Yongding River
Encyclopedia
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
. It is one of the main tributaries in the Hai River
Hai River
The Hai River , previously called Bai He , is a river in the People's Republic of China which flows through Beijing and Tianjin before emptying into the Yellow Sea at the Bohai Gulf.The Hai River at Tianjin is formed by the confluence of five rivers, the Southern Canal, Ziya...
system and is best known as the largest river to flow through Beijing Municipality.
Geography
The Yongding River is 650 km in length and drains an area of 47,016 km2. It emerges from the Guancen Mountains of Ningwu CountyNingwu County
Ningwu County is a district of Shanxi, China. It is under the administration of Xinzhou city.-References:*...
in Shanxi Province, where it is known as the Cangqian River (桑乾河) and flows northeast into Inner Mongolia
Inner Mongolia
Inner Mongolia is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China, located in the northern region of the country. Inner Mongolia shares an international border with the countries of Mongolia and the Russian Federation...
and then heads southeast into Hebei Province.
In Huailai County
Huailai County
Huailai is a county in the Hebei province of northern China, under the administration of Zhangjiakou prefecture-level city.Huailai County is a center for grape wine production, with the China Great Wall Wine Company, Ltd. headquartered in the town of Shacheng. Huailai Tianyuan Special Type Glass...
, it fills the Guanting Reservoir, the biggest reservoir serving Beijing and takes on the name Yongding. It enters Beijing Municipality through the Xishan Mountains west of the city in Mentougou District
Mentougou District
Mentougou District is in west Beijing.Spanning 1,321 square kilometres, with 266,591 inhabitants , it is subdivided into 4 subdistricts of the city proper of Beijing and 9 towns ....
and descends into the flatlands of Fengtai
Fengtai District
Fengtai District is a suburban district of the municipality of Beijing. It lies to the southwest of the urban core of the city.-History:In Qing Dynasty times, Fengtai was where the Imperial Manchu Army had its camps, trained, and held parades on festive occasions.It is 304.2 square kilometers in...
and Daxing
Daxing District
Daxing District is a suburb of Beijing, situated to the south of the city.-Overview:...
Districts.
The river eventually flows back into Hebei Province and then on to Tianjin Municipality, where it meets the Hai River
Hai River
The Hai River , previously called Bai He , is a river in the People's Republic of China which flows through Beijing and Tianjin before emptying into the Yellow Sea at the Bohai Gulf.The Hai River at Tianjin is formed by the confluence of five rivers, the Southern Canal, Ziya...
just before the latter enters the city and then empties into the Bohai Sea
Bohai Sea
Bohai Sea , also known as Bohai Gulf, Bohai, or Bo Hai, is the innermost gulf of the Yellow Sea on the coast of Northeastern and North China. It is approximately 78,000 km2 Bohai Sea , also known as Bohai Gulf, Bohai, or Bo Hai, is the innermost gulf of the Yellow Sea on the coast of...
at Tanggu. Part of the river is diverted before the juncture with the Hai, and flows directly into the Bohai Sea. This channel is called the Yongding New River (永定新河).
History
Historically, the river was notorious for its flash floods and course changes. The river has taken at least three major courses through Beijing. According to the earliest historical records, the river originally flowed northeast from BabaoshanBabaoshan
Babaoshan may refer to:*Babaoshan Revolutionary Cemetery, in Beijing, China*Babaoshan Station, station at Line 1, Beijing Subway*Babaoshan Subdistrict, division of Shijingshan Subdistrict, Beijing...
toward what is now the Purple Bamboo Park
Purple Bamboo Park
Purple Bamboo Park is one of the seven largest parks in Beijing, China. It is located in the Haidian District of northwestern Beijing....
in Haidian District and into Wenyu River.
Western Han Dynasty
In the Western Han Dynasty, the river flowed south from Deshengmen
Deshengmen
Deshengmen is the name of a city gate that was once part of Beijing's northern city wall. It is one of Beijing's few preserved city gates and now stands as a landmark on the northern 2nd Ring Road....
through the present-day downtown Beijing, including Qianmen
Qianmen
Qianmen is the colloquial name for Zhengyangmen , a gate in Beijing's historic city wall. The gate is situated to the south of Tiananmen Square and once guarded the southern entry into the Inner City. Although much of Beijing's city walls were demolished, Qianmen remains an important...
and Hongqiao
Hongqiao
Hongqiao may refer to the following entities in China:* Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport , airport in Shanghai* Shanghai Hongqiao Railway Station , one of the four major railway stations in Shanghai...
and Longtan Lake
Longtan Lake
Longtan Lake is a lake in the rural township of Longtan in southern Taoyuan County, Taiwan.The lake is known for the Buddhist temple in the centre of the lake....
, before leaving to the southeast. At that time, the city was situated to the southwest of today's city centre. In the Liao Dynasty
Liao Dynasty
The Liao Dynasty , also known as the Khitan Empire was an empire in East Asia that ruled over the regions of Manchuria, Mongolia, and parts of northern China proper between 9071125...
, the river moved southwest to its present course, and the Lugou Bridge was built over it in 1189. When Marco Polo
Marco Polo
Marco Polo was a Venetian merchant traveler from the Venetian Republic whose travels are recorded in Il Milione, a book which did much to introduce Europeans to Central Asia and China. He learned about trading whilst his father and uncle, Niccolò and Maffeo, travelled through Asia and apparently...
visited the city during the Yuan Dynasty
Yuan Dynasty
The Yuan Dynasty , or Great Yuan Empire was a ruling dynasty founded by the Mongol leader Kublai Khan, who ruled most of present-day China, all of modern Mongolia and its surrounding areas, lasting officially from 1271 to 1368. It is considered both as a division of the Mongol Empire and as an...
, he crossed the Yongding River on the Lugou Bridge, which became known as the Marco Polo Bridge.
The river has been known colloquially as the Wuding River or the "River of Instability." In 1698, the Qing Dynasty
Qing Dynasty
The Qing Dynasty was the last dynasty of China, ruling from 1644 to 1912 with a brief, abortive restoration in 1917. It was preceded by the Ming Dynasty and followed by the Republic of China....
Kangxi Emperor
Kangxi Emperor
The Kangxi Emperor ; Manchu: elhe taifin hūwangdi ; Mongolian: Энх-Амгалан хаан, 4 May 1654 –20 December 1722) was the fourth emperor of the Qing Dynasty, the first to be born on Chinese soil south of the Pass and the second Qing emperor to rule over China proper, from 1661 to 1722.Kangxi's...
's government reinforced the river banks and rendered the current course permanent. The river thus became known as the Yongding River or the "River of Eternal Stability."