1．榮辱興衰汴梁城

1．榮辱興衰汴梁城

開封位于河南省東部，黃河南岸的豫東平原上，是中國著名的歷史文化名城。開封在古代稱為大梁，又稱做汴梁。開封城歷史悠久，是中國最早開發(fā)的地域之一，早在5000多年前，在現(xiàn)在的開封城附近就出現(xiàn)了原始的聚落。

開封地區(qū)地勢平坦，氣候溫和，地理位置十分優(yōu)越，并且河流湖泊眾多，水運(yùn)發(fā)達(dá)，這些條件都十分有利于城市的形成和發(fā)展，也是古代統(tǒng)治者選擇在開封建都的重要原因。在中國歷史上共有7個(gè)朝代在開封建都，它們分別是戰(zhàn)國時(shí)期的魏國，五代時(shí)期的后梁、后晉、后漢、后周，以及北宋和金，因此，開封又有“七朝古都”之稱。另外，西漢時(shí)期的梁孝王也曾經(jīng)把開封作為自己的封國--梁國的都城。元末農(nóng)民起義時(shí)，農(nóng)民軍政權(quán)也曾在開封建立都城。明朝初年，皇帝朱元璋曾一度把開封定為北方的都城。

公元前4世紀(jì)，魏國進(jìn)行了社會改革，成為當(dāng)時(shí)最強(qiáng)大的國家。公元前361年，魏國都城從山西遷移到了開封，并在這里建立大梁城。政治地位的提高，加上開封優(yōu)越的自然條件，開封成為一座繁華的大城市，人口最多時(shí)達(dá)到50萬，約占當(dāng)時(shí)魏國總?cè)丝诘?/4。

大梁作為魏國的國都長達(dá)130多年。到公元前225年，秦國攻打魏國的大梁城，由于城墻堅(jiān)固，秦國便引水灌城，這是開封歷史上第一次遭受毀滅性的打擊，大梁城也變成了一座廢墟。從此以后的五六百年中，開封一直處于一蹶不振的狀態(tài)。

秦朝建立以后，開封變成了一個(gè)普通的郡縣。秦朝在這里設(shè)置了浚儀縣，同時(shí)還在開封故城的附近設(shè)置了開封縣。漢朝時(shí)將浚儀縣歸屬到陳留郡。這里還是楚漢之爭的要地，地理位置十分的重要，據(jù)歷史記載，漢高祖的謀臣就曾對他指出開封地區(qū)的重要軍事地位。

605年，隋朝修建了著名的大運(yùn)河，其中從黃河到淮河之間的一段稱為汴河。水路的暢通使開封成為一個(gè)重要的交通樞紐，為開封的再次繁榮打下了良好的基礎(chǔ)。唐朝的時(shí)候，開封因?yàn)槠渲匾乃\(yùn)地位，經(jīng)濟(jì)開始迅速發(fā)展，地位也有了極大的提高。

五代時(shí)期，后梁、后漢、后晉、后周都在這里建都。后梁在這里設(shè)置了開封府，稱為東都，成為國家的首都，后晉、后漢、后周都將開封稱做東京。但因?yàn)楫?dāng)時(shí)連年戰(zhàn)爭，開封的發(fā)展再次受到影響，自后梁以后開封只有國都的虛名，情況基本保持了原來的樣子，市容蕭條，經(jīng)濟(jì)落沒。這種情況直到后周才有了轉(zhuǎn)機(jī)。后周第二個(gè)皇帝柴榮勵精圖治，發(fā)展經(jīng)濟(jì)，在開封城市建設(shè)和發(fā)展上也作出了巨大的貢獻(xiàn)，如修筑道路、建立倉庫、修復(fù)水道等，這一系列的措施為開封在北宋時(shí)期成為全國性的大都會打下了基礎(chǔ)。

960年，趙匡胤建立宋朝，定都汴京（今開封），又稱東京。北宋王朝共經(jīng)歷了167年，是在開封建都時(shí)間最長的王朝。這一時(shí)期是開封歷史上發(fā)展的鼎盛時(shí)期。當(dāng)時(shí)，汴河、惠民河、五丈河和金水河四條水道貫穿開封全城，形成了一個(gè)龐大的水運(yùn)交通網(wǎng)。陸路方面，當(dāng)時(shí)開封有幾條干線向四方輻射，通往全國各地。交通的發(fā)達(dá)使開封逐漸發(fā)展成為一個(gè)商業(yè)繁榮的大都市。東京城的規(guī)模也在不斷擴(kuò)大，成為當(dāng)時(shí)世界上最壯麗的城市之一，也是當(dāng)時(shí)世界上人口最多的城市之一。

北宋時(shí)期是開封發(fā)展歷史上一個(gè)重要的時(shí)期，經(jīng)濟(jì)高度發(fā)達(dá)，手工業(yè)成為當(dāng)時(shí)經(jīng)濟(jì)的主體，商業(yè)和農(nóng)業(yè)也很發(fā)達(dá)，貿(mào)易交往頻繁，市場繁榮。開封不僅是全國的政治中心，也是全國官方貿(mào)易中心。那時(shí)手工業(yè)的發(fā)展程度相當(dāng)?shù)母?，已?jīng)有了手工作坊和工場，手工業(yè)分為官營和私營兩種，其中官營的規(guī)模最大，據(jù)說各種工匠達(dá)到8萬人以上。而且手工業(yè)的門類越來越多，分工越來越細(xì)，規(guī)模也十分的龐大，主要有軍器、紡織、陶瓷、釀酒等。隨著手工業(yè)的發(fā)展，商品生產(chǎn)大大增加，商品買賣也相應(yīng)發(fā)展起來，當(dāng)時(shí)從事商業(yè)的達(dá)到兩萬多戶。商業(yè)的發(fā)展又促進(jìn)了市場的繁榮，大街小巷，店鋪林立，一片繁榮的景象。另外開封作為全國的官方貿(mào)易中心，成為中國境內(nèi)各個(gè)民族和王朝同宋朝，亞非各國同宋朝進(jìn)行商業(yè)和貿(mào)易交流的中心城市，對宋朝政治的安定和經(jīng)濟(jì)的發(fā)展有重要的影響。開封當(dāng)時(shí)還是全國印刷業(yè)的四大中心之一，印刷業(yè)的繁榮，使文化傳播變得更加迅速。經(jīng)濟(jì)的發(fā)展極大地促進(jìn)了建筑業(yè)的發(fā)展，當(dāng)時(shí)著名的建筑有大慶殿、宣德樓等。

1127年，北宋被金滅亡，開封繼續(xù)被金定為都城，這時(shí)的開封已經(jīng)遭到嚴(yán)重的破壞，經(jīng)濟(jì)也開始衰落了。

到了明朝和清朝時(shí)期，開封仍然是地方行政中心，經(jīng)濟(jì)情況比金、元兩個(gè)朝代有了好轉(zhuǎn)。明朝統(tǒng)治者一方面恢復(fù)農(nóng)業(yè)，興修水利工程，另一方面對城市進(jìn)行改建，開封一度恢復(fù)生機(jī)。清朝統(tǒng)治者重建開封城，盡管如此，開封城市的發(fā)展已經(jīng)遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)不如從前了。

在歷史上，開封經(jīng)歷了無數(shù)次的黃河水災(zāi)。歷史上最大的一次發(fā)生在明朝末年，這次水災(zāi)使開封城內(nèi)原有的37萬人口只剩下3萬人，整個(gè)開封遭受了空前的毀壞。黃河的多次泛濫，嚴(yán)重破壞了自然環(huán)境，是開封經(jīng)濟(jì)落后的一個(gè)重要原因。

開封作為一座擁有2000多年歷史的古城，經(jīng)歷了多次的興盛與衰落，成為歷史的見證者。

1. History

East of Henan province and on a plain on the south bank of the Yellow River, there lies a city of time-honored history and civilization. Named as Daliang and Bianliang successively in history, the city known as Kaifeng is one of the first cultivated lands in China. As early as 5,000 years ago, primitive tribes left their footprint on this land.

Flat land, mild climate, favorable geographical location and numerous lakes and rivers make Kaifeng an ideal place for urban development and for the development of a capital city. In the Chinese history, seven dynasties built their capitals in Kaifeng. They are the state of Wei in the Warring States Period, Later Liang, Later Jin, Later Han, Later Zhou of the Five Dynasties, the Northern Song dynasty as well as the Jin dynasty (1115-1234). Therefore, Kaifeng is also known as "an ancient capital of seven dynasties". In the Western Han dynasty, Kaifeng was chosen by Duke Liangxiao as the capital of his fief "Liang" (a state under the control of the Han dynasty court). In the late years of the Yuan dynasty, farmer insurgents established their capital in Kaifeng. And in the early years of the Ming dynasty, Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang once appointed Kaifeng the capital of the north.

In the 4th century BC, through reform, Wei became the most powerful state. In 361 BC, Wei moved the capital from Shanxi to today's Kaifeng and built the city of Daliang in this area. With enhanced political status and favorable natural conditions, Daliang soon became a prosperous city. Population of the city at its prime time reached 500,000, accounting for a quarter of the total population of Wei.

Daliang remained Wei's capital for more than 130 years until 225 BC when it came under heavy attack from Qin. Unable to conquer the firm city wall, soldiers of Qin channeled water to flood the city which was finally reduced to ruins. This is the first time in history that Kaifeng suffered a deadly hit. In the following five or six hundred years, the city never regained the prosperity that it once enjoyed.

In the Qin dynasty, on the land of today's Kaifeng there were two small counties: Yunyi county and Kaifeng county. Later in the Han dynasty, the former was incorporated into Chenliu prefecture. The modern Kaifeng is where the famous battle between Xiang Yu and Liu Bang occurred. So it was a place of strategic importance in history. Historical records say Liu Bang's advisors once pointed out the military significance of Kaifeng to him.

In the Sui dynasty, the Grand Canal built in 605 made Kaifeng a water transportation hub, underpinning the revival of the city. Then after years of rapid economic development in the Tang dynasty, the city regained its status of importance.

In the period of Five Dynasties, though Kaifeng was the capital for four dynasties, the city was not as prosperous as a capital should be due to the ravages of warfare. It was not until in Later Zhou that it showed some signs of revival. Chai Rong, the second emperor of Later Zhou spared no effort to make the city better. Under his rule, roads were built, warehouses constructed and waterways repaired. All these paved the way for Kaifeng's evolution into a national metropolis later in the Song dynasty.

In 960, Zhao Kuangyin announced the beginning of the Song dynasty with Bianjing or Dongjing (present Kaifeng) as its capital. Since then, Northern Song ruled for more than 167 years, the longest reign with Kaifeng as the capital. During those years, Kaifeng developed to its peak mainly due to the convenient transportation networks the city had: the Bianhe River, the Huimin River, the Wuzhang River and the Golden Water River that flowed through the city formed a huge water transportation network while several trunk roads radiated out in all directions and led to places all over the ancient China. As a result, Kaifeng gradually developed into a busy commercial metropolis and one of the world's magnificent cities with large populations.

Kaifeng in the Northern Song dynasty was a highly developed economy. On top of agriculture, handicraft industry became a major part of the economy, thus creating conditions for frequent trade exchanges. Handicraft industry was so developed that there were 80,000 artisans of different types working in workshops and plants. Handicraft production, both official and private, was carried out on a large scale and with a more careful division of labor. Specialized artisans made different products such as weapons, textiles, pottery and wine-making, etc. The development of handicraft industry stimulated sales of commodities, which in turn created a thriving market. At that time, more than 20,000 households were engaged in commerce and streets were lined with different kinds of shops. Kaifeng became an official national trade center and was open to merchants from various ethnic groups, from other dynasties as well as from Asian and African countries. They came to the city and exchanged goods with each other, making Northern Song a politically stable and economically thriving dynasty. Kaifeng was also among the four national printing centers. Development of the printing industry accelerated cultural spread across the country. Thanks to the economic development, a lot of buildings sprouted up. Among the famous are the Daqing Palace and the Xuande pavilion.

In 1127, Northern Song was overthrown by the Jin dynasty and Kaifeng continued to be Jin's capital; but greatly destroyed in the wars, the city began to fall.

In Ming and Qing dynasties, Kaifeng was a local administrative center and rulers of both dynasties did a lot to boost the economic development. Though much better than in Jin and Yuan dynasties, Kaifeng was no longer what it used to be.

In history, Kaifeng was flooded by the Yellow River frequently. The worst one was in the late years of the Ming dynasty. After that flooding, the population of the city dropped from 370,000 to only 30,000. The frequent flooding of the Yellow River was a great havoc to the natural environment and may well be blamed for the city's lagging economy.

A city whose development dates back to two thousand years ago, a city that experienced rises and falls, Kaifeng is definitely a witness of history.