Middle Ages Europe was "Dark Europe". During this period, the power of the Catholic Church was overwhelmingly superior. To a large extent, it was superior to all secular rights (including royal power); people were in a state of extreme ignorance, and the ownership of knowledge was controlled by a few. in the hands of the clergy. This is reflected in urban planning. We will find that cities in this period were almost unplanned, and most cities were in a state of spontaneous formation; cities lacked public space for ordinary residents; at the same time, churches were in an absolutely dominant position. , it is often located on the high ground of the city, and its own height is also the dominant point of the city or region where it is located.
Renaissance cities also reflected changes in social thought during that period. With the return of "humanism", people began to reposition their position in society. As the halo of God's servants dimmed, the core position of the church in the city was gradually diluted. The city became more pleasant: the emergence of public venues, the increased status of town halls, and the famous Renaissance-style grand arcades became the hallmarks of European cities in this period. Notable cities include: Florence and Siena.
The next period of Western urban development is: the Baroque period. During this period, many countries in Europe, such as France, were at the most prosperous stage of national power. Just like our country's Tang Dynasty, rulers began to hope to show off the greatness of their royal power and the wealth of their country. As a result, phenomena such as "big squares" and "big palaces" began to appear in urban construction. This "large scale" often plays the role of a "destroyer" in the city. On the one hand, many original buildings must be demolished in order to build them. Some buildings, on the other hand, their grand scale will make the original surrounding buildings look "petite". These big guys are not prepared for ordinary life. The meaning of their existence is "self-expression".
Conclusion
As mentioned at the beginning, this is a "miscellaneous" article written based on inspiration. Comparing urban planning between China and the West is really a big proposition, but when we compare them vertically, we seem to be able to smell some of the flavor of this proposition. Perhaps because of the differences in geographical conditions and political conditions, the development of urban planning in China and the West presents us with an interesting phenomenon. In China, the idea of ??urban planning was basically formed more than 2,000 years ago, and its subsequent evolution can only be said to be its supplement and improvement. This seems to be consistent with the development history of Chinese philosophy. In the West, planning thinking has undergone great changes over time and space, and it is constantly denying and updating itself. This phenomenon has become more and more obvious after the industrial revolution, which is worthy of our deep thought.
The influence of religious thought on ancient Chinese and Western urban planning
Foreword
When a nation creates its own mythology and religion, it often relates to its own survival and development The most closely related natural force, the environment, is regarded as the primary object of conquest and domination. By analyzing and utilizing the environment, primitive humans eventually formed a satisfactory habitat model, which was the prototype of an ideal landscape. It is the ideal landscape model deep in the culture of various ethnic groups formed in the process of environmental adaptation, which triggered intuitive speculations about "divine realm", "fairyland" and "paradise" in mythology and religion, and then attached a whole set of ideas based on various The explanatory system of national cultural psychology.
The relationship between ancient Chinese cities and myths and legends
The fairy mountains in the Kunlun myth and the Penglai myth, the two major sources of Chinese mythology, are ideal realms in people's imagination. Kunlun Mountain and Penglai Mountain as representative.
The legendary Xuanpu, Gushe Mountain, Huaguo Mountain, and Mount Xumi in Buddhism all belong to this model. According to the "Book of Mountains and Seas": "Kunlun's Xu is eight hundred miles across and ten thousand ren high... No one but Renyi could climb the rock." "Huainanzi Terrain Training" records: "When digging the ground below Kunlun's Xu, there is the Jiuzhong of Zengcheng. , its height is 1,000 miles, 114 steps, 3 feet and 6 inches. There are wooden stubble on it, and there are five trees on it: pearl tree, eucalyptus tree, xuan tree, immortal tree, in the west... Dan water, drink it and you will never die. "Liezi Tangwen" records about the Three Mountains (Five Mountains): "The east of the Bohai Sea is hundreds of millions of miles away... Its mountains are 30,000 miles high and circumferential... The distance between the mountains is 70,000 miles. "It can be seen that both the legendary Kunlun Mountains and the Three Mountains (Five Mountains) are characterized by emphasizing spatial isolation, focusing on embodying the height and isolation of the mountain.
This kind of sacred mountain in Chinese mythology The landscape pattern combined with the sea presents a pattern of water surrounding mountains, with plants and buildings on the mountain. It is a living space with strong safety and a particularly superior ecological environment. This pattern also laid the foundation for the "one pond and three mountains" concept in later Chinese garden architecture. Landscape pattern. Due to the specific geographical environment and cultural accumulation, the characteristics of ideal landscape models in different cultures are different. China’s ideal landscape model focuses on “enclosure” and “hiddenness”, and is a model that is attached to nature
Chinese civilization originated in the Yellow River Basin, and the Zhou Dynasty was a finalizing period for its cultural development. During the cultural shaping period, the Zhou tribes mainly moved in the Guanzhong Plain, centered on Qishan-Chang'an. With the Qinling Mountains to the south and the Loess Plateau to the northwest, it is a sheltered and defendable space with a good microclimate, abundant rainfall in summer, strong sunshine, and abundant heat radiation, which is conducive to the growth of crops. From the perspective of cultural accumulation, the enclosed, resource-rich natural landscape is worthy of attachment and trust, and is a natural shelter for hiding and relying on. Therefore, the ideal landscape of Chinese ancestors is one that is attached to nature. , hidden, defensive and "introverted" landscape model
The relationship between ancient Western cities and mythological and legendary models
The ideal landscape model in ancient Greek myths and legends. It is represented by Mount Olympus, where the gods live. Mount Olympus is "located in the mountains of Greece and is a steep mountain that mortals cannot climb." It has a suitable climate and is covered with exotic flowers and plants, where the gods enjoy themselves. Happiness. The main god Zeus lives on the top of the steep peak, and the other gods live on the top of each peak. They all occupy important positions in space, emphasizing the possession of commanding heights and the control of sight points.
European culture originated from love. The Aegean Sea region spent its shaping period in the Greek peninsula and the Aegean Sea islands and coastal areas centered on the Aegean Sea, and then spread to the vast areas along the Mediterranean coast. The land where European ancestors lived was barren, affected by the Mediterranean climate, and lacked sufficient resources. The land and climate suitable for farming, without a self-sufficient natural shelter, made the defense of habitats meaningless. Therefore, European ancestors did not have the soil and space to support a centralized society, and scarce resources could only maintain scattered small city-states. . These city-states are centered on castles that occupy commanding heights. Castles are the gathering places of wealth. Therefore, Europeans trust in artificially built castles and trust in their own strength. When there is no natural shelter to rely on, To show off one's own strength and intimidate others, Europeans put more emphasis on controlling the commanding heights, which is matched by an outward-looking show-off architectural landscape.
The city is based on myths and legends. The influence of site selection and layout structure
China’s ideal landscape model pursues harmony with nature and prefers to be hidden in shielded structures. Most of the sites are located in quiet places far away from the world. The so-called "ancient temple hidden deep in the mountains" hides humanity in nature, and its style is relatively peaceful and subtle. Generally, the surrounding natural environment is deliberately maintained. In the construction of classical Chinese gardens, the layout structure of mountains surrounded by water and "one pond and three mountains" is the most prominent. The most concentrated expression is in the construction of royal palaces and gardens: Qin Shihuang built the unprecedented scale "Afang Palace", which established a "fairyland" garden for the first time in Chinese history. During the reign of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, the "Shanglin Garden" building had a fairy-like artistic conception of "one place and three mountains" as its main theme.
Beijing's "Central, South and Beihai" and Nanjing's "Xuanwu Lake" are also products under the guidance of the "one pond and three mountains" idea.
European cities are mostly located in the center of settlements. The architecture expresses their grandeur and pays attention to decoration, which reflects the conquest of nature and the display of oneself. The Acropolis of Athens in ancient Greece was built on a steep hilltop platform in the city. The mountain is dangerous. From the Acropolis, you can see the beautiful scenery of the surrounding mountains. It not only considered the beauty of being in it, but also considered the beauty when looking up from around the Acropolis. The landscape effect shows a strong preference for commanding heights and visual control points.
Summary
As the highest expectation and beautiful ideal for the living environment, each culture has a unique understanding and imagination of the ideal landscape. Mythology and religion are the original philosophy and Cosmology is an early cultural thought of mankind. They are closely related to human understanding and experience of life practice in the geographical environment. The ideal life model in myths and legends is the crystallization of early human survival experience and wisdom, and has its irreplaceable value in reality.