Shijiazhuang


Shijiazhuang formerly known as Shimen and romanized as Shihkiachwang, is the capital and largest city of North China's Hebei Province. Administratively a prefecture-level city, it is about southwest of Beijing, and it administers eight districts, two county-level cities, and 12 counties.
As of 2015 it had a total population of 10,701,600 with 4,303,700 in the central area comprising the seven districts and the county of Zhengding largely conurbated with the Shijiazhuang metropolitan area as urbanization continues to proliferate. Shijiazhuang's total population ranked twelfth in mainland China.
Shijiazhuang experienced dramatic growth after the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949. The population of the metropolitan area has more than quadrupled in 30 years as a result of industrialization and infrastructural developments. From 2008 to 2011, Shijiazhuang implemented a three-year plan which concluded with the reorganization of the city resulting in an increase of green areas and new buildings and roads. A train station, airport and a subway system have been opened.
Shijiazhuang is situated east of the Taihang Mountains, a mountain range extending over from north to south with an average elevation of, making Shijiazhuang a place for hiking, outdoor trips, and cycling.

Name

The city's name, Shijiazhuang, first appeared during Ming dynasty. The literal meaning of the name is "Shi family's village". The origin of the name is disputed. One story claimed that the Wanli Emperor sent 24 officers and their families to the area, after which the group splits into 2 settlements consisting of 10 and 14 families. The Imperial Court then named the settlements "village of 10 families" and "village of 14 families", respectively. Since Chinese characters for ten and stone are homophones, it's speculated that the city name gradually evolved into its current spelling. Another explanation is that the settlement was named after the highest-ranking official amongst the group, surnamed Shi.
At first, the settlement was officially known as "Shijia", as "zhuang" was used to denote the fact that it was a village, instead of being part of its name. This was further evidenced on June 24, 1925, when the Republican government ordered the village to be established as an autonomous city under the name Shijia. The city ended up established as Shimen on August 29, 1925, after the merger with another village, Xiumen. Despite the rename, however, many documents from the Second Sino-Japanese War and the Chinese Civil War still referred to the city as "Shijiazhuang" or "Shizhuang". To avoid confusion and association with the Japanese Army, its name was ultimately reverted to Shijiazhuang on December 26, 1947. Since then, many terms regarding the city have been stemmed from the "zhuang" suffix, including its nickname
"international village", and the colloquial demonym, "villagers".

History

Qin and Han dynasties

In pre-Han times, the site of the city of Shiyi in the state of Zhao was located in this area. After taking over Zhao, Qin Shi Huang established Hengshan Commandery in the region. It became part of the Zhao Principality under Western Han. The land was briefly granted to Liu Buyi, son of the Emperor Hui, during Empress Dowager Lü's reign. The territory was then passed to Liu Hong, Emperor Houshao of Han, after Buyi's death. It was then granted to Liu Chao, another son of Emperor Hui. During the defeat of the Lü clan, Liu Chao was killed and the territory became a commandery of Zhao once again. Later, due to a naming taboo of Emperor Wen of Han, whose personal name is Liu Heng, its name was changed to Changshan. From Han to Sui times it was the site of a county seat named Shiyi.

Tang dynasty

With the reorganization of local government in the early period of the Tang dynasty, Hengshan county was abolished, and it was reestablished as a prefecture. It was renamed as Zhen Prefecture due to a naming taboo with Emperor Muzong of Tang, whose personal name was Li Heng.

Ming and Qing dynasties

The name "Shijiazhuang" was first mentioned in 1535 on a stele of a local temple. Shijiazhuang was then little more than a local market town, subordinated to the flourishing city of Zhengding a few miles to the north.

Republican era

The growth of Shijiazhuang into one of China's major cities began in 1905, when the Beijing–Wuhan railway reached the area, stimulating trade and encouraging local farmers to grow cash crops. Two years later the town became the junction for the new Shitai line, running from Shijiazhuang to Taiyuan, Shanxi. The connection transformed the town from a local collecting centre and market into a communications centre of national importance on the main route from Beijing and Tianjin to Shanxi, and later, when the railway from Taiyuan was extended to the southwest, to Shaanxi as well. The city also became the centre of an extensive road network.
Pre-World War II Shijiazhuang was a large railway town as well as a commercial and collecting centre for Shanxi and regions farther west and for agricultural produce of the North China Plain, particularly grain, tobacco, and cotton. By 1935 it had far outstripped Zhengding as an economic centre. At the end of World War II the character of the city changed when it took on an administrative role as the preeminent city in western Hebei, and developed into an industrial city. Some industries, such as match manufacturing, tobacco processing, and glassmaking, had already been established before the war.
On November 12, 1947, the city was captured by Communist forces. Xibaipo, a village about from downtown Shijiazhuang, in Pingshan County was the location of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the headquarters of the People's Liberation Army during the decisive stages of the Chinese Civil War between May 26, 1948 and March 23, 1949, at which point they were moved to Beijing. Today, the area is a memorial site.

People's Republic

After 1949 the industrialisation of the city gathered momentum. Its population more than tripled in the decade 1948–58. In the 1950s, the city experienced a major expansion in the textile industry, with large-scale cotton spinning, weaving, printing, and dyeing works. In addition there are plants processing local farm produce. In the 1960s it was the site of a new chemical industry, with plants producing fertilizer and caustic soda. Shijiazhuang also became an engineering base, with a tractor-accessory plant. There are important coal deposits at Jingxing and Huailu, now named Luquan, a few miles to the west in the foothills of the Taihang Mountains, which provide fuel for a thermal-generating plant supplying power to local industries.
In 1967, Tianjin was again carved out of Hebei, remaining a separate entity today, and thus the provincial capital was moved to Baoding. It was chaotic in the midst of the Cultural Revolution, and under the direction of Mao Zedong, in 1968, to "prepare for war and natural disasters", Shijiazhuang became the provincial capital.
On the early hours of March 16, 2001, 4 apartment buildings were leveled after a series of explosions rocked the city, killing 108 while injuring 38. The perpetrator was a deaf, unemployed man named Jin Ruchao who police arrested weeks later. Jin confessed that he had delivered the bombs via taxi and stated that the bombings were an act of revenge on his relatives, who were among the tenants of the apartments. Jin and his accomplices were later executed.
Shijiazhuang's administrative divisions saw changes in the 2010s. In 2013, the county-level city of Xinji, although still part of Shijiazhuang prefecture, is now directly administered by the Hebei province. Later, the State Council of the People's Republic of China approved more adjustments to the city's divisions. Qiaodong District was disestablished, with its jurisdiction divided between Chang'an and Qiaoxi districts. Three county-level cities, Gaocheng, Luquan, and Luancheng, became urban districts.

Geography

Shijiazhuang is located in south-central Hebei, and is part of the Bohai Economic Rim. Its administrative area ranges in latitude from 37° 27' to 38° 47' N, and the longitude 113° 30' to 115° 20' E. The prefecture-level city reaches a north–south extent and a wide from east to west. The prefecture has borders stretching long and covers an area of. Bordering prefecture-level cities in Hebei are Hengshui, Xingtai, and Baoding. To the west lies the province of Shanxi.
The city stands at the edge of the North China Plain, which rises to the Taihang Mountains to the west of the city, and lies south of the Hutuo River. From west to east, the topography can be summarised as moderately high mountains, then low-lying mountains, hills, basin, and finally plains. Out of the eight east–west routes across the Taihang Mountains, the fifth, the Niangzi Pass, connects the city directly with Taiyuan, Shanxi.
The mountainous part of the prefecture consists of parts of:
The Hutuo River Basin in the east juts into:
The city has a continental, monsoon-influenced semi-arid climate, characterised by hot, humid summers due to the East Asian monsoon, and generally cold, windy, very dry winters that reflect the influence of the Siberian anticyclone. Spring can see sandstorms blowing in from the Mongolian steppe, accompanied by rapidly warming, but generally dry, conditions. Autumn is similar to spring in temperature and lack of rainfall. January averages, while July averages ; the annual mean is. With the monthly percent possible sunshine ranging from 45 percent in July to 61 percent in May, the city receives 2,427 hours of sunshine annually. More than half of the annual rainfall occurs in July and August alone.

Air quality

According to the National Environmental Analysis released by Tsinghua University and The Asian Development Bank in January 2013, Shijiazhuang is one of ten most air-polluted cities in the world. Also according to this report, 7 of 10 most air-polluted cities are in China, including Taiyuan, Beijing, Urumqi, Lanzhou, Chongqing, Jinan and Shijiazhuang. As air pollution in China is at an all-time high, several northern cities are among the most polluted cities and has one of the worst air quality in China. Reporting on China's air quality has been accompanied by what seems like a monochromatic slideshow of the country's several cities smothered in thick smog. According to a survey made by "Global voices China" in February 2013, Shijiazhuang is among China's 10 most polluted cities along with other cities including major Chinese cities like Beijing and Zhengzhou, and 6 other prefectural cities all in Hebei Province. These cities are all situated in traditional geographic subdivision of "Huabei Region".
A dense wave of smog began in the Central and Eastern part of China on 2 December 2013 across a distance of around, including Shijiazhuang and surrounding areas. A lack of cold air flow, combined with slow-moving air masses carrying industrial emissions, collected airborne pollutants to form a thick layer of smog over the region. Officials blamed the dense pollution on lack of wind, automobile exhaust emissions under low air pressure, and coal-powered district heating system in North China region. Prevailing winds blew low-hanging air masses of factory emissions towards China's east coast.

Administration divisions

Shijiazhuang has direct administrative jurisdiction over:

Economy

In 2014, the GDP of Shijiazhuang reached CNY ￥510.02 billion, an increase of 12 percent over the previous year.
Shijiazhuang has become a major industrial city in North China and is considered to be the economic center of Hebei province. The city is a major base for the pharmaceutical and textile industries. Other sectors include machinery and chemicals, building materials, light industry and electronics. With abundant agricultural resources, Shijiazhuang has 590,000 hectares of cultivated land and is the main source of cotton, pears, dates and walnuts in Hebei province.
In 2008, total imports reached US$1.393 billion, an increase of 42.1 percent over the previous year. Exports increased by 34.9 percent to US$5.596 billion.
2006 World Bank reported that Shijiazhuang was spending less than RMB400 per capita on education, as opposed to Beijing and Weihai.

Development zones

The zone was established in March 1991 as a state-level development zone and is divided into three districts. National highways 107, 207, 307, 308 pass through the zone. It is away from Shijiazhuang Railway Station, away from Tianjin Port. Industries include pharmaceuticals, electronic information, mechanical production, automobile manufacturing, chemicals production and logistics.
The Eastern District, located in the eastern part of Shijiazhuang, covers an area of, and serves as the primary section of the New High-tech Industrial Development Zone. The district focuses on the establishment of new high-tech enterprises. There are plans to expand the district into an area of. A railway line operated by Shijiazhuang Oil Refinery runs through the zone from north to south, so enterprises in the zone can build lines of their own.
The Western District, located in the southwest of Shijiazhuang, covers an area of. It focuses on small- and medium-sized technology enterprises and technology incubation. Liangcun District, which borders the Western District, covers, and focuses on the pharmaceutical industry and the petrochemical industry.
By 2009, some 2,600 enterprises had settled in the zone, of which 185 were foreign-funded enterprises. Firms from Japan, the US, the Republic of Korea, Germany, Italy, Canada, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan had established themselves in the zone.

Dairy centre

The city is a centre for the dairy trade, being the headquarters of the Sanlu Group. Sanlu became Shijiazhuang's largest taxpayer since it had become the largest formula seller in China for a continuous 15-year period. Richard McGregor, author of , said that Sanlu became "an invaluable asset for a city otherwise struggling to attract industry and investment on a par with China's premier metropolises."
Both the dairy trade and Sanlu were affected by the 2008 Chinese milk scandal. The chairman and general manager of Sanlu, and several party officials, including the vice-mayor in charge of food and agriculture, Zhang Fawang, were reportedly removed from office. Mayor Ji Chuntang reportedly resigned on 17 September.

Transportation

Rail and roads

Shijiazhuang is a transportation hub at the intersection point of the Beijing–Guangzhou, Taiyuan–Dezhou, and Shuozhou–Huanghua railroads. The new Shijiazhuang railway station has a rare distinction of being served by both the "conventional"
Beijing–Guangzhou Railway and the new Beijing–Guangzhou–Shenzhen–Hong Kong High-Speed Railway. Such an arrangement is fairly uncommon on China's high-speed rail network, as typically high-speed lines are constructed to bypass city cores, where the older "conventional" train stations are.
In Shijiazhuang's case, to make it possible to bring the new high-speed railway into the central city, a long railway tunnel was constructed under the city. This is the first time a high-speed railway has been run under a Chinese city.
There is also a smaller Shijiazhuang North Railway Station, used by trains going west toward Taiyuan without entering Shijiazhuang's city centre. The city is served by many expressways, including the Shitai, Beijing–Shenzhen and Taiyuan–Cangzhou Expressways.

Metro Rail

Line 1 and Line 3 of the Shijiazhuang Metro began operation on June 26, 2017. Line 1 Phase 2, Line 2 Phase 1, Line 3 Phase 2 and the remaining two ends of Line 3 Phase 1 are currently under construction. Line 1 Phase 2, Line 2 Phase 1, and the two ends of Line 3 Phase 1 will start operation in 2020. There will be three metro lines extending under operation in Shijiazhuang by 2021 when Line 3 Phase 2 completes. The latest metro plan of Shijiazhuang includes 6 lines in total. The railway company is drafting a new plan of urban rail transit system incorporating metro, urban rapid commuter rail and tramways, and expects there will be rail transit lines under operation or construction by the end of 13th Five Year Plan.

Airport

The Shijiazhuang Zhengding International Airport is the province's center of air transportation. It is about 30 kilometers northeast of the city. There are 32 domestic routes arriving at and departing from Shijiazhuang, including destinations such as Shanghai, Shenzhen and Dalian. The airport serves 12 international destinations including four routes to Russia. The airport is being expanded and will be capable of being an alternate airport to Beijing Capital International Airport.
With the opening of the Beijing–Guangzhou High-Speed Railway at the end of 2012, the airport got its own train station, making available fast, although infrequent, train service between the airport and Shijiazhuang Railway Station, as well as other stations in the region.

Cycling

Most large roads in the city feature a separate cycle lane and, combined with the city being flat, make it ideal for cycling. Thousands of cyclists use the city each day and often there are more cyclists waiting at a crossroad than cars.

Military

Shijiazhuang is headquarters of the 27th Group Army of the People's Liberation Army, one of the three group armies that comprise the Beijing Military Region responsible for defending China's capital.

Culture

City centre

The city of Shijiazhuang is similar to Beijing in that all roads run from north to south and east to west, making the city easy to navigate. Many roads have cycle paths making it cyclist friendly. In the heart of the city is the Hebei Museum which was refurbished in 2013 and 2014. It holds regular events, mostly showing traditional Chinese art and artifacts. The Yutong International Sports Centre hosts the Shijiazhuang Ever Bright football matches as well as holding pop concerts.
Shijiazhuang Zoo is located on the west side of the city. The zoo has 3,000 animals of 250 species including flamingos, golden monkeys, manchurian tigers, Indian elephants, giraffes, chimpanzees, kangaroos, seals, white tigers, springboks and pandas. Near the Shijiazhuang Zoo are the Botanical Gardens, offering a range of exotic and native plants both to view and purchase. The Martyrs Memorial can be found in the centre of the city, commemorating the soldiers lost in war.

Places of interest

, or Baodu Village, is an ancient fortified hilltop settlement located on the west side of the city, the mountain contains walks and buddhist statues. Close to Baodu Zhai is Fenglong Mountain is situated outside of Shijiazhuang to the west, the mountain features walks and a large stone Buddha statue situated on top of the mountain. Mount Cangyan is a scenic area in Jingxing County, famous for its combination of natural mountain scenery with historical man-made structures. It was featured in a scene of the Chinese movie Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.
The Longxing Temple is an ancient Buddhist monastery located just outside the city. It has been referred to as the "First Temple south of Beijing". The Anji Bridge is the world's oldest open-spandrel stone segmental arch bridge. Credited to the design of a craftsman named Li Chun, the bridge was constructed in the years 595-605 during the Sui dynasty. It is the oldest standing bridge in China. The Pagoda of Bailin Temple is an octagonal-based brick Chinese pagoda built in 1330 during the reign of Emperor Wenzong, ruler of the Mongol-led Yuan Dynasty.

City parks

Shijiazhuang city centre contains a range of parks. The largest park is found in the centre of the city known as Chang'an Park, the park includes an underground shopping mall, a theatre, a museum, a lake, bars and restaurants. Another park is found on the south east side of the city: Century Park, Century Park contains a lake in the centre with an amusement park to the north side. On the northwest side of the city is Water Park which features a large lake, amusement rides, short walks and various restaurants. As well as these three large parks there are smaller parks scattered across the city.

Shopping

The largest mall in the city is the Wanda shopping mall on the southeast side of the city along with the Lerthai Shopping Complex in the centre of the city and Wondermall on the southwest side. The Wanda mall includes an IMAX theatre.

Food

During the summer barbecue restaurants open, selling a whole range of foods, the most popular of which are lamb kebabs. Thousands of restaurants can be found across the city offering a range of Chinese as well as western cuisine open around the clock.

Notable people

is a Chinese football club based in Shijiazhuang, Hebei, which competes in the Chinese Super League. It plays in the 37,000-seat Yutong International Sports Centre. The team changed to their current name on February 24, 2014.
Yutong International Sports Center is a multi-use stadium, used mostly for football matches. The capacity is 38,500.

Hospitals

Universities and colleges

Shijiazhuang's twin towns and sister cities are: