Shengle () was the capital of the
Xianbei
The Xianbei (; ) were a Proto-Mongolic ancient nomadic people that once resided in the eastern Eurasian steppes in what is today Mongolia, Inner Mongolia, and Northeastern China. They originated from the Donghu people who splintered into the ...
-led
Dai state and the first capital of the
Northern Wei dynasty
Wei (), known in historiography as the Northern Wei (), Tuoba Wei (), Yuan Wei () and Later Wei (), was founded by the Tuoba (Tabgach) clan of the Xianbei. The first of the Northern dynasties, it ruled northern China from 386 to 535 during the ...
in the 4th century. The ruins of ancient Shengle is located at present-day Xiyaozi and Tuchengzi village, Shengle Township of
Horinger County
Horinger ( Mongolian: Қорин Гэр сиыан ''Qorin Ger siyan''; ) is a county of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, North China, it is under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Hohhot, the capital of Inner Mongolia, bo ...
, 40 kilometre south of
Hohhot
Hohhot,; abbreviated zh, c=呼市, p=Hūshì, labels=no formerly known as Kweisui, is the capital of Inner Mongolia in the north of the People's Republic of China, serving as the region's administrative, economic and cultural center.''The Ne ...
,
Inner Mongolia
Inner Mongolia, officially the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China. Its border includes most of the length of China's border with the country of Mongolia. Inner Mongolia also accounts for a ...
.
During the
Han dynasty
The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–207 BC) and a warr ...
, the city was part of the
Dingxiang Commandery
Dingxiang Commandery ( zh, 定襄郡) was a historical commandery of China. It was located in the southern part of modern Hohhot and Ulanqab prefectures in Inner Mongolia.
The commandery was separated from Yunzhong during Emperor Gaozu of Han's ...
and known as Chengle County. Towards the end of the dynasty, the commandery was abandoned due to Xiongnu invasions. The city was then settled by
Tuoba Liwei
Tuoba Liwei () was the first leader of the Tuoba clan of the Xianbei people, in 219–277. He was the ancestor of the future Northern Wei Dynasty and was thus posthumously honored as Emperor Shenyuan, with the temple name Shizu. Later, Emperor Wen ...
(219-277), the first leader of the
Tuoba
The Tuoba (reconstructed Middle Chinese pronunciation: *''tʰak-bɛt''), also known as the Taugast or Tabgach ( otk, 𐱃𐰉𐰍𐰲 ''Tabγač''), was a Xianbei clan in Imperial China.Wei Shou. '' Book of Wei''. Vol. 1
During the Sixteen King ...
clan of the Xianbei. In 315,
Tuoba Yilu
Tuoba Yilu (; died 316) was the chieftain of the western Tuoba territory from 295 to 307, supreme chieftain of the Tuoba from 307 to 316, Duke of Dai from 310 to 315, and first ruler of the Dai kingdom from 315 to 316. He was the son of Tuoba Sha ...
became the first King of Dai and made Shengle the northern capital of Dai.
Tuoba Gui
Emperor Daowu of Northern Wei () (4 August 371 – 6 November 409''wuchen'' day of the 10th month of the 6th year of the ''Tian'ci'' era, per Emperor Daowu's biography in ''Book of Wei''), personal name Tuoba Gui (), né Tuoba Shegui (), was the fo ...
, the grandson of the last Dai king, founded the Northern Wei empire. In 398, he moved the capital to the city of
Pingcheng
Datong is a prefecture-level city in northern Shanxi Province in the People's Republic of China. It is located in the Datong Basin at an elevation of and borders Inner Mongolia to the north and west and Hebei to the east. As of the 2020 cens ...
(modern-day Datong) in Shanxi Province. The site would later become the capital of the Zhenwu County of the
Liao dynasty
The Liao dynasty (; Khitan: ''Mos Jælud''; ), also known as the Khitan Empire (Khitan: ''Mos diau-d kitai huldʒi gur''), officially the Great Liao (), was an imperial dynasty of China that existed between 916 and 1125, ruled by the Yelü ...
.
Parts of the rammed-earth walls of the ancient city are still intact. The peripheral walls run 1,550 meters from east to west and 2,250 meters from north to south.
[http://nmg.sina.com.cn/travel/2019-04-09/detail-ihvhiqax1223659.shtml 北魏鲜卑王朝的早期都城—盛乐古城. Sina.com, April 09, 2019]
References
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Archaeological sites in China
Major National Historical and Cultural Sites in Inner Mongolia
Ruins in China
Northern Wei