Judging from a series of ancient cultural sites that have been excavated, Baoding area has a developed prehistoric civilization. For example, the Homo sapiens fossils unearthed in Laishui County can prove that 28,000 years ago, this was the breeding ground of Homo sapiens, the ancestor of the yellow race (Mongoloid race). Numerous cultural sites from the Stone Age to the Shang and Zhou Dynasties, as well as historical records and a large number of legends about Tang Yao and the Yi family, can prove that this is the hometown of Tang Yao. Four to five thousand years ago, this was already a densely populated area with densely populated settlements and a fairly developed primitive agricultural economy. The Yi family was already herding cattle and horses, planting mulberries and grains in the Yishui River Basin. The Beibo bronzes unearthed from Zhangjiawa, Laishui, are believed by experts to be the first fiefdom of the ancient Yan Kingdom. During the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, the Baoding area was first the land of the feudal states of Yan and Zhongshan (Xianyu). In the middle of the Warring States Period, Zhao destroyed Zhongshan, and the south of Baoding belonged to Zhao and the north to Yan. The saying "Yan South, Zhao North" began to exist, and became the Yan culture 's hinterland. The State of Yan once built its capital in the east of present-day Rongcheng, and King Zhao of Yan built his capital in present-day Yi County. Events passed down through the ages such as King Yan Zhao's restoration of the country and Jing Ke's assassination of King Qin all originated here. During the Qin and Han Dynasties, many commanderies (states) and counties were established in the Baoding area, and gates and cities were built, making it an important defensive location in the north.
The period of the Three Kingdoms, Two Jins, Southern and Northern Dynasties was an important stage of national integration in my country. The aristocratic families in Hebei went south to the Jianghuai River, while the northern nomads went south to the Central Plains to accept Han culture and establish a country. The Baoding area is in the transitional zone between farming culture and nomadic culture, and will be the most affected. From the Sixteenth Kingdom of the Eastern Jin Dynasty to the Northern and Southern Dynasties, the Baoding area belonged to the states established by ethnic minorities successively: Ran Wei, Later Zhao, Qian Yan, Qian Qin, Later Yan, Northern Wei, Eastern Wei, Northern Qi, Northern Zhou, etc. Among them, the capital of Later Yan was Zhongshan (today's Dingzhou) ). Years of war have affected the economic development of Baoding's region; as a large number of nobles moved south, the local culture was impacted. But at the same time, the activities of multiple ethnic minorities here have injected diverse elements into the culture here, making the folk customs here simple and vigorous, and the culture also rich in characteristics. "Book of the Sui Dynasty: Geography" says: "Since ancient times, brave warriors have always pushed for peace, but Zhuo County has been full of elegant people since the previous dynasties."
During the Sui, Tang and Five Dynasties, the Baoding area experienced the Sui and early War The stable development stage of the prosperous Tang Dynasty also experienced the turmoil of the late Sui Dynasty, the Anshi Rebellion of the Tang Dynasty, separatist feudal vassal towns, and the wars of the Five Dynasties. In the early Sui Dynasty and the prosperous Tang Dynasty, Baoding's economy and culture achieved comprehensive development. In the Tang Dynasty, Baoding area belonged to Hebei Province. During the Tianbao period of the Tang Dynasty, Hebei Province had 1.82 million shi of millet in Zhengcang and 17.54 million shi in Yicang, ranking first in the country. Their economic status was very important, so in the Tang Dynasty, a general administration office was established in Dingzhou. Economic development has promoted cultural prosperity, and a large number of cultural celebrities have emerged. At the end of the Sui Dynasty, peasant uprisings were raging, and Baoding was a very active place for peasant uprisings. During the An-Shi Rebellion, this place bore the brunt of the rebellion. The vassal towns were separatist, and the vassal towns here were the strongest, enough to compete with the Tang Dynasty. No wonder some scholars who were unsuccessful in the Tang Dynasty came here to look for a way out. Dong Shaonan in Han Yu's "Preface to Sending Dong Shaonan to Hebei" is one of them. During the Five Dynasties, Baoding belonged to the Later Tang Dynasty, Later Jin Dynasty, Later Han Dynasty, Later Zhou Dynasty and Liao Dynasty (Khitan), etc., and various rulers fought and killed each other. Although Baoding is not the focus of political or military struggles, it is always in the vortex of war. Important battles include the Battle of Quyang between the Later Tang Dynasty and the Khitan, the Liao soldiers' invasion to the south, and Zhou Shizong's Northern Expedition. In the later Jin Dynasty, Shi Jingtang ceded the sixteen states of Yanyun to the Khitan (Liao Dynasty), and Zhuozhou in the north of Baoding was transferred to the Liao Dynasty. Years of war have left the people without peace and the economy has been greatly damaged.
During the Song, Liao, Jin and Yuan dynasties, Baoding was first on the border of Song and Liao. War often broke out between Song and Liao, and the main battlefields were mostly in the Baoding area. The famous ones include the Yang family’s resistance against the Liao, the Battle of Mancheng, and Waqiao The Battle of Guan Pass, the Battle of Qigou Pass, etc. The Song-Liao wars mostly ended with the defeat of the Song Dynasty, and the Liao army looted and left after their victory. It was not until December of the first year of Jingde in the Song Dynasty (January 1005) that the Song and Liao Dynasties concluded the "Chanyuan Alliance", and the two countries ended the large-scale war that lasted for more than 30 years. The two sides use Yishui and Baigou rivers as their boundaries, and open sales markets to each other for bilateral trade. Most of these sales markets are within the boundaries of Baoding.
In order to defend against the southward invasion of Liao soldiers, the Song Dynasty not only built border passes to garrison troops, but also stationed troops along the border areas, from present-day Mancheng, Baoding, Xushui, Qingyuan, Anxin, and Gaoyang, all the way to Nigu Haikou (present-day Tanggu) , dug dykes and ponds 900 miles long, and spread them all over the ponds to prevent the Liao cavalry from going south. They also built brick towers more than 80 meters high in Dingzhou to watch the enemy's situation. At this time, the defensive function of Baoding became more and more prominent. In the Northern Song Dynasty, the Baosai Army was first established, and later it was promoted to Baozhou and a state city was built. Establish a road in Dingzhou and unify 8 states. The long-term war has cultivated the martial spirit of the Baoding people. The Northern Song Dynasty writer Wang Yucheng's essay "The Story of the Tanghe Inn Woman" describes an elderly woman in a town on the bank of the Tang River who killed Liao soldiers with her bare hands. The article also listed Shanggu. There are brave local armed forces such as "Jingsai" in Xiongzhou and "Naojie" in Xiongzhou. They have the courage to kill the enemy and defend the territory. The fundamental reason why the Song Dynasty failed in its war against the Liao Dynasty was the improper military measures and political corruption of the Song Dynasty.
After the Jin Dynasty destroyed the Liao Dynasty and the Northern Song Dynasty and unified the north, many Han people in Hebei were moved outside the customs. At the same time, the Jurchens moved south in large numbers and implemented fierce restraint. The Jurchen nobles became feudal landlords and gradually became Hanized. The Jin Dynasty established the Zhongdu in present-day Beijing, the Zhongshan Prefecture in Dingzhou, and the Shuntian Army Jiedushi in Baozhou. When the Mongolian soldiers came, the Jurchens were unable to resist, and a large number of landowners armed themselves to protect themselves. The rulers of the Jin Dynasty launched the "Jiu Gong Feudalism", which recognized these armed forces and used them to resist the Mongolian soldiers. Several of them were in Baoding. within the territory. But this did not save its fate of failure. In December of the first year of Jin Zhenyou's reign (1213), the Mongolian army captured Baozhou and the city was destroyed. In the unification war that destroyed the Jin Dynasty in Mongolia and the Southern Song Dynasty, the Han armed forces in Baoding played a great role. Well-known military generals include Zhang Rou, Zhang Hongfan and his son from Dingxing, Shi Xian from Boye, etc. Among them, Zhang Rou repeatedly defeated the Jin soldiers. , moved the town to Baozhou, rebuilt Baozhou City, and laid the foundation of Baoding City. Zhang Hongfan captured Wen Tianxiang, the Prime Minister of the Southern Song Dynasty, led his army to attack Yashan, and obtained the seal of the Southern Song Dynasty. The capital of the Yuan Dynasty was Dadu (today's Beijing), with Baoding as the southern barrier, so Shuntian Army was renamed Shuntian Road. In the twelfth year of the Yuan Dynasty (1275), Shuntian Road was renamed Baoding Road. It governed 7 states and 8 counties, including Baoding. The name started from this point on.
During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, Baoding was still a place of Jifu. During the Hongwu period of the Ming Dynasty, Baoding Road was renamed Baoding Prefecture. After Zhu Di, the founder of the Ming Dynasty, moved the capital to Beijing, in order to enrich the population around the capital, he immigrated from Shanxi and beyond the Great Wall to Hebei. A large number of immigrants settled in Baoding. The Ming Dynasty moved the Daning Capital Division to Baoding and set up a general military headquarters in Baoding, with more than 10,000 troops stationed all year round, responsible for the defense of the vicinity of Gyeonggi. After the "Tumu Incident", the Mongolian Oara tribe broke through Zijingguan and encircled Beijing, and then retreated from Zijingguan. Baoding's strategic defense status is increasingly important. Then Baoding City was rebuilt, and the earth city was changed into a brick city. It took five years to complete. At the same time, the inner Great Wall was built in the Taihang Mountains in the west of Baoding, and the gates and pier castles were built in Zijing, Daoma, Longquan Pass, etc. Most of the Great Wall and Guancheng in Baoding were left over from the Ming Dynasty. At the end of the Ming Dynasty, Qing troops attacked Baoding. Because the army and people of Baoding worked together to defend it, they moved to Gaoyang. Sun Chengzong, the former Minister of War in the Ming Dynasty, led his family and people to resist. The city was destroyed and more than 20 people from the Sun family died. Li Zicheng's rebel army went north and fought fiercely with the Ming army in Baoding. After five days and nights of offensive and defensive fighting, the rebel army defeated Baoding. After the rebel army failed, Qing troops entered the pass again, and Baoding belonged to the Qing Dynasty.
In the early Qing Dynasty, in the first year of Shunzhi (1644), the "Land Enclosure Order" was promulgated, and a large amount of land was enclosed 300 miles away from Beijing (later expanded to 500 miles), mainly in the eight prefectures of Zhili and near the Great Wall. , as "flag ground". Most of the prefectures and counties in Baoding have been enclosed, with some counties occupying 80% to 90% of the invested land. Farmers have almost no land to cultivate, and they either fled, or became the dealers of the Manchu nobles and Eight Banners, or became farmers. Din slaves who brought land to recharge. Economic development is slow and people live in poverty. However, Baoding's military and political status increased day by day.
In the eighth year of Kangxi's reign (1669), the governor of Zhili moved to Baoding. Baoding became the provincial capital of Zhili and became a regional political center. Some feudal officials and powerful officials from the Qing Dynasty performed on this stage like a revolving door.
After the Opium War in 1840, foreign powers invaded China one after another and forced the decadent Qing Dynasty to sign a series of unequal treaties, reducing China to a semi-feudal and semi-colonial society. However, the Chinese people cannot be insulted, and they organized spontaneously to resist the aggression of foreign powers. In the spring of 1900, with the rise of the Boxer Rebellion, the anti-imperialist and patriotic enthusiasm of the people in Baoding was high. Almost every village started to learn boxing and welcomed the master. In April 1900, the Laishui Boxers revolted, attacked the church, and killed Yang Futong, the Qing deputy general who came to suppress the Boxers. In May, the Boxers captured Zhuozhou City and demolished the railway from Liuli River to Zhuozhou. Zhang Decheng, Wang Decheng, Zhou Luokun, and Li Laizhong, the leaders of the Baosheng Peace Regiment, also led the regiment members to participate in the battle to resist the invasion of the Eight-Power Allied Forces and defend Tianjin and Beijing. After the fall of Beijing, the Baoding Peace Corps continued to fight against the encirclement and suppression by foreign invaders and the Qing army in Baoding and the western mountainous areas. Although the Boxer Rebellion ultimately failed, the Boxer anti-imperialist and patriotic movement fully reflected the generous, tragic, heroic and unyielding will and spirit of the Baoding people. After the Eight-Power Allied Forces invaded Beijing, they continued to march south to suppress the Boxers and massacre the Chinese people. The British, French, German and Italian forces invaded Baoding, burned, killed, looted and committed numerous crimes.
Because the Qing Dynasty capitulated externally and brutally suppressed the people's movement internally, it had lost the hearts of the people. China's far-sighted people are actively exploring ways to save the country and the people. Baoding, the provincial capital of Zhili Province, became one of the important origins of the Revolution of 1911 in the north. Revolutionary thoughts first spread among schools. Wu Yue, a student of Zhili Higher School, and others founded the Zhili Vernacular Newspaper to promote new ideas. Chen Youyun promoted revolutionary ideas among students and developed alliance members in Baoding. Hu Egong and others organized and established the "Japanese Peace Conference" in Baoding. For a time, progressive groups emerged like clouds and became an important revolutionary force in the north against imperialism and Qing Dynasty. They planned many revolutionary actions. Although they were eventually suppressed and failed, they also dealt a heavy blow to the reactionary rule of the Qing Dynasty and the warlords, which was a powerful blow. to support the revolutionary struggle across the country. At the same time, new learning emerged in Baoding. From the late Qing Dynasty to the early Republic of China, many schools and schools for military education, higher education, and secondary and primary education were established. Baoding earned the title of "Student City". Among them, Baoding Military Education pioneered China’s modern military education and occupies an important position in the history of modern Chinese military education, cultivating a number of senior military command talents. Baoding is also the birthplace of the work-study program in France, where a group of revolutionaries embarked on the journey of the new democratic revolution.
During the Beiyang Government period, Baoding was the headquarters of the Zhili warlords. After the first Zhili-Fengtian War, the Zhili clique warlords controlled the situation in most of China and controlled the Beiyang government. All important military and political affairs involving the whole country were under the orders of the Zhili clique warlord Cao Kun. The Zhili-Anhui War, the first and second Zhili-Fengtian wars, The Jin-Feng wars were all related to Baoding, or the main battlefield was in Baoding.
As Deng Zhongxia and others spread Marxism in Baoding, the Baoding local organization of the Communist Party of China was established, and Baoding became the center of the revolutionary movement in central Hebei. The Baoding party organization led revolutionary struggles from all walks of life and launched an anti-imperialist movement. , the anti-feudal patriotic movement, led and launched revolutionary struggles such as the Second Women’s Division student uprising, Wanxian Wuligang riot, Baoding Normal University student uprising, Gaoli riot and other revolutionary struggles, which had an important impact in the north.
After the outbreak of the Anti-Japanese War, the Japanese army invaded and occupied Baoding, built artillery towers and bunkers, and implemented the inhumane "Three Guangs" policy, causing countless tragedies.
The Eighth Route Army under the leadership of the Communist Party of China advanced behind enemy lines and established the first anti-Japanese base area in Fuping, the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei anti-Japanese base area. Fuping became the seat of the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei party, government, and military leaders, and the Baoding people in China Under the leadership of the Communist Party of China, the National War of Resistance was quickly launched and the beacon fire of the Anti-Japanese War was ignited. In cooperation with the regular troops of the Eighth Route Army, the Hundred Regiments Battle, the Battle of Huangtuling, the Battle of Shenxianshan, and the Battle of Lianzikou were carried out, and a large number of Japanese and puppets were annihilated. The army smashed the Japanese army's "Three Lights" policy, "cage" policy and many crazy "mopping up" and "security strengthening" campaigns, and created guerrilla warfare, tunnel warfare, curtain warfare, mine warfare, raid warfare, and sparrow warfare. , courtyard ambushes and other tactics, the Japanese army fell into the vast ocean of the People's War and won the victory of the Anti-Japanese War. During the eight years of the Anti-Japanese War, the people of Baoding made huge sacrifices, and many heroic anti-Japanese heroes emerged, including the explosion heroes Li Yong and Li Dianbing, the magnificent Five Heroes of Langya Mountain, and the military workers and railway workers who terrified the Japanese army. Guerrillas, wild goose leaders, etc. During the difficult war years, various undertakings in the anti-Japanese base areas, including the democratic constitutional movement, the large-scale production movement, cultural, educational and publicity activities, etc., were carried out with great vigor, consolidating the anti-Japanese national united front and promoting the construction of the anti-Japanese base areas.
During the War of Liberation, the Kuomintang troops captured Baoding and made Baoding an important military location in North China. They built city defenses and stationed heavy troops. Under the leadership of the Baoding local organization of the Communist Party of China, the soldiers and civilians of Baoding carried out urban enemy work on the one hand, carried out intelligence and instigation work, mobilized the masses to fight resolutely against the dark rule of the Kuomintang, and cooperated with external operations. On the battlefield, the people of Baoding bravely supported the front and cooperated with the People's Liberation Army in successfully carrying out the Baonan and Baobei battles, the Qingfengdian battle, the Pinghan-Han line breakthrough battle, the Baobei siege battle, the Qing Hebei battle, etc., and in November 1948 Baoding was liberated on September 22, annihilating a large number of effective forces of the Kuomintang army, and made important contributions to the liberation of the country. At the same time, the land reform movement was carried out, which abolished feudal land ownership, fully mobilized the enthusiasm of farmers for production, effectively supported the liberation war, and ushered in the founding of New China.