Zhengding (), originally Zhending (),
is a
county
A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...
in southwestern
Hebei Province
Hebei or , (; alternately Hopeh) is a northern province of China. Hebei is China's sixth most populous province, with over 75 million people. Shijiazhuang is the capital city. The province is 96% Han Chinese, 3% Manchu, 0.8% Hui, an ...
,
North China
North China, or Huabei () is a List of regions of China, geographical region of China, consisting of the provinces of Beijing, Tianjin, Hebei, Shanxi and Inner Mongolia. Part of the larger region of Northern China (''Beifang''), it lies north ...
, located approximately south of
Beijing
}
Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...
. It is under the administration of the
prefecture-level city
A prefecture-level city () or prefectural city is an administrative division of the People's Republic of China (PRC), ranking below a province and above a county in China's administrative structure.
During the Republican era, many of China' ...
of
Shijiazhuang
Shijiazhuang (; ; Mandarin: ), formerly known as Shimen and romanized as Shihkiachwang, is the capital and most populous city of China’s North China's Hebei Province. Administratively a prefecture-level city, it is about southwest of Beijin ...
, the capital of the province, and has a population of 594,000. Zhengding has been an important religious center for more than 1,000 years, from at least the times of the
Sui dynasty
The Sui dynasty (, ) was a short-lived imperial dynasty of China that lasted from 581 to 618. The Sui unified the Northern and Southern dynasties, thus ending the long period of division following the fall of the Western Jin dynasty, and layi ...
to the
Qing dynasty
The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...
. It is the founding place of several major schools of
Chan Buddhism
Chan (; of ), from Sanskrit '' dhyāna'' (meaning "meditation" or "meditative state"), is a Chinese school of Mahāyāna Buddhism. It developed in China from the 6th century CE onwards, becoming especially popular during the Tang and So ...
. However, many former religious building complexes have been severely damaged throughout history. A noted temple is the
Longxing Monastery
The Longxing Monastery or Longxing Temple () is an ancient Buddhist monastery located in the town of Zhengding in Hebei Province, China, approximately north of the provincial capital of Shijiazhuang. It has been referred to as the ''"Best Temple ...
, where the historical building ensemble has been preserved almost intact. Furthermore, four famous
pagoda
A pagoda is an Asian tiered tower with multiple eaves common to Nepal, India, China, Japan, Korea, Myanmar, Vietnam, and other parts of Asia. Most pagodas were built to have a religious function, most often Buddhist but sometimes Taoist, ...
s, each with its own architectural style, are still standing.
History
![Du Halde - Description de la Chine - tchin ting fou - long men hien](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/33/Du_Halde_-_Description_de_la_Chine_-_tchin_ting_fou_-_long_men_hien.jpg)
Archeological finds indicate that the area of Zhengding County has been settled since the early
Neolithic Period
The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several parts ...
. During the
Spring and Autumn period
The Spring and Autumn period was a period in Chinese history from approximately 770 to 476 BC (or according to some authorities until 403 BC) which corresponds roughly to the first half of the Eastern Zhou period. The period's name derives fr ...
, the capital of the
Xianyu Kingdom
Zhongshan () was a small state that existed during the Warring States period, which managed to survive for almost 120 years despite its small size. Its origins of its founder are a matter of contention between scholars.
Origins
The origin of ...
was located in the area. Under the
Han
Han may refer to:
Ethnic groups
* Han Chinese, or Han People (): the name for the largest ethnic group in China, which also constitutes the world's largest ethnic group.
** Han Taiwanese (): the name for the ethnic group of the Taiwanese p ...
, the county was the site of Dongyuan, where the emperor
Liu Bang
Emperor Gaozu of Han (256 – 1 June 195 BC), born Liu Bang () with courtesy name Ji (季), was the founder and first emperor of the Han dynasty, reigning in 202–195 BC. His temple name was "Taizu" while his posthumous name was Emper ...
led a siege during
Chen Xi's rebellion in the early 190sBC.
[.] In the year 256 (
Western Jin dynasty
Western may refer to:
Places
*Western, Nebraska, a village in the US
*Western, New York, a town in the US
*Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western world, countries that id ...
), the
Changshan Prefecture was established in the county. In 923, during the
Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms
The Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period (), from 907 to 979, was an era of political upheaval and division in 10th-century Imperial China. Five dynastic states quickly succeeded one another in the Central Plain, and more than a dozen concu ...
, the prefecture was renamed ''Zhengding Prefecture'', which was later rearranged into the ''Zhengding Prefecture'' and ''Zhongshan County''. Zhengding County was created during the
Qing Dynasty
The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...
, in 1723. In 1949, the county was subordinated to ''Shijiazhuang Prefecture'' and in 1986, it came under the jurisdiction of the City of Shijiazhuang.
President and General Secretary
Xi Jinping
Xi Jinping ( ; ; ; born 15 June 1953) is a Chinese politician who has served as the general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC), and thus as the paramount leader of China, s ...
was Secretary of the county Party Committee between 1983 and 1985. A
princeling
A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...
, son of
Xi Zhongxun
Xi Zhongxun (15 October 1913 – 24 May 2002) was a Chinese communist revolutionary and a subsequent political official in the People's Republic of China. He is considered to be among the first and second generation of Chinese leadership. ...
, he was assigned to this rural area on his own request. He is credited with having a Qing dynasty style mansion constructed in the area for the filming of
Dream of Red Mansions.
Geography and climate
Zhengding County ranges from in elevation. It has a continental
monsoon
A monsoon () is traditionally a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation but is now used to describe seasonal changes in atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with annual latitudinal oscil ...
climate with four distinct seasons. The year-round averages are for the temperature, 62% for the humidity, for the precipitation, and 2,736 hours for the sunshine time. The frost-free period exceeds 200 days per year.
Administrative Divisions
As of 2020, Zhengding County administers 2
subdistricts A subdistrict or sub-district is an administrative division that is generally smaller than a district.
Equivalents
* Administrative posts of East Timor, formerly Portuguese-language
* Kelurahan, in Indonesia
* Mukim, a township in Brunei, Indon ...
, 4 towns and 3 townships, which in turn control 174 villages and 186 natural villages.
Subdistrict:
*
Zhufutun (), Sanlitun ()
Towns:
*
Zhengding Town
Zhengding (), originally Zhending () and postal map romanization, alternately romanized as Chengting is a town in and being the seat of Zhengding County, in southwestern Hebei province, China, located just to the north of Shijiazhuang, the provi ...
(),
Xin'an (),
Xinchengpu (), Nangang (南岗镇),
Quyangqiao Town ()
Townships:
*
Xipingle Township (),
Nanniu Township
Nanniu Township () is a List of township-level divisions of Hebei, township-level division of Zhengding County, Shijiazhuang, Hebei, China.
See also
*List of township-level divisions of Hebei
References
Township-level divisions of Hebei
...
(),
Nanlou Township
Nanlou Township () is a township-level division of Zhengding County, Shijiazhuang, Hebei, China.
See also
*List of township-level divisions of Hebei
This is a list of township-level divisions of the province of Hebei, People's Republic of Chi ...
()
Pagodas
Chengling Pagoda
The ''Chengling Pagoda'' (''Chengling Ta'') is built from gray bricks, it is also known as the ''Grey Pagoda''. It is located in the Village of Linji to the south of Zhengding and was formerly part of the Linji Temple. The Linji Temple was built during the times of the
Eastern Wei
Wei (), known in historiography as the Eastern Wei (), was an imperial dynasty of China that followed the disintegration of the Northern Wei dynasty. One of the Northern dynasties during the Northern and Southern dynasties period, the Eastern Wei ...
dynasty in 540. During the
Tang Dynasty
The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an Zhou dynasty (690–705), interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dyn ...
, it became the site where the monk
Linji Yixuan
Linji Yixuan (; ja, 臨済義玄 ''Rinzai Gigen''; died 866 CE) was the founder of the Linji school of Chan Buddhism during Tang Dynasty China.
Línjì yǔlù
Information on Linji is based on the ''Línjì yǔlù'' (臨濟語錄; Japanese: ' ...
founded the Linji School, one of the five schools of Chinese
Chan
Chan may refer to:
Places
*Chan (commune), Cambodia
*Chan Lake, by Chan Lake Territorial Park in Northwest Territories, Canada
People
*Chan (surname), romanization of various Chinese surnames (including 陳, 曾, 詹, 戰, and 田)
*Chan Caldwel ...
Buddhism
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...
. Both Linji Yixuan and the Linji School derive their names from the village. The pagoda was first built in 867 to serve as a shrine for the mantle and alms bowl of Linji Yixuan. The original pagoda was ruined and replaced during 1161 to 1189 (
Jin Dynasty) by the present-day structure. The present pagoda stands on a substructure known as a ''
Sumeru Pedestal'' after the mythic
Mount Sumeru
Mount Meru (Sanskrit/Pali: मेरु), also known as Sumeru, Sineru or Mahāmeru, is the sacred five-peaked mountain of Hindu, Jain, and Buddhist cosmology and is considered to be the centre of all the physical, metaphysical and spiritu ...
and has an octagonal cross-section. It has nine multi-eared storeys and a total height of 33 meters. Its pedestal is richly decorated. Because it is seen as one of the birthplaces of
Zen
Zen ( zh, t=禪, p=Chán; ja, text= 禅, translit=zen; ko, text=선, translit=Seon; vi, text=Thiền) is a school of Mahayana Buddhism that originated in China during the Tang dynasty, known as the Chan School (''Chánzong'' 禪宗), and ...
Buddhism, the Chengling Pagoda is favorite site for pilgrims and tourists from Japan.
Lingxiao Pagoda
![Zhengding Lingxiao Pagoda 3](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/70/Zhengding_Lingxiao_Pagoda_3.jpg)
The Lingxiao Pagoda, also known as the ''Wooden Pagoda'', is a wood-and-brick construction, which was formerly part of Tianning Monastery, located to the west of Longxing Monastery. It was recorded to have been first built in 860 during the Tang Dynasty, it has undergone many repairs and rebuildings since then. The architectural style of the present-day pagoda was created during the
Song Dynasty
The Song dynasty (; ; 960–1279) was an imperial dynasty of China that began in 960 and lasted until 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song following his usurpation of the throne of the Later Zhou. The Song conquered the rest ...
in 1045 and was left unchanged during later repairs. The pagoda has an octagonal floor plan, nine storeys, and a total height of 41 meters. The four lowest storeys are made from bricks decorated with wooden eaves. From the fifth storey upwards, the pagoda construction is entirely made of wood, constructed around a central pillar. While storey height continuously decreases from the bottom to the top of the pagoda, this decrease is particularly steep in the five upper wooden storeys. The pagoda carries a
cast iron
Cast iron is a class of iron–carbon alloys with a carbon content more than 2%. Its usefulness derives from its relatively low melting temperature. The alloy constituents affect its color when fractured: white cast iron has carbide impuriti ...
spire
A spire is a tall, slender, pointed structure on top of a roof of a building or tower, especially at the summit of church steeples. A spire may have a square, circular, or polygonal plan, with a roughly conical or pyramidal shape. Spires are ...
at its top as well. It is at the foot of this pagoda, that Dutch bishop Mgr. Frans Schraven (1873-1937) and his companions suffered their martyrdom in 1937, at the hands of the Japanese army, because of their refusal to hand over to the soldiers the Chinese women and girls whom had taken refuge in his compound.
Xumi Pagoda
The Xumi Pagoda, named for the mythical
Mount Sumeru
Mount Meru (Sanskrit/Pali: मेरु), also known as Sumeru, Sineru or Mahāmeru, is the sacred five-peaked mountain of Hindu, Jain, and Buddhist cosmology and is considered to be the centre of all the physical, metaphysical and spiritu ...
, also known as ''Summer Pagoda'' is part of Kaiyuan Monastery which is located to the west of Zhengding. It was erected from stone and bricks and is at 48 meters the tallest pagoda in Zhengding. The pagoda has an austere geometric design with a square floor plan set on a stone platform which is likewise square-shaped. Stones have also been used in the lower part of the first storey. The Xumi Pagoda was built during the
Tang Dynasty
The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an Zhou dynasty (690–705), interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dyn ...
in 636. Apart from a wooden ceiling over the first storey (of which no floorboards remain), the inside of the pagoda is hollow and there is no staircase either. Among the rather plain decorations on the outside are thirteen tiers of eaves as well as stone carvings of the Heavenly Kings at the corners of the stone platform. The pagoda is one of originally four fiducial buildings on the grounds of the Kaiyuan Monastery: Tianwang Hall in the front and Fachuan Hall (now in ruins) in the back, a bell tower (built in 540 during the
Eastern Wei
Wei (), known in historiography as the Eastern Wei (), was an imperial dynasty of China that followed the disintegration of the Northern Wei dynasty. One of the Northern dynasties during the Northern and Southern dynasties period, the Eastern Wei ...
dynasty, renovated in 898 during the Tang Dynasty) in the east and the pagoda in the west. Today, the Monastery is largely destroyed and the Xumi pagoda stands surrounded by trees.
Hua Pagoda
The ''Hua Pagoda'' (''Hua Ta'', lit.: ''Flower Pagoda'', part of Guanghui Temple (), in the south of Zhengding) is a four-storey brick building with an unconventional shape and a total height of approximately 40 meters. While the lower three storeys have an octagonal floor plan, the fourth storey has a circular layout over which the walls taper towards the tip giving the storey a conical shape. On the outside, this storey is richly decorated with carvings of Buddhas, elephants, and aquatic animals. Another unusual feature of the Hua Pagoda or four small attached buildings, which are pagodas themselves and crowned with an egg-shaped tip. These were once lost but have recently been completely restored. The Hua Pagoda was first erected during the Tang Dynasty. The present-day structure dates back to a rebuilt during the time of the
Jin Dynasty.
Other historical monuments
In June 2000, a gigantic ''
bixi
Bixi, or Bi Xi (), is a figure from Chinese mythology. One of the 9 sons of the dragon, 9 sons of the Dragon King, he is depicted as a Chinese dragon, dragon with the shell of a turtle. Stone Chinese sculpture, sculptures of Bixi have been used ...
'' turtle was unearthed in Zhengding's Fuqian Street (). The stone turtle, which originally must have supported a similarly giant stone tablet, is 8.4 m long, 3.2 m wide, and 2.6 m tall, and weighs 107 tons. It is estimated to be around 1200 years old. It has since been moved to Kaiyuan Temple.
正定开元寺
(Zhengding's Kaiyuan Temple), 2014-12-22
Transportation
Zhengding has several important railway and road connections, namely the Beijing–Guangzhou, Shijiazhuang–Taiyuan, and Shijiazhuang–Dezhou railways (), and the Beijing–Hong Kong and Macau and Qingdao–Yinchuan Expressways.
Line 1 of Shijiazhuang Metro
Shijiazhuang Metro (; branded as SJZ Metro) is a rapid transit system in Shijiazhuang, Hebei province, China.
Network
Line 1
Line 1, opened on 26 June 2017. It is 34.3 kilometers in length with 26 underground stations.
Line 2
Line 2, opene ...
have 4 stations in Zhengding County.
Shijiazhuang Zhengding International Airport
Shijiazhuang Zhengding International Airport is the primary airport serving Shijiazhuang, the capital of Hebei province, China. The airport is the hub for Hebei Airlines and a focus city for both China United Airlines and Spring Airlines. It is ...
(SJW/ZBSJ) is located in the county's northeast corner; the Zhengding Airport railway station on the new Beijing–Guangzhou–Shenzhen–Hong Kong High-Speed Railway
}
Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...
is nearby.
References
Citations
Bibliography
* .
External links
Official government of Zhengding County government
Hua Pagoda on cntravel.biz
{{authority control
County-level divisions of Hebei
Shijiazhuang