Runan County () is a
county under the administration of the
prefecture-level city of
Zhumadian, in the southeast of
Henan Province, China.
History
In ancient times, this area was called "the middle of the world" (), since it was the center of government for
Yu province and lay at the heart of the
Nine Provinces
The term Nine Provinces or Nine Regions (), is used in ancient Chinese histories to refer to territorial divisions or islands during the Xia and Shang dynasties and has now come to symbolically represent China. "Province" is the word used to t ...
. The Duke of Zhou (), the most influential statesman of the early Zhou dynasty, visited Runan many times and termed it as the center of the land. During the
Han dynasty, it contributed the most officials to the central government of any commandery, and was
ancestral home to the immensely influential Ru'nan
Yuan clan. In former times Runan County was at various times called Ancheng County () and Ruyang County (), and Caizhou ()., amongst others. During the
Zhou dynasty (1,045-256 BC), the vassal
State of Dao fell within the borders of the county.
The town was the site of a major battle, the
siege of Caizhou
The siege of Caizhou between 1233 and 1234 was fought between the Jurchen-led Jin dynasty and the allied forces of the Mongol Empire and Southern Song dynasty. It was the last major battle in the Mongol conquest of the Jin dynasty.
Backgroun ...
, in the
war between the
Mongol Empire
The Mongol Empire of the 13th and 14th centuries was the largest contiguous land empire in history. Originating in present-day Mongolia in East Asia, the Mongol Empire at its height stretched from the Sea of Japan to parts of Eastern Europe, ...
and
Jurchen Jin dynasty.
Emperor Aizong, the Jurchen ruler, had fled to Caizhou after the Jin capital of
Kaifeng was
captured by the Mongols. He committed suicide in Caizhou and his successor,
Emperor Mo, was killed in the besieged town. The Jin dynasty ended in Runan in 1234.
Administrative divisions
Today Runan County falls under the jurisdiction of the prefecture level city of Zhumadian. With a land area of 1306 square kilometres, the county is home to some 770,000 people (2002 figure). The county government is based in the town of Runing (Juning) (). The county of Runan was far larger in Chinese history, but had to surrender a lot of its territories to the nearby city of Zhumadian and counties in the recent centuries. This means that today's Runan is much smaller than it was.
Since Runan was famous in Chinese history, many historical relics still could be found in the county seat and within its county boundary. Notably, the Nanhai Chan Temple is famous in the Buddhist world. The site where the Duke of Zhou visited became a historical site as well.
As 2017, this county is divided to 4 subdistricts, 12 towns and 2 townships.
Subdistricts
Towns
Townships
*
Nanyudian Township ()
*
Bandian Township
The Bandian Fire Temple ( fa, محوطه باستانی بندیان) is an archaeological site in Dargaz County, Razavi Khorasan Province, Iran, near the medieval city Abiward. The primary excavations were carried out to reveal precious remains o ...
()
Climate
References
County-level divisions of Henan
Zhumadian
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