Nanjing is the capital of Jiangsu province and the second largest city in eastern China (after Shanghai), with a total population of 8.16 million and a urban population of 6.55 million in 2013. The city whose name means "Southern Capital" has a prominent place in Chinese history and culture, having served as the capitals of various Chinese dynasties, kingdoms and republican governments dating from the 3rd century AD to 1949.Prior to the advent of pinyin romanization, Nanjing's city name was spelled as Nanking or Nankin.
Nanjing was one of the earliest established cities in what is now China. According to legend, Fuchai, King of the State of Wu, founded a fort named Yecheng (冶城) in today's Nanjing area in 495 BCE. Later in 473 BCE, the State of Yue conquered Wu and constructed the fort of Yuecheng (越城) on the outskirts of the present-day Zhonghua Gate. In 333 BCE, after eliminating the State of Yue, the State of Chu built Jinling Yi (金陵邑) in the western part of present-day Nanjing. Under the Qin and Han dynasties, it was called Moling (秣陵). Since then, the city had experienced destruction and renewal many times.
The first emperor of the Ming dynasty, Zhu Yuanzhang (the Hongwu Emperor), who overthrew the Yuan dynasty, renamed the city Yingtian, rebuilt it, and made it the dynastic capital in 1368. He constructed a 48 km (30 mi) long city wall around Yingtian, as well as a new Ming Palace complex, and government halls. It took 200,000 laborers 21 years to finish the project. The present-day City Wall of Nanjing was mainly built during that time and today it remains in good condition and has been well preserved. It is among the longest surviving city walls in China.[33] The Jianwen Emperor ruled from 1398 to 1402.
George Note: I walked along a part of the wall near the Xuanwu lake – a huge man-made lake that was used for admiral’s maritime practice (and boating enthusiasts). Each brick is inscribed with the village name and date of the workers who made and placed the bricks (see photos). Emporer Zhu pledged that if the wall was breached, the bricklayers for those weak bricks would be executed! How’s that for accountability?
It is believed that Nanjing was the largest city in the world from 1358 to 1425 with a population of 487,000 in 1400. Nanjing remained the capital of the Ming Empire until 1421, when the third emperor of the Ming dynasty, the Yongle Emperor, relocated the capital to Beijing.
George Note: Of course, as with most of China – and most developing countries – that contrasts between the historical accomplishments and modern development are stark and sometimes unsettling. It is not uncommon to see a street cleaner with a broom made of dried branches sweeping the street in front of a high tech cell phone shop.
