Huaqing Pool (), also known as the Huaqing Hot Springs (), are a complex of

hot spring A hot spring, hydrothermal spring, or geothermal spring is a Spring (hydrology), spring produced by the emergence of Geothermal activity, geothermally heated groundwater onto the surface of the Earth. The groundwater is heated either by shallow ...

s located in an area characterized by mild weather and scenic views at the northern foot of

Mount Li Mount Li () is a mountain located in the northeast of Xi'an in Shaanxi Province, China. The mountain is part of the Qinling mountain range and rises to a height of 1302 metres (4271 ft) above sea level. It is one of the eight scenic spots of th ...

, one of the three major peaks of the

Qinling The Qinling () or Qin Mountains, formerly known as the Nanshan ("Southern Mountains"), are a major east–west mountain range in southern Shaanxi Province, China. The mountains mark the divide between the drainage basins of the Yangtze and Ye ...

. The Huaqing Hot Springs are located approximately east of

Xi'an Xi'an is the list of capitals in China, capital of the Chinese province of Shaanxi. A sub-provincial city on the Guanzhong plain, the city is the third-most populous city in Western China after Chongqing and Chengdu, as well as the most populou ...

(formerly

Chang'an Chang'an (; zh, t=長安, s=长安, p=Cháng'ān, first=t) is the traditional name of the city now named Xi'an and was the capital of several Chinese dynasties, ranging from 202 BCE to 907 CE. The site has been inhabited since Neolithic time ...

, the western capital of the

Tang dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, c=唐朝), or the Tang Empire, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907, with an Wu Zhou, interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed ...

), in the province of

Shaanxi Shaanxi is a Provinces of China, province in north Northwestern China. It borders the province-level divisions of Inner Mongolia to the north; Shanxi and Henan to the east; Hubei, Chongqing, and Sichuan to the south; and Gansu and Ningxia to t ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

History

The spring used the locally-occurring

geothermal heating Geothermal heating is the direct use of geothermal energy for some heating applications. Humans have taken advantage of geothermal heat this way since the Paleolithic era. Approximately seventy countries made direct use of a total of 270 PJ o ...

and features a long documented history of almost three millennia, having served as the location for several palaces built during the reigns of past Chinese dynastic rulers, including King You of the

Zhou dynasty The Zhou dynasty ( ) was a royal dynasty of China that existed for 789 years from until 256 BC, the longest span of any dynasty in Chinese history. During the Western Zhou period (771 BC), the royal house, surnamed Ji, had military ...

Qin Shi Huang Qin Shi Huang (, ; February 25912 July 210 BC), born Ying Zheng () or Zhao Zheng (), was the founder of the Qin dynasty and the first emperor of China. He is widely regarded as the first ever supreme leader of a unitary state, unitary d ...

of the

Qin dynasty The Qin dynasty ( ) was the first Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China. It is named for its progenitor state of Qin, a fief of the confederal Zhou dynasty (256 BC). Beginning in 230 BC, the Qin under King Ying Zheng enga ...

, and an expanded version by Wu Han of the

Han dynasty The Han dynasty was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China (202 BC9 AD, 25–220 AD) established by Liu Bang and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–206 BC ...

. Under the Tang emperors Taizong and Xuanzong, with the latter had the structure rebuilt in 723 as part of the Huaqing Palace (), and is famous as the supposed scene of Xuanzong's romance with his consort

Yang Guifei Yang Yuhuan (; 719 – 15 July 756Volume 218 of ''Zizhi Tongjian'' recorded that Yang was killed on the ''bing'shen'' day of the 6th month of the 1st year of the ''Zhi'de'' era of Tang Suzong's reign. This date corresponds to 15 Jul 756 on the ...

. However, during the events associated with the

An Lushan rebellion The An Lushan rebellion was a civil war in China that lasted from 755 to 763, at the approximate midpoint of the Tang dynasty (618–907). It began as a commandery rebellion attempting to overthrow and replace the Tang government with the rogue ...

, considerable damage was done to the site. Nevertheless, the historical legacy of the Huaqing pools has received lasting commemoration, such as in the following mention of Emperor Xuanzong and Yang in

Bai Juyi Bai Juyi (also Bo Juyi or Po Chü-i; , Mandarin Chinese, Mandarin pinyin ''Bǎi Jūyì''; 772–846), courtesy name Letian (樂天), was a Chinese musician, poet, and politician during the Tang dynasty. Many of his poems concern his career o ...

's poem '' Song of Everlasting Regret'': — ('' Chang hen ge'') :On a cold spring day, he bestowed upon her the honor of bathing with him at the Huaqing pools, :The waters of the hot springs were smooth, and washed over her pale white skin. :The palace maids helped her to leave the pool, because she was too delicate and lacked strength. :This was when she began to receive the emperor's advances. This site was also the scene of the 1936

Xi'an Incident The Xi'an Incident was a Chinese political crisis that lasted from 12 to 26 December 1936. Chiang Kai-shek, the leader of the Nationalist government of China, was arrested in Xi'an by soldiers of the Northeastern Army under the command of Ge ...

, when Chiang Kai-shek was kidnapped by former warlord

Zhang Xueliang Zhang Xueliang ( zh, t=張學良; June 3, 1901 – October 15, 2001), also commonly known by his nickname "the Young Marshal", was a Chinese general who in 1928 succeeded his father Zhang Zuolin as the commander of the Northeastern Army. He is bes ...

and forced to participate in a

United Front A united front is an alliance of groups against their common enemies, figuratively evoking unification of previously separate geographic fronts or unification of previously separate armies into a front. The name often refers to a political and/ ...

with the

Chinese Communist Party The Communist Party of China (CPC), also translated into English as Chinese Communist Party (CCP), is the founding and One-party state, sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Founded in 1921, the CCP emerged victorious in the ...

to oppose

Imperial Japan The Empire of Japan, also known as the Japanese Empire or Imperial Japan, was the Japanese nation state that existed from the Meiji Restoration on January 3, 1868, until the Constitution of Japan took effect on May 3, 1947. From Japan–Kor ...

Present

Huaqing Pool is currently an important tourist spot, classified as a

AAAAA scenic area AAAAA () is awarded to the most important and best-maintained tourist attractions in the People's Republic of China, given the highest level in the rating categories used by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. As of 2025, there are 359 tourist ...

by the

China National Tourism Administration The China National Tourism Administration (CNTA) was a Chinese government authority responsible for the development of tourism affairs and was subordinate to the State Council. Its headquarters were in Beijing. History The predecessor was the ...

Gallery

File:华清宫.jpg, A view of Huaqing Palace, near Huaqing Pool File:Hua-Qing-Chi-Gui-Fei-Tang.jpg, Guifei Pond () File:Hua-Qing-Chi-Lian-Hua-Tang.jpg, Lianhua Pond () File:Hua-Qing-Chi-Yang-Gui-Fei.jpg, Statue of Yang Guifei. File:Huaqingchi 2.JPG, Huaqing Pool with artificial lotus File:华清池贵妃泉.JPG, Guifei Spring ('The Lady's Spring') File:华清池飞霜殿.JPG, Feishuang Hall ('Hall of the Drifting Frost') File:华清池的一副壁画.JPG, One of the Huaqing Pool's murals File:华清池的杨妃池.JPG, "Lady Yang's Pool", a reconstructed

Qing The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing, was a Manchu-led Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China and an early modern empire in East Asia. The last imperial dynasty in Chinese history, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the ...

version, later used by Chiang Kai-shek File:贵妃出浴.jpg, Statue of Lady Yang coming out of the bath

References

External links

* (English subtitle) {{Authority control Chinese poetry allusions Tang dynasty Hot springs of China Major National Historical and Cultural Sites in Shaanxi AAAAA-rated tourist attractions Ponds of China