Beijing, the capital of the People’s Republic of China with a population of over 20 million, is the political, economic, and cultural center of contemporary China. Beijing is also a historical and cultural city with a history of over 3000 years of city building and over 800 years of capital building. During the Yuan Dynasty, its name was Dadu.
The Site of the Yuan Dynasty Shangdu Capital Zhenglan Banner, Xilingol League, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region
This was also a bustling city during the Yuan Dynasty, located on the Jinlianchuan grassland in Zhenglan Banner, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. Everything in front of us was so dilapidated, except for a few resilient elm trees that brought a hint of vitality to this place. It is the capital city of Yuanshang. Two cities, two fates, one well-known and the other less sought after. Many people are unaware that these two cities were once closely related and closely connected. Starting from the 13th century AD, the Yuan Dynasty relied on these two cities to establish its basic political system. Each emperor of the Yuan Dynasty had to travel back and forth between these two cities: in spring, he traveled from Dadu to Shangdu in the north, and in autumn, he returned from Shangdu to Dadu in the south. This cycle continued year after year, with Dadu and Shangdu, the two capital cities, forming the two major nerve centers of the Yuan Empire.
Yuan Dadu City Wall Ruins Park, Beijing
On the 17th day of the second lunar month in 1289 AD, Yuan Dadu once again woke up from the cold winter, the ice and snow melted, and the spring was chilly. Outside the Jiande Gate, officials gathered, drums and music played, and a huge team was preparing to depart from here and march north. The most prominent thing in the team was the four elephant drawn chariots, which were the spoils of Kublai Khan’s war in Burma and became the emperor’s mounts. The elephant chariot is wrapped in lion skin and adorned with colorful banners at its four corners. Each elephant rides a feudal official on its back, guiding the chariot forward. It was Emperor Kublai Khan of the Yuan Dynasty who rode on the elephant chariot, accompanied by accompanying guards, imperial family members, as well as civil and military officials and literati. Starting from this day, a magnificent team traveled over 800 miles to another capital of the Yuan Empire – Shangdu Kaiping. There, the emperor would spend the entire summer, which was a rare two city patrol system in Chinese history. So, why did Kublai Khan tirelessly rush back and forth between the two capitals, expending the emperor’s precious energy in these towering mountains and rugged forests?
During the reign of Genghis Khan, the Great Mongol Empire did not have its own official capital, but established its own ruling center – the Four Great Wo’er – at the source of the Yellow River, the Ulan River, and the Tugula River. It was not until the second Great Khan, Wokuotai, ascended the throne, which began in 1235 AD, that the city of Hala and Lin was built on the banks of the Ordon River as the capital of Great Mongolia. Afterwards, after experiencing the two Great Khanates of Guiyou and Mengge, Hala and Lin were both used as the capital of Great Mongolia. It was not until Kublai Khan, who was in charge of Han affairs, ascended to the throne that the center of Mongolian rule moved southward.
Renmin University of China – Wei Jian: The establishment of the capital of Yuan Dynasty can be said to have been caused by many opportunities. One is that after the Mongols became strong, they needed to go south to the desert and rule in the Han region. In addition, he had a group of strategists and generals from different ethnic groups, including Han and Khitan people, around him. Their first priority was to gather strength near the Han region and have a place to activity. Therefore, they built a city here in Jinlian River, and Kublai Khan asked Liu Bingzhong to choose a location to build a city wall.
Liu Bingzhong was an important strategist around Kublai Khan. He had once been a Taoist and later became a monk. He was knowledgeable and talented, proficient in the Book of Changes, astronomy, geography, law and calendar, and the art of escaping from strange sects.
The Site of the Yuan Dynasty Shangdu Capital Zhenglan Banner, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region
The location of Kaiping City is on the banks of the Lightning River upstream of the Luan River, with undulating mountains to the north and open grasslands to the east and west. In summer, there is abundant water and grass, and golden lotus flowers bloom everywhere. Therefore, it was renamed Jinlian River by Emperor Jin Shizong. In 1256 AD, under the leadership of Liu Bingzhong, the construction of the Kaiping New City began. Taoist priests sat for five days and five nights, and together with officials from the royal family, they traveled to various places to invest the golden dragon and jade books in famous mountains and rivers. The Kaiping Prefecture was quickly completed. In 1259 AD, Mongolian Khan Mengge passed away during the attack on the Southern Song Dynasty. In the second year, which was 1260 AD, Kublai Khan convened the Hulitai Assembly here and declared himself as the Great Khan, establishing the Yuan Dynasty as the center of power, and Kaiping became the political center of Kublai Khan’s rule. Kaiping City was subsequently expanded into a truly imperial city, a magnificent and magnificent grassland city – Yuanshangdu. The completed Shangdu City consists of three cities: the Outer City, the Imperial City, and the Palace City. The Outer City and the Imperial City are square, while the Palace City is slightly rectangular. The construction of the Outer City is highly Mongolian, with its walls made of loess boards. To the north is the Imperial Garden, a royal garden for Kublai Khan to explore and play. To the south are the official offices and workshop areas, as well as the Xila Wo’er, which holds major celebration banquets according to the Mongolian tradition. The streets of the imperial city are neat, and the buildings such as official offices, temples, and Taoist temples are scattered. There are gateways on both sides of the east and west, while the west gate is a commercial area with bustling markets. The east gate is close to the imperial city, and the tents are arranged in a staggered manner. It is a place where the kings who come to pay their respects settle their followers. The palace city is located in the southeast corner of the city, with corner towers on all four corners. There are one gate in the east, south, and west, and a flat courtyard outside the city. The buildings inside the palace are mostly in Han style, with the core building being the magnificent Da’an Pavilion. Da’an Pavilion was built using materials from the demolished Xichun Pavilion in Bianjing, Song Dynasty, and was built according to the Xichun Pavilion. It is said that as many as ten thousand pieces of Xichun Pavilion wood were demolished in Bianjing, and it was built through waterways. The transportation by land to Kaiping was extremely costly, and it was also a place where Kublai Khan presided over the court, discussed politics, received officials, and held other major ceremonies.
Institute of History, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Liu Xiao: When he built Shangdu, he combined the construction plan of the capital city in the Central Plains with some characteristics of the Mongolian grassland, so Shangdu was a binary capital city. At that time, Shangdu was indeed very prosperous, with people of various skin colors. People from all over the world were in Shangdu at that time, and they traded with each other, including other ways of communication. It should be a very crowded and prosperous place.
Renmin University of China – Wei Jian: In the first year of the Zhongtong era, which was 1260, the Great Yuan Dynasty was in 1271. Eleven years later, Kaiping, later known as the Upper Capital, actually played a temporary role as the capital during these ten years. At that time, the Mongols were fighting everywhere and constantly expanding their territories, with great prestige. But as he gradually settled down, especially the rule of Han, he (Kublai Khan) began to pay attention to the stability of the entire country and system. The economic development of Han had a huge temptation for the north. So if you want to develop, without the economy of Han territory, it cannot be developed, and the future development of his country will also rely on this area, so he must have a capital to become a capital.
The location of Dadu was quickly determined, which was Yanjing at that time, with the name Daxing. The history of Yanjing’s construction can be traced back to the ancient capital of Yan, Ji, more than 3000 years ago. For a long time, this place has been a transportation hub traveling from south to north. By the time of Kublai Khan’s rule, its name had already been restored from Jinzhongdu to Yanjing. Kublai Khan chose to establish a new capital here, and there was another important reason. One month after Kublai Khan ascended to the throne in Kaiping, his younger brother Ali Buge also announced his succession to the Great Khan with the support of some Mongol kings. In the five-year battle for the throne between the two brothers, Yanjing became an important military base for the Han army’s grain and forage forces to march north, which further highlighted the necessity of establishing a capital in the Han region. In 1263 AD, Kublai Khan officially designated Kaiping as the capital and built another political center in Yanjing. In the first year of the Yuanzhi era (1264), Yanjing was officially named Zhongdu. However, the new Zhongdu could not be built on the basis of the Jin Dynasty’s Zhongdu because in 1215 AD, after the Mongol army and territory occupied this area, the Jin Zhongdu was already in ruins, and more importantly, there were problems with the urban water supply here.
Liu Xiao, Institute of History of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences: It (Jinzhongdu) is located in a lotus pond to the west, with a small water volume, which is not suitable for the development needs of the metropolis in the future. At that time, the northeast part of Jinzhongdu was chosen. Why did you choose this place? This place originally had the imperial palace of the Jin Dynasty, and the water system was very developed. And this palace, like Qionghua Island, had already undergone some repairs before the construction of the capital city. It would be very reasonable to expand outward from this central point.
Beihai Park, Beijing
Qionghua Island, located in Beihai Park in present-day Beijing, was originally a palace during the Jin Dynasty. The island is home to the famous Guanghan Hall. In 1261 AD, Kublai Khan ordered the reconstruction of the Guanghan Hall on Qionghua Island, and preparations for the construction of the new capital of the Yuan Empire began. The Guanghan Palace was once the pinnacle of the entire New Capital, with its magnificent architecture. It offers a view of the Western Mountains and the beautiful scenery of the capital. Unfortunately, this magnificent palace collapsed during the Ming Dynasty’s Wanli period and has since been nowhere to be found, leaving only a huge wine tank used by Kublai Khan stored in the Chengguang Hall of Beihai Tuancheng.
Yuandushan Dayuhai Beijing Beihai Park
This wine jar called “Dushan Dayu Hai” has become a historical witness to the construction of the city. In the fourth year of the Zhiyuan era (1267 AD), Kublai Khan ordered the construction of Zhongdu New City. In the eighth year of the Zhiyuan era (1271 AD), Mongolia officially established its name as “Dayuan”. In the ninth year of the Zhiyuan era (1272 AD), Kublai Khan also named Zhongdu New City as “Dadu”, which was officially planned and constructed as the capital. In January of the eleventh year of the Zhiyuan era (1274 AD), Kublai Khan resided in the main hall and received congratulations from various kings and officials. The Yuan Dadu inherited the layout of the three walls of the Yuan Shangdu Palace, Imperial City, and Outer City. Its chief designer was still Liu Bingzhong, and the design concept mainly came from the “Zhou Li · Kao Gong Ji”. It is square in shape, with nine li on each side and three gates on each side. There are nine wide and crisscrossing roads in the city, and the design of the Dadu strictly follows the overall layout of the former dynasty and the later city, as well as the left ancestor and right community.
Yuan Dadu City Wall Ruins Park, Beijing
In today’s Beijing, the number of Yuan Dynasty ruins that can be seen is very limited. However, Researcher Wang Gang, who has been studying Yuan Dynasty for over 20 years, told us that the scale of the metropolis ordered by Kublai Khan to be built back then should be very grand.
Wang Gang, Institute of History, Beijing Academy of Social Sciences: This is the ruins of the city walls of the Yuan Dynasty. When the city was built, this type of earthen city wall was mainly used. Now, our location is probably at the position of the Suqing Gate, which is the north gate of the west city wall of the Yuan Dynasty. The original city wall was very high, very wide, with a width to height ratio of about 3:2. According to literature records, it was called a city of 60 miles, and its scale can be said to be the largest among the capitals of Beijing in ancient China. Even larger than the Ming Dynasty’s construction of Beijing’s city walls. The outer city walls of Yuan Dadu were made of rammed loess, with a wider bottom and gradually narrowing. The ratio of width, height, and top was 3:2:1. To cope with the rainy summer in Dadu, the city walls were designed with multiple drainage facilities, and were also covered with reed clothes. The entire circumference of the city walls was 28600 meters, and a total of 11 city gates were opened around the walls. The naming of these gates was determined by the orientation of the Five Elements or related meanings. There were three gates in the east, west, and south, and only the Jiande Gate and Anzhen Gate were opened in the north. This design once puzzled people.
Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Chen Gaohua: Many poems from the Yuan Dynasty mention that the majority of the city, Nezha City, had three heads and six arms, three heads: three gates to the south, and six arms: three gates to the east and west. These were the six arms, with two legs belonging to the two gates in the north. It was designed according to the legend of Nezha. Perhaps it is related to the belief that Nezha was a protective deity at that time, so he mostly designed it as a symbol of Nezha and created eleven gates.
Wang Gang, Institute of History, Beijing Academy of Social Sciences: In the theory of yin and yang, odd numbers belong to yang and even numbers belong to yin. Therefore, the northern city gate, because it belongs to the yin side of the city gate, had four city gates in the Song Dynasty and two gates in the Yuan Dynasty, both of which were even numbers. This is good. From a systemic perspective, it reflects the ancient Chinese concept of yin and yang, which was reflected in the construction of capital cities. This is a saying. This statement coincides with the image of Nezha in the legend, with three heads, six arms, and two feet, which happens to be such an image. Therefore, when the people of the Yuan Dynasty wrote poetry, they mentioned that most of them were Nezha cities, which is a coincidence between the legend and the real capital system, or a coincidental factor in the inheritance.
The magnificent metropolis took more than 20 years to be fully built. The entire metropolis faces north and south, with the central platform on the northeast bank of Jishuitan as the benchmark, symmetrically unfolding. The central platform has a square meter width of one acre, which is the center point of the entire city’s layout measured by Liu Bingzhong. There was a stone tablet on the south side, engraved with the four characters “Central Platform”, extending south to Jiujinkou River (now Dongxi Chang’an Street), with the distance from Jishuitan to the west as the radius, and symmetrically unfolding to the east and north sides to determine the four directions of the entire city. This is unprecedented in the history of Chinese capital cities. However, although the central platform is the central location of the entire city, it is not the location of the imperial city, but rather sets up two more important buildings in the life of the Yuan Dynasty people – the Bell Tower and the Drum Tower.
Bell and Drum Tower, Beijing
Wang Gang, Institute of History, Beijing Academy of Social Sciences: During the Yuan Dynasty, the Bell and Drum Tower was the center of the entire city. This planning and design began in the Yuan Dynasty. It was a reflection of people’s concept of the entire city at that time, that is, the development of society should operate according to the laws of natural development and the movement of celestial bodies. It is such a concept. So at that time, he placed this day, which was actually related to the clock tower and drum tower, in the most important position in the entire city, even higher than imperial power.
The imperial and palace cities of the Yuan Dynasty are different from today’s Beijing. The imperial city is composed of three major architectural complexes centered around the Taiye Pool, with an imperial garden to the north and a water system surrounding the entire imperial city. However, the area of the palace city is not as large as today’s Forbidden City. It is located in the east of the imperial city, on the north-south axis of the entire city. The main buildings in the palace city are divided into two parts: north and south, with the Daming Hall as the main building to the south and the Yanchun Pavilion as the main building to the north. The Daming Hall is a place where the imperial court holds major ceremonies, and all major events such as the emperor’s ascension to the throne, New Year’s Day, and birthday celebrations are held here. Behind the Daming Hall is the Yanchun Pavilion, also known as the Yanchun Hall. It is a place for religious ceremonies such as Buddhism and Taoism, as well as court banquets. In today’s Beijing city, hutongs have become the most representative historical symbol. Few people know the term hutong, which originally referred to water wells in Mongolia. However, before this, the design of Chinese capital cities mostly followed the rules of the neighborhood system, with high walls serving as residential areas and commercial trade zones specifically set up. This pattern was not broken until the Northern Song Dynasty. At the beginning, Yuan Dadu completely broke through the design of the square wall.
Wang Gang, Institute of History, Beijing Academy of Social Sciences: The Mongolian nomadic people attach great importance to the development of commerce, and they are certain to break down the constraints of urban walls. However, on the other hand, there is a more important factor, which is political considerations. One is that there is no hidden place in the activities of residents, and it will be easy for them to suppress the resistance of the people. At the same time, the metropolitan area has also begun to change its pattern as a capital city, which is the process of transforming from the neighborhood system to the street courtyard system. Many hutongs and courtyards in the east-west cities of Beijing today have largely retained the old layout of the Yuan Dynasty and have remained largely unchanged.
The wide streets and crisscrossing alleys bring unprecedented convenience in communication, making transactions exceptionally easy. Here, there are a population of four to five hundred thousand people living year-round, from all corners of the world. Merchants, mercenaries, travelers, diplomats, missionaries, and craftsmen speak various dialects, gathering here. The merchants of Persia, Arabia, and Goryeo transported horses, ginseng, linen, and other goods to Dadu, and then returned various daily necessities, textiles, and books. Dadu became a medieval international metropolis. However, the normal operation of all of this stems from an important planning and design of the Yuan Dynasty, which is the water system.
The Summer Palace in Beijing
The water conservancy construction of the Yuan Dynasty is commendable in Chinese history. The famous water conservancy scholar Guo Shoujing not only outlined the overall pattern of water conservancy in the Yuan Dynasty, but also woven a water network that achieved great prosperity.
Wang Gang, Institute of History, Beijing Academy of Social Sciences: The water system of the Gaoliang River, including the water supply in the metropolitan area, as well as the transportation of various materials from Tongzhou to the metropolitan area, all use this water system. Therefore, ships from Jiangnan at that time could transport all the way to the Jishuitan water area through the Yunhe River.
Tonghui River Yuan Dynasty Shizha Site, Chaoyang District, Beijing
Wang Gang, Institute of History, Beijing Academy of Social Sciences: This is a gate that connects the Huihe River. In the Yuan Dynasty, the wooden gate was originally built. After the wooden gate was repaired, it decayed over time and was later replaced with a stone gate. The stone gate has been in use for over 700 years now, and its preservation is still very good. The Grand Canal of Beijing and Hangzhou, including the Huitong River and the Yuhe River, all have such gates on their rivers.
Wanning Bridge, Shichahai, Beijing
The Jinshui River and Taiye Pond form the water supply system for the palace, while the Gaoliang River, Haizi River, and Tonghui River form the transportation system. The water wells scattered throughout the city meet the daily water needs of the residents. The three-dimensional water supply system not only meets the needs of hundreds of thousands of people, but also facilitates the transportation of various goods, achieving communication and integration between North and South cultures, as well as Eastern and Western cultures around the world. At this time, Yuanshangdu had also become the most prosperous economic center in northern China, with developed handicraft workshops and commercial exchange markets. It was also the largest transfer station for transporting grain and other materials from the mainland to the Lingbei Province. This is the starting point of the Grassland Silk Road, and on the interconnected post roads centered around it, there are foreign envoys rushing to pay homage to the Emperor of the Yuan Dynasty in Shangdu, as well as scholars, monks, merchants, craftsmen, and artists from Persia, Myanmar, India, Nepal, Italy, and other countries. Those who pass by them are the envoys sent by Shangdu to European and Asian countries. Yuan Dadu, Yuan Shangdu, and the two capitals of the Yuan Empire both became world-renowned international metropolises at that time. Since Kublai Khan, the emperors of the Yuan Dynasty have been patrolling back and forth between these two capitals every year, taking turns working and handling national affairs. This system is known as the Two Capitals Patrol.
Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Chen Gaohua: When Kublai Khan launched the construction of a metropolis, some Mongolian nobles in Central Asia specifically sent people to question him, saying that we Mongols have always lived on the grasslands. Why did you establish a metropolis here and not return to the grasslands yourself? This is a typical reflection of a conflict between the nomadic people living on the grasslands and Kublai Khan’s political ideology. According to most Mongolian nobles, descendants of Genghis Khan, they believe that living a nomadic life on the grasslands is their tradition and philosophy.
Renmin University of China – Wei Jian: If you are a Mongolian child and we use the grassland management system, then you use the Han family etiquette and system. This set of Han family things goes against the family laws of your ancestors, which cannot be reconciled. Why do you do this? Therefore, he has also been under great pressure. In this situation, what should I do? I leave a capital city on the Mongolian Plateau, in the grassland area. Firstly, I can win over these dissatisfied Mongolian kings, and secondly, he also has a base to rule the north.
For grassland ethnic groups, living by water and grass is a traditional way of life. Even after gaining political power, they often implement a system called “Four Seasons Nibo”, changing campsites according to seasonal changes, handling government affairs, and training military horses. From the Mongol era to the Mongol Khanate era, this system was still maintained until Kublai Khan built the capital in Kaiping, and the political center of Mongolia was truly established.
Renmin University of China – Wei Jian: Kublai Khan cannot give up Shangdu, and from a psychological perspective, Shangdu is his place of prosperity. Therefore, many Mongol emperors who succeeded later must go to Shangdu. At least six emperors succeeded in Shangdu, which is orthodox. So these few things combined decided that Kublai Khan would carry out a dual patrol. On the one hand, he maintains the basic habits of the northern ethnic group, and on the other hand, he also preserves a place for political, military, and economic needs. Therefore, every time he goes, he is completely different. Some people see it as a summer palace, a place to escape the heat, that’s not it.
In this way, the patrol of the two capitals became an important task for emperors throughout the Yuan Dynasty, starting from Kublai Khan. Every winter, just after the end of the winter, the mighty team would depart from Deshengmen and follow a fixed route to Shangdu, and then return to Dadu in autumn. The day when the emperor sets off for his tour is more like a festival in Dadu and Shangdu. Every year, starting from the 15th day of the second lunar month in Dadu and starting from the 15th day of the sixth lunar month in Shangdu, a grand ceremony and parade to welcome the Buddha are held, known as the Imperial City. The emperor, empresses, princesses, nobles, and attendants were all dressed in splendid costumes, sitting on the colorful tower to watch the performance. Rich merchants and merchants competed to take out their precious jewelry and curiosities to boast about each other, and the parade lasted for more than 30 miles. Five thousand people participated in the ceremony or parade, and their clothes and props were given by the court. As a result, the procession appeared bright and neat, making it “exquisite in appearance and exquisite in attire.”. There are four patrol routes between the two cities: the post road is the main passage for general officials and merchants, with 11 post stations. There are two routes on the East Road, one dedicated to supervising imperial officials and military use, and the other is the Emperor’s dedicated line, also known as the “Nian Road”. The West Road is the route for the Emperor to return to Dadu from the south, also known as the “East Out West Return” route.
Professor Wei Jian, who is engaged in archaeological research, is leading his students on a field archaeological expedition. Their starting route is basically similar to the route of the Yuan Dynasty Emperor’s northern tour of Shangdu that year. Professor Wei Jian once participated in the archaeological excavation of Yuan Shangdu 20 years ago, and he specifically set up the sites of the two capital patrols on the route of this archaeological research.
Renmin University of China – Wei Jian: Li Lingtai, Li Lingtai is right next to the boundary ditch. The boundary ditch there is particularly clear, and the post station is also clear. When going north, from south to north, passing Li Lingtai will lead to this Black City, and then to Silang City.
Chahannaoer Palace Site in Guyuan County, Zhangjiakou City, Hebei Province
Professor Wei Jian participated in the archaeological excavation of Yuan Shangdu 20 years ago, and specially set the important sites of the two capital patrols on the route of this archaeological research.
Renmin University of China – Wei Jian: The current site we are located in is the ancient city site of Xiaohongchengzi in Guyuan, Hebei. This place is the location of the Chahannaoer Palace in the Yuan Dynasty, which was surrounded by the east-west imperial road. So whether you flip back or walk up, you have to gather here, except for the area slightly north of the center where we see the main hall protruding from the Artemisia annua, and it is obvious that the front and back blocks are the sleeping style buildings of the Yuan Dynasty in China, with the front facing the hall and the back facing the living quarters. Generally, it is a zigzag shape with a slightly thinner waist in the middle, followed by a main hall in the front and a main hall in the back, so this is a major hall site.
The camping of patrol routes is often set up in places with abundant water and grass, where one can stop fishing and hunting for a while to rest, and also handle government affairs during the camping. The emperor toured both cities, and the main officials of the central government also had to accompany him to manage the court’s affairs. Some important government officials have branch offices in Shangdu, and they have spent nearly half a year in Shangdu to recuperate from the heat and manage affairs, leaving only the Central Secretary for Political Affairs and the Right (Left) Chief Minister to handle miscellaneous affairs.
Renmin University of China – Wei Jian: In the past, people believed that the Yuan Dynasty was about immediately conquering and governing the world. In fact, the Yuan Dynasty itself seemed to have stronger martial arts skills, but they did not reject this culture. They were very friendly to these literati and often kept them in their accounts, creating poems and songs for them. Especially during the patrols of both sides, they were called servant poets. Nowadays, there are specialized collections of poems and servant poems that describe the Yuan Dynasty very clearly. Therefore, through these servant poems, we can learn a lot about the history of the Yuan Dynasty.
According to various literature statistics, there are nearly a thousand poems about the Yuan Dynasty’s journey to the capital, mainly describing the scenery of the emperor’s tour of the post road. Although there are few well-known works that have been passed down, these poems have become one of the important documents for studying the history of the Yuan Dynasty.
The Site of the Yuan Dynasty Shangdu Capital Zhenglan Banner, Xilingol League, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region
At this time, the water and grass in the capital city were not yet green, but with the arrival of the emperor’s patrol team, it would soon become lively here. The army has set up camp, and people are preparing for the lives and trade of tens of thousands of people in this city for the first half of the year. Various tribal kings, envoys from West Asia and Europe on the grasslands are already on their way to the capital.
Renmin University of China – Wei Jian: Our current location is at the northwest corner of the outer city of Yuanshangdu, about one kilometer away in the northwest direction. This place is part of Longgang, called Hadentai Aobao, which is slightly north or west. We call it Xishan Aobao. Below the Aobao is one of the famous two granaries of the Yuan Dynasty, Wanying Warehouse. The other granary is located to the east, called Guangji Warehouse. Its layout is exactly the same as that of Wanying Warehouse, and it is also a place for storing grain. Below the small hill in the north, in the blackened area, we found two barracks through investigation, including the command system, storage system, and residential system. The houses were arranged in rows very neatly, just like the houses we are now arranging. We calculated that if four soldiers were to live in each room like that, it would probably accommodate eight thousand people. However, during the patrol of the two cities in Shangdu, there were about twenty thousand guards, including the Han army and the Mongolian army.
The cold and desolate city of Shangdu quickly became a metropolis with 100000 people gathering, where trade from various countries took place. The most solemn ceremonies, banquets, annual gifts, and political discussions of the year were held in Shangdu one after another. In today’s Yuan Shangdu, there is also a sacrificial site called the Sheep Temple. Several stone statues unearthed here have witnessed the grand sacrificial ceremony in Shangdu.
The Yangqun Temple Site in Zhenglan Banner, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region
Wei Jian, Renmin University of China: The Yangqun Temple site was an unexpected harvest. It was because of the phenomenon of tomb robbing in this place. We came to deal with the phenomenon of tomb robbing. When we arrived, we found that after digging, three of them should be four, three of them had no head, and the rest were complete. The fourth one only had a part in front of the heel, which was incomplete. It was a White Marble stone statue. And this place is precisely located about 35 kilometers northwest of Yuan Shangdu. According to records in Yuan history, it is a place where the royal family of the Yuan Dynasty worships the heavens and ancestors. It happens to be on the seventh and ninth days of the seventh lunar month every year. This golden family, the imperial family, comes here to worship the heavens and ancestors.
After the grand sacrificial ceremony, there is the annual Cheating Horse Banquet in Shangdu. This is not only a grand banquet, but also an important gathering for Mongolian royal nobles to discuss imperial politics. After the banquet, a large patrol team will return from Shangdu and head to another political core of the Yuan Empire – Yuandu. It is precisely because of this annual long-distance round-trip that some major historical events of the Yuan Dynasty occurred on the way between the two capitals during patrols. On the fourth day of the eighth lunar month in 1323 AD, Emperor Yingzong set off south to return to Dadu after completing his tour of Shangdu. On that night, the entourage had just arrived at the first stop of the southward journey, the Nanpo Camping, which shocked the whole country. The aristocratic bureaucrats led by the imperial censor Tie Shi and Emperor Yingzong, who were cowardly and cowardly, as well as the first Timur, launched a military coup and killed Emperor Yingzong and his trusted ministers. In 1328 AD, Emperor Taiding of the Yuan Dynasty passed away. One faction of aristocratic bureaucrats proclaimed the son of Emperor Taiding as emperor in Shangdu, while the other faction supported Emperor Wenzong of the Yuan Dynasty, Tutu Mu’er, in Dadu. The two sides engaged in a large-scale armed conflict over the throne, and the flames of war spread throughout the vast area north of the Yellow River. The “Battle of the Two Capitals” lasted for nearly a year, and in the end, Emperor Wenzong of the Yuan Dynasty won.
Yuanzhongdu Site, Zhangbei County, Zhangjiakou City, Hebei Province
During this period, the Yuan Dynasty also experienced a rare phenomenon in Chinese history where three capitals coexisted at the same time. In 1307 AD, the newly enthroned Emperor Wuzong established a new capital city – Zhongdu – at the Wanghucha Duxing Palace, an important road between the two capitals.
Renmin University of China – Wei Jian: In 1307 AD, Haishan descended from the north of the desert and succeeded to the throne in Dadu. Later in history, it was called Yuanwuzong. After Wuzong succeeded to the throne, he quickly ordered the creation of Zhongdu in the area of Wanghucha Capital. Where is Wanghucha Capital? The place where our Zhongdu is now located used to be a relay station during the patrol of the two capitals. At that time, all the ministers opposed it, but Emperor Wuzong insisted on doing this, whether it was in the capital or in the upper capital, which had little to do with him. Moreover, the intertwined forces in those places, some of which were even hostile, were detrimental to him. He needs to have his own base to establish roots and seek development, perhaps for these reasons to establish Zhongdu.
During the reign of Emperor Wuzong for only four years, the Zhongdu City, which had been built with a large amount of manpower and material resources, was not fully completed. In recent years, archaeological excavations have gradually made the appearance of the Zhongdu City clearer. The size of the Zhongdu City is smaller than that of the Dadu City and larger than that of the Shangdu City. The entire city is divided into three parts: the outer city, the imperial city, and the palace city. However, the most core palace city of the Zhongdu City is located in the center of the city, which is in line with the traditional layout of capital city construction. In January 1311 AD, Emperor Wuzong passed away and his brother Renzong Aiyuli Balibada ascended to the throne. He immediately ordered the cessation of the construction of the central capital city. The central capital system only existed for two years and ten months, becoming a fleeting interlude in the history of capital construction in the Yuan Dynasty.
The history of the Yuan Dynasty came to an end as the emperor traveled back and forth between the two capitals. The city of Shangdu lasted for 99 years. In 1358 AD, the Red Turban Army led by Liu Futong launched a northern expedition and captured Shangdu. With a large fire, the prosperous city and its palace, which had accumulated a hundred years of strength, were reduced to ashes. The patrol system of the two capitals of the Yuan Dynasty came to an end.
The Site of the Yuan Dynasty Shangdu Capital Zhenglan Banner, Xilingol League, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region
The palace is dilapidated, and the wild grass is lush. The once prosperous capital city sleeps forever on the vast grassland, and the past prosperity becomes a memory. Ten years later, on the second day of August 1368 AD, Xu Da, a general under Zhu Yuanzhang, led his troops northward and captured Dadu, renaming it as Beiping. Chinese history underwent another dynasty change. The nearly century old Two Capitals Patrol System implemented by the Yuan Dynasty has completely ended. However, the Two Capitals Patrol System of the Yuan Dynasty has played a significant role in consolidating the Yuan Dynasty’s political power, stabilizing the situation, strengthening the connection between Han and Mongolia, promoting political, economic, and cultural exchanges and integration between Mongolia and Han, and has had a profound historical impact.
Yuan Dadu, this former international metropolis, gathers people from all over the world for various transactions and exchanges. Over 700 years have passed, and Beijing has been thriving and attracting worldwide attention. What is prosperity and decline? What is rise and fall? What is a big wave washing sand? The fate of the two cities, Dadu and Shangdu, has been vividly interpreted.
Duration of 90 seconds: Liangzhou Alliance
In 1244 AD, Sakya Panzhida, the leader of the Sakya Sect of Tibetan Buddhism, led two young nephews, Basba and Charnadoji, to set out. Monks and people from all over the snow covered plateau volunteered to form a huge team to follow and protect him and went to Liangzhou. Along the way, Sakya Panzhida had extensive exchanges of views with all walks of life in Xizang, gradually unifying people’s minds. After two years of hard travel, Sakya Panzhida and his delegation finally arrived in Liangzhou City. After talks with the Mongolian Khan King, Sakya Panzhida and the Mongolian Khan King, the two sides formally held an oath of alliance, and reached an agreement on the return of Tibet to the Mongolian regime. Tibet was included in the territory of China. The important historical moment of Liangzhou League was recorded in the Bataba Thangka biography. The 13-year-old Bataba participated in the League all the way, Four years later, his uncle Sakya Banzhida passed away in Liangzhou. Basba accepted his mantle and became the new leader of the Sakya sect, beginning his great and legendary life.
