However, the arduous project of digging canals is a disaster for the working people. Emperor Yangdi forced millions of migrant workers to build the canal, which seriously damaged production and caused thousands of migrant workers to die tragically on the canal site. Han Wo, a scholar in the late Tang Dynasty, wrote "Talk about Rivers", which described the miserable life of migrant workers who built rivers. According to the article, Emperor Yangdi sent a cruel official, Ma Shumou, to take charge of repairing the river, forcing all men over the age of 15 to serve in the army, and * * * recruited 3.6 million people. At the same time, one person, old or young, or a woman, was selected from five families to take charge of providing food and cooking for migrant workers. Emperor Yangdi also sent 5, bruisers, each holding a punishment stick, as supervisors to urge migrant workers to work. Because the labor burden is very heavy, the supervisor is too eager to supervise the responsibility, and he is always beaten with sticks. Therefore, in less than one year, 3.6 million migrant workers have died, reaching 2.5 million.
In the history of our country, the excavation project of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal mainly went through three periods:
The first period was the Spring and Autumn Period of the Eastern Zhou Dynasty. King Fu Cha, located in the southeast kingdom of Wu, led the Yangtze River into the Huaihe River in 486 BC, in order to compete for the Central Plains and expand his influence to the north. This canal, which connects the Yangtze River and Huaihe River, runs from Guazhou to the last port (near Huai 'an today). At that time, it was called Han 'gou, and it was about 15 kilometers long. This canal is the origin of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal and the earliest section of the Grand Canal. Later, the Qin, Han, Wei, Jin and the Southern and Northern Dynasties successively extended the river.
the second period was the sui dynasty. From the end of the 6th century to the beginning of the 7th century, the middle section of the Grand Canal was widened and straightened on the basis of the Han ditch, which was named Shanyangdu. To the south of the Yangtze River, the Jiangnan Canal, the southern section of the Grand Canal, was completed. In fact, the prototype of the Jiangnan Canal already exists and has long been used for water transportation. "Cao" means to transport Cao rice to a centralized place by water. Water transportation is an important economic system in the history of our country. In today's words, it is a professional transportation that uses waterways (rivers or sea lanes) to transport grain (mainly public grain). China's feudal dynasty collected land rent and land tax from farmers, and for a long time, it adopted the method of collecting physical objects. Most of these dynasties were built in cities in the northwest and north, and the grain produced in the nearby areas could not meet the needs of the capital. Therefore, it became an important political measure to transport the grain collected from other regions to Beijing, which was valued by feudal rulers. In this case, grain transportation has formed a relatively complete system and a corresponding management system in the history of our country. A ship used for water transportation is called a water tanker. The grain and rice carried by a tanker are called grain and rice. The troops and migrant workers who drive the tanker are called Cao Jun, Cao Ding and Cao Fu. Many dynasties set up officials who were in charge of water transportation. As far back as the Qin and Han dynasties, there was already a record of water transport in Chinese history books, and by the Sui Dynasty, water transport had further developed.
In 65 AD, Emperor Yangdi Yang Guang ordered the construction of a grand canal running through the north and south. At this time, it is mainly to dig Tongji Canal and Yongji Canal. The Tongji Canal project on the south bank of the Yellow River is to divert the water from the Yellow River near Luoyang to the southeast, enter Bianshui (which is now blocked) and communicate with the water transport of the two major rivers, the Yellow River and the Huaihe River. Tongji Canal, also called Yuhe, is the beginning of waterway communication among the Yellow River, Bianshui River and Huaihe River. The capital of the Sui Dynasty was Chang 'an, so the main route of water transportation at that time was: crossing the Yangtze River along the Jiangnan Canal to Jingkou (now Zhenjiang), then going north along the Shanyang River, then turning into Tongji Canal, going up against the Yellow River and Weihe River, and finally reaching Chang 'an. Yongji Canal dug in the north of the Yellow River is a canal that uses Qinshui, Qishui, Weihe and other rivers as water sources to divert water to navigation, and uses Lugou (Yongding River) in the northwest of Tianjin to reach Zhuojun (now Beijing).
Let's specifically introduce several important projects in the construction of the Grand Canal in the Sui Dynasty:
First, the Guangtong Canal, which connects the Yellow River to the east, was dug. An important canal built in the Sui Dynasty was Guangtong Canal, which led from Chang 'an to the Yellow River. In the early Sui Dynasty, Chang 'an was the capital. From Chang 'an East to the Yellow River, there were two waterways in the Western Han Dynasty, one was Weishui, a natural river, and the other was an artificial river channel built in the Han Dynasty. The Weihe river is shallow and deep in sand, and the river course is curved, which is inconvenient for navigation. Due to the relocation of the capital to Luoyang in the Eastern Han Dynasty, the canal was in disrepair and had long been abandoned. The Sui Dynasty had to dig new canals from scratch. In the first year of Emperor Kaihuang (AD 581), Emperor Wendi of Sui Dynasty appointed General Guo Yan as the Grand Supervisor of Kaicao Canal, responsible for improving the water transport between Chang 'an and the Yellow River. However, the completed Fumin Canal is still difficult to meet the needs of transporting grain from east to west, and it has to be rebuilt again three years later. This reconstruction requires that the channel be cut deep and wide, so that the "Ark Giant Boat" can be navigable. The reconstruction work was presided over by Yuwen Kai, an outstanding engineering expert. With the efforts of the hydraulic engineers, the project progressed smoothly and was completed that year. The new canal still takes Wei River as the main water source, and it is more than 3 miles long from Daxingcheng (now Xi 'an) to Tongguan, so it is named Guangtong Canal. The traffic volume of the new canal greatly exceeds that of the old canal, and there is still a lot of surplus besides meeting the grain demand in Guanzhong.
the second is to regulate the royal river in Nantong Jianghuai. After Emperor Yangdi ascended the throne, the political center moved from Chang 'an to Luoyang, so it is necessary to improve the water traffic between the Yellow River, Huaihe River and Yangtze River, so as to transport grain from the south to the north and strengthen the control over the southeast region. In the first year of Daye (AD 65), Yuwen Kai was appointed to be responsible for the construction of Luoyang, Tokyo, with a monthly service of 2 million people. At the same time, it also made Shang Shu You Cheng Huang Fu discuss that "more than one million men and women in Huaibei counties of Henan Province should be sent to open economic channels" (Sui Ji Si as a Mirror). In addition, more than 1, migrant workers in Huainan were recruited to expand Shanyangdu. The scale and scope of the project are unprecedented. Tongji canal can be divided into east and west sections. The western section was expanded on the basis of the Yang Canal in the Eastern Han Dynasty, starting from the west of Luoyang in the west, taking Luoshui and its tributary valley water as the water source, passing through the south of Luoyang, reaching the southeast of Yanshi, and then entering the Yellow River along Luoshui. In the east section, it starts from Banzhu (ZH Hu Zhu) on the northwest side of the Yellow River in Xingyang in the west, takes the Yellow River water as the water source, passes through Kaifeng City and Qixian, Suixian, Ningling, Shangqiu, Xiayi, Yongcheng and other counties, then southeast, passes through Suxian, Lingbi, Sixian in Anhui Province, and Sihong in Jiangsu Province, and is injected into Huaishui in Xuyi County. The two sections are nearly 2 miles long. Shanyangdu starts from Shanyang (now Huai 'an City, Jiangsu Province) on the south bank of Huaishui River in the north, goes straight south, and reaches Jiangdu (now Yangzhou City) southwest to meet the Yangtze River. Both canals were dug according to unified standards, and willows were planted on both sides, imperial roads were built, and more than 4 detached palaces were built along the way. Because of the huge hull of the dragon boat, the royal river must be cut deep, otherwise it will not be navigable. The construction and renovation of Tongji Canal and Shanyangdu go hand in hand. Although the old channels and natural rivers are fully utilized in the construction, they have a uniform width and depth, so they mainly rely on manual excavation, and the project is huge and arduous. However, it lasted for a short time, from March to August, it was all completed. Emperor Yangdi immediately boarded the dragon boat from Luoyang, took his empresses, princes and officials, and took thousands of Zanzibar (Zhulú Bamboo Furnace) to southern Jiangdu. This is a miracle in the history of Chinese and foreign engineering. Of course, the price is extremely high. In the process of digging canals and building ships, "the dead died in service."
The third is to build Yongji Canal in Zhuojun County. After the completion of Tongji Canal and Shanyangdu, Emperor Yangdi decided to open another canal north of the Yellow River, namely Yongji Canal. In the fourth year of the Great Cause (AD 68), "more than one million men and women in Hebei counties were summoned, and Yongji Canal was opened, leading Qinshui to the river in the south and Zhuojun in the north" (in Sui Shu Yangdi Ji). Yongji Canal can also be divided into two sections: the southern section runs from Qinhekou to the north and passes through Xinxiang, Jixian, hua county, Neihuang (above Henan Province), Weixian, Daming, Guantao, Linxi, Qinghe (above Hebei Province), Wucheng, Dezhou (above Shandong Province), Wuqiao, Dongguang, Nanpi, Cangxian and Qingxian (above Hebei Province). The northern section turns to the northwest from present-day Tianjin, passes through Wuqing in Tianjin and Anci in Hebei, and reaches Zhuojun (present-day Beijing). Both the north and south sections were completed in the same year. Yongji Canal, like Tongji Canal, is also a wide and deep canal with a total length of more than 19 miles. How deep is it? Although there are no words, generally speaking, it is equivalent to Tongji Canal, because it is also a canal through which dragon boats can pass. In the seventh year of Daye (AD 611), Emperor Yangdi took a dragon boat from Jiangdu to the north along the canal, took his fleet and men, and finally arrived in Zhuojun. The whole journey is more than 4, miles, and it only took more than 5 days, which shows its great navigation capacity.
fourthly, dredging the Jiangnan River which runs through the Taihu Plain. The history of building canals in Taihu Plain is very long. During the Spring and Autumn Period, the State of Wu, centering on the capital Wu (Suzhou), dug many canals, one of which led to the Yangtze River in the north and the other to the Qiantang River in the south. These two north-south artificial waterways were the earliest Jiangnan River. During the Qin and Han Dynasties, the Three Kingdoms, the Jin Dynasty and the Southern and Northern Dynasties, the river was regulated many times, and further dredging was ordered by Emperor Yangdi. Volume 181 of Zi Zhi Tong Jian records: "In the winter and December of the sixth year of Daye, I crossed the Jiangnan River, from Jingkou to Yuhang, more than 8 miles wide, so that I could pass the dragon boat, set up a post palace and a grasshopper, and wanted to make a tour to the east." Huiji Mountain is located in the southeast of Shaoxing City, Zhejiang Province. According to legend, Xia Yu once held a meeting with governors in Huiji, and Qin Shihuang also climbed this mountain to look at the East China Sea. Emperor Yangdi was overjoyed and probably went to Huiji Mountain to imitate the stories of Xia Yu and Qin Huang.
Guangtong Canal, Tongji Canal, Shanyangdu (the latter two were called the Royal River by Emperor Yangdi), Yongji Canal and Jiangnan River, although they were not dug at the same time, can be regarded as their own independent transportation channels. However, because these channels are based on the political centers of Chang 'an and Luoyang, radiating to the southeast and northeast, forming a complete system. At the same time, their specifications are basically the same, and they all require navigation of ark or dragon boat, and they are connected with each other, so they are also a grand canal. This grand canal, which runs from Chang 'an and Luoyang to Yuhang in the southeast and to Zhuojun in the northeast, is the longest canal at all times and in all countries. Because it runs through the five major water systems of Qiantang River, Yangtze River, Huaihe River, Yellow River and Haihe River, it is very valuable for strengthening national unity and promoting economic and cultural exchanges between North and South.
Among these channels, Tongji Canal and Yongji Canal are the longest and most important sections of the North-South Grand Canal, which start from Luoyang and fan out to the southeast and northeast. Luoyang is located in the western edge of the Central Plains, with a high altitude. The canal project makes full use of this feature that the east is low and the west is high, and the natural river flows from west to east. It can not only save manpower and material resources when digging, but also facilitate the smooth passage of ships when sailing. In particular, these two canals can make full use of the rich water of the Yellow River, so that the water source is guaranteed. These two long channels can make good use of natural conditions, which proves that water conservancy science and technology had a high level at that time. It took six years to dig these two longest channels. In this way, all the projects of the Grand Canal were completed. The Grand Canal in Sui Dynasty was called the North-South Grand Canal in history. It runs through Hebei, Henan, Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces. The water surface of the canal is 3-7 meters wide and about 2,7 kilometers long. It is one of the greatest projects in the world.
the third period is the yuan dynasty. After the Yuan Dynasty made Dadu (now Beijing) its capital, it was necessary to transport grain from Jiangsu and Zhejiang to Dadu. However, the Grand Canal in Sui Dynasty, in the middle of Haihe River and Huaihe River, is centered on Luoyang and extends to the northeast and southeast. In order to avoid bypassing Luoyang, the Yuan Dynasty built Jeju, Huitong and Tonghui rivers, and in the Ming and Qing dynasties, many sections of the Grand Canal were rebuilt. Here are some major projects of canal digging in the Yuan Dynasty:
First, the Jeju River and Huitong River were dug. From Dadu (now Beijing), the capital of Yuan Dynasty, to the grain-producing areas in southeast China, there are waterways in most places. Only there are no convenient waterways between Dadu and Tongzhou, Linqing and Jeju, or the original rivers are blocked, or there are no rivers at all. Therefore, the key to connect the north and south waterways is to build new artificial rivers between these two areas. The canal between Linqing and Jeju was built in two phases in the Yuan Dynasty. The Jeju River was opened first, and then the meeting was held to connect the river. Jeju Henan starts from Luqiao Town in the south of Jeju (now Jining City) and ends at Anshan in Xucheng (now Dongping County) in the north, which is 15 miles long. People took advantage of favorable natural conditions, using Wenshui and Surabaya as water sources, building dams and digging channels to transport water. Huitong River starts from Anshan in Xucheng in the south, connects with Jeju River, cuts a canal to the north, passes through Liaocheng, and connects with Weihe River in Linqing, with a length of 25 miles. Like Tongji River, it has built many dams on the river. After these two sections of canals are chiseled, grain ships in the south can pass through Weihe River and Baihe River to reach Tongzhou.
the second is to dig the Bahe River and Tonghui River. Because the navigation capacity of the old river was very small, it was necessary for the Yuan Dynasty to build a canal with a large transportation capacity between Dadu and Tongzhou, so as to transport the grain concentrated in Tongzhou by sea and river to Dadu. So the Bahe River and Tonghui River were dug one after another. The Bahe River, which was first built, starts from Guangximen in the west (now north of Dongzhimen in Beijing, where the main granary was located), and reaches the north of Tongzhou in the east, connecting Wenyu River. The length of this water channel is about 2 kilometers, and the terrain is high in the west and low in the east, with a gap of about 2 meters, and the river slope is relatively large. In order to preserve the river and facilitate the navigation of grain ships, there are seven dams on the river, so this canal is called dam river. Later, due to the lack of water resources and poor waterways, the Tonghui River was dug in the Yuan Dynasty. Guo Shoujing, an engineering and technical expert in charge of water conservancy, first tried his best to open up water sources, and diverted them to Jishuitan for storage. Then he dug a navigable reach from Jishuitan to the east, flowed south on the east side of the Imperial City, went to Wenmingmen in the southeast (now Chongwenmen North in Beijing), and connected to Baihe River in Tongzhou in the east. This new artificial river was named Tonghui River by Kublai Khan. After the completion of Tonghui River, Jishuitan has become a bustling pier, "covered with water", which is very lively.
after the completion of several major canal digging projects in the yuan dynasty, today's Beijing-Hangzhou grand canal was formed, with a total length of more than 1,7 kilometers. The Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal used many sections of the North-South Grand Canal in the Sui Dynasty. If you take the canal waterway from Beijing to Hangzhou, the former will shorten the voyage by more than 9 kilometers.
At present, the famous foreign Grand Canal includes Suez Canal, Panama Canal and Turkmen Canal of the former Soviet Union. The length of these canals is not only much shorter than the Grand Canal in China, but also more than 1 years later than the time when the Sui Dynasty dug the North-South Grand Canal.