ancient name for Suzhou, as his capital. In 496 BC, Helu was buried in Huqiu (Tiger Hill).
In 473 BC, Wu was defeated by Yue, another kingdom to the east that was soon annexed by Chu in 306 BC. The golden era of Suzhou was over.
By the time of Qin Dynasty, the city was known as Wu County. Xiang Yu (项羽) staged his historical uprising here in 209 BC; Qin was overthrown.
During Sui Dynasty, the city was renamed Suzhou in 589 AD.
When the Grand Canal was completed, Suzhou found itself strategically located on a major trade route. In the course of the history of China, it has been a metropolis of industry and commerce in the south-eastern coast of China.
During Tang Dynasty (825 AD), the great poet Bai Juyi (白居易) constructed the Shantang Canal to connect the city with Huqiu for the tourists. In 1035 AD, the Confucius temple was founded.
In February 1130, the advancing Jin army from the north sacked the city and committed a holocaust, which was to be followed by Mongol invasion (1275) and destruction of the royal city (in the centre of the walled city) in the beginning of Ming Dynasty (1367).
Afterwards, the city had a more prosperous time; many of the famous private gardens were constructed by the gentiles of Ming Dynasty and Qing Dynasty. However, the city was to see another disaster in 1860 when Taiping soldiers advanced on and captured the city. In November 1863 the Ever Victorious Army of Charles Gordon recaptured the city from the Taiping forces.
After this, the next crisis was the Japanese invasion (1937). Many gardens were devastated by the end of the war. In the early 1950’s, restoration was done on Zhuo-Zheng Yuan (Humble Administrator's Garden), Dong Yuan (East Garden), and others, to bring them back to life. Consequently, most of the existing gardens reflects the architecture style of Qing Dynasty (1616-1911 AD), albeit many of had a history dating back to Ming Dynasty (1368-1644 AD).
In 1981, this ancient city was listed by the State Council as one of the four cities (the other three being Beijing, Hangzhou and Guilin) where the protection of historical and cultural heritage as well as natural scenery should be treated as a priority project.
Chapi