During the Southern Song dynasty the descendant of Confucius at Qufu, the Duke Yansheng Kong Duanyou fled south with the Song Emperor to Quzhou, while the newly established Jin dynasty in the north appointed Kong Duanyou's brother Kong Duancao who remained in Qufu as Duke Yansheng. From that time up until the Yuan dynasty, there were two Duke Yanshengs, once in the north in Qufu and the other in the south at Quzhou. An invitation to come back to Qufu was extended to the southern Duke Yansheng Kong Zhu by the Yuan dynasty Emperor Kublai Khan. The title was taken away from the southern branch after Kong Zhu rejected the invitation, so the northern branch of the family kept the title of Duke Yansheng. The southern branch still remained in Quzhou where they lived to this day. Confucius's descendants in Quzhou alone number 30,000. The Hanlin Academy rank of Wujing boshi was awarded to the southern branch at Quzhou by a Ming Emperor while the northern branch at Qufu held the title Duke Yansheng. Kong Ruogu aka Kong Chuan 47th generation was claimed to be the ancestor of the Southern branch after Kong Zhu died by Northern branch member Kong Guanghuang. The leader of the southern branch is Kong Xiangkai.
During the Second World War, Japanese troops used bacteriological weapons in Quzhou, spreading plague, typhoid and other diseases in Quzhou, as well as in Ningbo and Changde. As a result, between 1940 and 1948 more than 300,000 Chinese civilians in the area contracted the plague and other diseases, and an estimated 50,000 died in Quzhou alone.
The centre of Quzhou sits on a broad basin along the, a tributary of the Qiantang River. The Qu River flows roughly southeast for and is flanked on both sides by hills. Almost all the rivers of Quzhou feed into the Qiantang, which ultimately empties into Hangzhou Bay. The terrain is higher in the west and the east. The territory of Quzhou Municipality is made up of plains, hills, and mountains. In the north is the Qianli Gang mountain range and in the west the Yu Mountains. The highest mountains, the range known as the Xianxia Ling, lie in the south. The highest point in the city is at Dalong Gang, which rises to 1,500 m above sea level. 70.7% of the land is covered with forest. The rest is densely irrigated and farmed, producing citrus fruits, tea and mulberry leaves.
Climate
Quzhou has a humid subtropical climate with four distinctive seasons, characterised by hot, humid summers and chilly, cloudy and drier winters. The mean annual temperature is, with monthly daily averages ranging from in January to in July. The city receives an average annual rainfall of and is affected by the plum rains of the Asian monsoon in June, when average relative humidity also peaks. The frost-free period lasts 251–261 days. Winds along the Qiantang River valley are predominantly north-easterly and north-east-easterly. Occasionally typhoons blow in from the Pacific Ocean. With monthly percent possible sunshine ranging from 25% in March to 59% in August, the city receives 1,810 hours of bright sunshine annually.
Tourism
Ancestral Temple of the Southern Confucian Clan
Lanke Mountain, southeast of the city proper. It features green peaks and clear waters, and the huge rocks on top of the mountain support a horizontal rock to form a natural arch, the Tiansheng Bridge.
Demographics
As of 2003, Quzhou municipality registered a population of 2578100. The vast majority are Han Chinese but there are also small minorities of She and Hui, Zhuang, Manchu and Miao. Most of the people in Quzhou are engaged in agriculture. The genders are roughly evenly split. Population density is 273 people per km². At any given time there are a handful of foreign teachers at the schools and university of Quzhou, as well as alleged but never seen Russian Military Personnel who work and advise at the military base.
Transportation
Quzhou is well served by both railways and highways. The city of Quzhou is a major connection hub between the three provinces of Anhui, Jiangxi and Fujian, with the Zhegan Railroad running through southern Quzhou and the Qu River flowing past northern Quzhou.. ;Airport Quzhou Airport, ranked as class 4C, is located away from east side of city centre, and this airport was built in 22nd year of Republic of China.The destinations are Beijing, Chongqing, Haikou, Jinan, Qingdao, Kunming, Dalisn, Guiyang, Xi'an and Shenzhen. Airplane timetable and more information can be found on . The nearest large-scale airport is Hangzhou International Airport, and its information can be found on ;Railway One of the most famous railway passes through the city is Shanghai-Kunming Railway with a speed of. This railway has three stations in city, which are Longyou Station, Quzhou Station, Jiangshan Station, Changshan Station, Kaihua Station. More information can be found on ;Highway Quzhou South Station, also named as Quzhou Express Station,located in No.209 Shang Street, has 27 buses to Hangzhou, 18 to Jinhua, 8 to Ningbo, 6 to Wenzhou, and 3 to Shanghai daily. Another Express Station is located in He Hua Middle Road, on the south of newly built train station, and its destinations cover most cities in Jiangxi Province and Fujian Province. More bus information can be found on https://web.archive.org/web/20111231062848/http://www.icha.com.cn/RailwayStation/130.Html
