Linhuangfu ( zh, t=臨潢府, s=临潢府, l=Linhuang Prefecture) was the primary capital city of the Liao dynasty of China, during which it was also known as Shangjing ( zh, c=上京, l=Upper/Supreme Capital). The city was founded in 918 by the Liao emperor Yelü Abaoji, and was named Shangjing Linhuangfu in 938. Its ruins are located in present-day Baarin Left Banner in

Chifeng Chifeng,; also known as Ulanhad ( (Улаанхад хот), ''Ulaɣanqada qota'', , "red cliff") also known as Ulankhad in Mongolian, is a prefecture-level city in Southeastern Inner Mongolia, People's Republic of China. It borders Xilin Gol Le ...

Inner Mongolia Inner Mongolia, officially the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, is an Autonomous regions of China, autonomous region of China. Its border includes two-thirds of the length of China's China–Mongolia border, border with the country of Mongolia. ...

, China.

History

In 918, the Liao founder Yelü Abaoji established the city as ''huangdu'' (imperial capital) in the Liaoxi steppe, the homeland of the nomadic

Khitan people The Khitan people (Khitan small script: ; ) were a historical Eurasian nomads, nomadic people from Northeast Asia who, from the 4th century, inhabited an area corresponding to parts of modern Mongolia, Northeast China and the Russian Far East. ...

that established the empire. According to the ''

History of Liao History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some theorists categ ...

'', the construction of the new city was overseen by Kang Moji (康默記), and completed within 100 days. Shangjing was modeled after the Tang capital

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 Liao took in large groups of

Han Chinese The Han Chinese, alternatively the Han people, are an East Asian people, East Asian ethnic group native to Greater China. With a global population of over 1.4 billion, the Han Chinese are the list of contemporary ethnic groups, world's la ...

refugees, many of whom were resettled in the capital as well as neighboring towns in the steppe, together with captured soldiers and civilians from northern China. The capital saw large-scale expansion and rebuilding in 926, after the Liao conquest of Bohai, including the addition of a southern "Han City" and the completion of imperial palaces. Despite Linhuangfu being the Supreme Capital, the Khitan court maintained their mobile lifestyle, constantly traveling across the empire.

Jurchens Jurchen (, ; , ) is a term used to collectively describe a number of East Asian people, East Asian Tungusic languages, Tungusic-speaking people. They lived in northeastern China, also known as Manchuria, before the 18th century. The Jurchens wer ...

of the

Jin dynasty Jin may refer to: States Jìn 晉 * Jin (Chinese state) (晉國), major state of the Zhou dynasty, existing from the 11th century BC to 376 BC * Jin dynasty (266–420) (晉朝), also known as Liang Jin and Sima Jin * Jin (Later Tang precursor) ...

conquered Linhuangfu in 1120, destroying much of the city. It was redesignated as the Northern Capital in 1138, and ceased to be one of the Jin capitals in 1150. The city was destroyed by the

Mongol Mongols are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia, China (Inner Mongolia and other 11 autonomous territories), as well as the republics of Buryatia and Kalmykia in Russia. The Mongols are the principal member of the large family of M ...

armies in 1214 and left abandoned afterwards.

Layout

Liao Shangjing 2017 Dashun Gate rammed earth B

Shangjing was located at the southern end of the

Greater Khingan The Greater Khingan Range or Da Hinggan Range ( zh, s=大兴安岭, t=大興安嶺, p=Dà Xīng'ān Lǐng; IPA: ) is a volcanic mountain range in the Inner Mongolia region of Northeast China. It was originally called the Xianbei Mountains, whi ...

Range, along the Shali River. The city consisted of an Imperial City in the north and a Han City in the south, now separated by the Shali. The former housed the imperial family and the ruling elite, while the latter was the residence of Han Chinese and other non-Khitan populations. The Imperial City had an irregular square plan, and measured by . The Han city was by in size. The walls of the Imperial City was up to high and thick, whereas the Han city had walls as high as and up to in thickness. The palatial district was located in the central-eastern part of the Imperial City, with a perimeter of . A large Buddhist monastery has been confirmed on the heights near the western wall of the Imperial City.

References

{{Liao dynasty topics Former administrative divisions of China Major National Historical and Cultural Sites in Inner Mongolia Liao dynasty Ruins in China Ancient Chinese capitals