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85-691: The Qimin Yaoshu , translated as the "Essential Techniques for the Welfare of the People", is the most completely preserved of the ancient Chinese agricultural texts, and was written by the Northern Wei Dynasty official Jia Sixie , a native of Shouguang , Shandong province, which is a major agricultural producing region. The book is believed to have been completed in the second year of Wu Ding of Eastern Wei , 544 CE, while another account gives

170-502: A Chinese-style capital at Ye, Tuoba Gui sought to break the autonomy of the tribes. He reorganised the people into eight artificial tribes forcibly settled around the capital, which served as military units. He also removed the traditional tribal leaders. These reforms helped to change tribal loyalties and strengthen their loyalty to the dynasty. These tribes served as the Emperor's personal professional military caste which helped to sustain

255-581: A Southern Qi prince, to become emperor of the puppet state. A southern expedition was led by Prince Yuan Cheng of Wei and Chen Bozhi, a former Qi general. Until spring 505, Xinyang and Hanzhong were fallen to the Northern Wei. In 505, Emperor Wu began the Liang offensive. A strong army was quickly amassed under the general Wei Rui and caught the Wei by surprise, calling it the strongest army they have seen from

340-506: A fief by thousands of members of the Han Chinese aristocratic Zhaojun Li clan under the leader of a cadet leader of the clan, Li Xianfu. Clan loyalties were extensively utilized by local magnates. Li Xianfu was appointed as zongzhu (宗主) (clan chief) by the clan collectively in spite of him not inheriting the officer and rank of his father which went to his elder brother. Local level order was controlled by Li Xiangu and other magnates and

425-465: A headache for the local government." Su Jiede wrote that since Pingcheng District , which had most of its urbanized area, had 1,105,699 people as of 2020, "Datong is a small city by Chinese standards ". Datong is the northernmost city of Shanxi, and is located in the Datong Basin, with an administrative area spanning latitude 39° 03'–40° 44' N and longitude 112° 34'–114° 33' E. The urban area

510-473: A household: the first was open land for crop cultivation (40 mu ) for each adult male in the household, and half those amounts for adult females which was returnable after the recipient reached a specific advanced age or died. The second was the land to support textile production (10 or 20 mu, with the same gender distribution principle as open land) in one of two forms, namely, "mulberry lands" in silk-producing areas, and "hemp lands" in regions where sericulture

595-571: A massive invasion. Although initially successful, the campaign turned into a disaster. The Wei lured the Liu Song to cross the Yellow River, and then flanked them, destroying the Eastern army. As the Liu Song armies retreated, Emperor Taiwu ordered his troop to move south. The provinces south of the Yellow River were devastated by the Wei army. Only Huatai, a fortified city, held out against

680-684: A strong foothold on the Central Plains and the Yan state split into two, Northern Wei became a regional power in northeastern China, competing with the Qiang -led Later Qin dynasty to the west and the Eastern Jin dynasty to the south for a time. In 398, Tuoba Gui relocated the capital to Pingcheng , and in 399, he elevated his title to Emperor of Wei. After Tuoba Gui was assassinated in 409, his son, Tuoba Si (Emperor Mingyuan of Northern Wei) took

765-689: A substantial portion of their territory. The Xia could no longer pose a threat to Wei, though they still managed to annex Wei's ally, the Western Qin dynasty in the Longxi . In 431, the last Xia emperor, Helian Ding was captured and handed over to Wei by the Tuyuhun . The Northern Liang dynasty in the Hexi Corridor , led by the Juqu clan of Lushuihu ethnicity, submitted to Wei as a vassal after

850-421: A village and headed by one village elder (lizhang). Finally, over five villages, there was one ward elder (dangzhang). The three elders, appointed by the government, were responsible for detecting and re-registering population outside of state accounts, requisitioning corvee labor and taxes, and taking care of the poor and orphaned under their jurisdiction. This policy significantly bolstered the state's control over

935-561: Is abundant year-round, and the city receives 2,671 hours (about 60% of the possible total) of bright sunshine per year. Extremes since 1951 have ranged from −31.9 °C (−25 °F) on 16 December 2023 to 39.2 °C (103 °F) on 29 July 2010. The Yungang Grottoes are a collection of shallow caves located 16 km (9.9 mi) west of Datong. There are over 50,000 carved images and statues of Buddhas and bodhisattvas within these grottoes, ranging from 4 centimeters to 7 meters tall. Most of these icons are around 1500 years old. Within

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1020-933: Is an old fashioned coal mining city, and still sits on significant reserves of this commodity. Consequently, it has developed a reputation as one of China's most polluted cities. The Datong Coal Mining Group is based here and is China's third largest such enterprise. Datong is indeed however an emerging economy, as the city seeks to loosen its dependence on coal, introduce more environmentally friendly and efficient methods of extraction and move into other areas of business services. The local government has continued to upgrade its pillar coal sector (and related industries like coal chemicals, power and metallurgy), while also developing "substitute industries" such as machinery manufacturing, tourism and distribution, warehousing and logistics services. This has had some impact. Datong's GDP grew by 5.1 percent in 2008 to RMB56.6 billion. While coal will continue to dominate, Datong has been identified as one of

1105-409: Is surrounded on three sides by mountains, with passes only to the east and southwest. Within the prefecture-level city elevations generally increase from southeast to northwest. Datong borders Ulanqab ( Inner Mongolia ) to the northwest and Zhangjiakou ( Hebei ) to the east, Shuozhou (Shanxi) to the southwest, and Xinzhou (Shanxi) to the south. The well-known Datong Volcanic Arc lies nearby in

1190-579: The Battle of Fei River in his failed bid to unify China, the Former Qin state began to break apart. By 386, Tuoba Gui (Emperor Daowu of Northern Wei), the son (or grandson) of Tuoba Shiyiqian (the last Prince of Dai), reasserted Tuoba independence initially as the Prince of Dai. Later he changed his title to the Prince of Wei, and his state was therefore known as Northern Wei. At first, the Northern Wei

1275-569: The Datong Basin . It is 250 kilometres (160 mi) west of Beijing . Datong has a continental , monsoon -influenced steppe climate ( Köppen BSk ), influenced by the 1,000 metres (3,300 ft)+ elevation, with rather long, cold, very dry winters, and very warm summers. Monthly mean temperatures range from −10.5 °C (13.1 °F) in January to 22.6 °C (72.7 °F) in July;

1360-469: The Hàn and Jìn Dynasties are now lost, so future generations can only understand the operation of agriculture at the time from this book. 280 recipes are found in the text. Since the publication of the book, historical Chinese governments have long attached great importance to it. Since the book spread overseas it has also often been considered a classic text to study changes in species. When Charles Darwin

1445-587: The Longmen Grottoes outside the later capital city of Luoyang, in which more than 30,000 Buddhist images from the time of this dynasty have been found. Towards the end of the Northern Wei dynasty there was significant internal dissension, resulting in a split into the Eastern Wei and the Western Wei dynasties under the rule of the same imperial house in 534–535, which were soon replaced by

1530-568: The National Famous Historical and Cultural Cities that year. Prior to 2008, about 100,000 people lived in the old city. In 2008 mayor Geng Yanbo decided to redevelop much of the inner city, with over 3 square kilometres (1.2 sq mi) being redeveloped, and with Geng becoming known as the "Demolition Mayor". Geng and his group anticipated that 30,000 to 50,000 people would remain in the old city. In 2013 Geng left his position. Su Jiede of Sixth Tone wrote that much of

1615-583: The Northern Qi and the Northern Zhou dynasties respectively. While the rule of Tuoba clan ended in the mid-6th century CE, its important policies, in particular the political recentralization reforms under Empress Dowager Feng and ethnic integration under Emperor Xiaowen, had a long-lasting impact on later periods of Chinese history. The Jin dynasty had developed an alliance with the Tuoba against

1700-605: The Northern Wei ( Chinese : 北魏 ; pinyin : Běi Wèi ), Tuoba Wei ( Chinese : 拓跋魏 ; pinyin : Tuòbá Wèi ), Yuan Wei ( Chinese : 元魏 ; pinyin : Yuán Wèi ) and Later Wei ( Chinese : 後魏 ; pinyin : Hòu Wèi ), was an imperial dynasty of China ruled by the Tuoba (Tabgach) clan of the Xianbei . The first of the Northern dynasties , it ruled northern China from 386 to 535 during

1785-587: The Xianbei Tuoba royal family in the 480s. More than fifty percent of Tuoba Xianbei princesses of the Northern Wei were married to southern Han Chinese men from the imperial families and aristocrats from southern China of the Southern dynasties who defected and moved north to join the Northern Wei. Some Han Chinese exiled royalty fled from southern China and defected to the Xianbei. Several daughters of

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1870-625: The Xiongnu state Han-Zhao . In 315, the Tuoba chief, Tuoba Yilu was granted the title of Prince of Dai . After his death, however, the Dai state stagnated, and with the Jin ejected from northern China, the Dai largely remained a partial ally and a partial tributary state to Later Zhao and Former Yan , finally falling to Former Qin in 376. After Former Qin's emperor Fu Jiān was defeated by Jin forces at

1955-629: The Xiongnu nomads at the Battle of Baideng . Located near a pass to Inner Mongolia along the Great Wall , Pingcheng blossomed under Han rule and became a stop-off point for camel caravans moving from China into Mongolia and beyond. It was sacked at the end of the Eastern Han . Pingcheng became the capital of the Xianbei-founded Northern Wei dynasty from AD   398–494. The Yungang Grottoes were constructed during

2040-440: The "equal-field landholding system", and the "three-elder system". In the new "equal-filed system" ( juntian zhi ) unveiled in 485, the state redistributed abandoned or uncultivated land to commoner subjects attached with obligations of tax duty in the forms of grain, cloth, and labor service. In principle, each household was entitled to lands proportional to its labor power. Specifically, two types of land with tenure were assigned to

2125-487: The 1970s. When the construction of steam locomotives was phased out, the authorities did not want to lose this valuable tourism market, and pondered the possibility of developing a steam railway operating center as an attraction. A number of study visits were undertaken to the East Lancashire Railway at Bury , and a twinning arrangement was concluded with that town. In 2010, work began on reconstructing

2210-615: The Buddha as wicked and as anti-stability and anti-family. Anti Buddhism was the position of Kou Qianzhi. There was no ban on the Celestial Masters despite the nonfullfilment of Cui Hao and Kou Qianzhi's agenda in their anti-Buddhist campaign. Cui Zhen's wife Han Farong was buried in a Datong located grave. To resist the threats posed by the Rourans , Northern Wei emperors started to embark on building its own Great Wall ,

2295-565: The Han Chinese Jin prince Sima Chuzhi ( 司馬楚之 ) as a refugee. A Northern Wei Princess married Sima Chuzhi, giving birth to Sima Jinlong ( 司馬金龍 ). Northern Liang Xiongnu King Juqu Mujian 's daughter married Sima Jinlong. The Northern Wei's Eight Noble Xianbei surnames ( 八大贵族 ) were the Buliugu (步六孤), Helai (賀賴), Dugu ( 獨孤 ), Helou (賀樓), Huniu (忽忸), Qiumu (丘穆), Gexi (紇奚), and Yuchi ( 尉遲 ). They adopted Chinese last names. Kongzi

2380-518: The Later Yan emperor, Murong Chui , sent his Crown Prince, Murong Bao , with a massive army to lead a punitive expedition against Wei. However, at the Battle of Canhe Slope , Tuoba Gui inflicted the Later Yan army a heavy defeat. In 396, Murong Chui personally led another campaign against Wei, but though he was initially successful, the Yan troops withdrew after he became deathly ill, and he soon died on his way back. Shortly after Murong Bao ascended

2465-434: The Liu Song emperor Emperor Ming, surrendered these territories to rival Northern Wei. Northern Wei forces quickly took up defense position against the attacking forces sent by Emperor Ming. With Liu Song forces unable to siege Pengcheng effectively, they were forced to withdraw in spring 467, making these populous provinces lost to the Northern Wei. In 479, Xiao Daocheng usurped the throne of Liu Song and became emperor of

2550-608: The Mingyuan Emperor. Kongzi was honored extensively by Tuoba Hong, the Xiaowen Emperor. A fief of 100 households and the rank of (崇聖侯) Marquis who worships the sage was bestowed upon a Confucius descendant, Yan Hui 's lineage had 2 of its scions and Confucius's lineage had 4 of its scions who had ranks bestowed on them in Shandong in 495 and a fief of ten households and rank of (崇聖大夫) Grandee who venerates

2635-528: The Northern Wei Xianbei monarchs had to rely on them. The Northern Wei gave them title of governors officially in their fiefs. Datong Datong is a prefecture-level city in northern Shanxi Province in the People's Republic of China . It is located in the Datong Basin at an elevation of 1,040 metres (3,410 ft) and borders Inner Mongolia to the north and west and Hebei to

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2720-491: The Northern Wei general Yuan Faseng (元法僧) surrendered the key city of Pengcheng (彭城, in modern Xuzhou, Jiangsu) to Liang. However, in summer 525, Emperor Wu's son Prince Xiao Zong (蕭綜), grew suspicions that he was actually the son of Southern Qi's emperor Xiao Baojuan (because his mother Consort Wu was formerly Xiao Baojuan's concubine and had given birth to him only seven months after she became Emperor Wu's concubine), surrendered Pengcheng to Northern Wei, ending Liang's advances in

2805-494: The Northern Wei state. Chinese influence accelerated during the capital's move to Luoyang in 494 and Emperor Xiaowen continued this by establishing a policy of systematic sinicization that was continued by his successors. Xianbei traditions were largely abandoned. The royal family took the sinicization a step further by changing their family name to Yuan. Marriages to Chinese families were encouraged. With this, Buddhist temples started appearing everywhere, displacing Taoism as

2890-409: The Prince of Wei—intending to have him lay claim to the Northern Wei throne and, if successful, become a Liang vassal. He commissioned his general Chen Qingzhi (陳慶之) with an army to escort Yuan Hao back to Northern Wei. Despite the small size of Chen's army, he won battle after battle, and in spring 529, after Chen captured Suiyang (modern Shangqiu). Yuan Hao, with Emperor Wu's approve, proclaimed himself

2975-554: The Song dynasty. After hearing the death of the Song emperor Wu in 422, Wei's emperor Mingyuan broke off relations with Song and sent troops to invade its southern neighbor. His plan is to seize three major cities south of the Yellow River: Luoyang, Hulao, and Huatai. Sizhou (司州, central Henan) and Yanzhou (兗州, modern western Shandong) and most cities in Song's Qing Province (青州, modern central and eastern Shandong) fell to

3060-475: The Southern dynasties in a hundred years. In spring 506, Wei Rui was able to capture Hefei . In fall 506, Wei Rui attacked the Northern Wei army stationed at Luokou for nearly a year without advancing. However, when Wei army gathered, Xiao Hong Prince of Linchuan, the Liang commander and younger brother of Emperor Wu, escaped in fear, causing his army to collapse without a battle. Northern Wei forces next attacked

3145-496: The Wei army. The Liu Song general Tan Daoji commanded an army to try to save those cities and were able to hold Dongyang (東陽, in modern Qingzhou, Shandong), the capital of Qingzhou province. Northern Wei troops were eventually forced to withdraw after food supplies ran out. Wei forces also stalled in their siege of Hulao, defended by the capable Liu Song general Mao Dezu (毛德祖), but were meanwhile able to capture Luoyang and Xuchang (許昌, in modern Xuchang, Henan) in spring 423, cutting off

3230-568: The Wei. Wei troops retreated in January 451, however, the economic damage to the Song was immense. Emperor Wen made another attempt to conquer Northern Wei in 452, but failed again. On returning to the capital, he was assassinated by the heir apparent, Liu Shao. In 466, Liu Zixun waged an unsuccessful civil war against the Emperor Ming of Liu Song. The governors of Xu Province (徐州) and Yan Province (兗州, modern western Shandong), who earlier pleaded allegiance to Liu Zixun, in fear of reprisal from

3315-647: The Xia's demise. With the west pacified, Emperor Taiwu shifted his focus to the east by launching incessant attacks on the Chinese Northern Yan dynasty in Liaoning . After a large-scale invasion in 436, the Yan ruler, Feng Hong abandoned his territory to Wei as he fled to the neighbouring Goguryeo . Finally, in 439, Emperor Taiwu launched a campaign and conquered the Northern Liang, hence unifying

3400-722: The Xianbei Emperor Xiaowen of Northern Wei were married to Han Chinese elites, the Liu Song royal Liu Hui 劉輝), married Princess Lanling (蘭陵公主) of the Northern Wei, Princess Huayang (華陽公主) to Sima Fei (司馬朏), a descendant of Jin dynasty (266–420) royalty, Emperor Xiaozhuang of Northern Wei 's sisters, the Shouyang Princess, was wedded to the Liang dynasty ruler Emperor Wu of Liang 's son Xiao Zong 蕭綜 . One of Emperor Xiaowu of Northern Wei 's sisters

3485-560: The Xianbei emperor. The Xianbei emperor also turned their own Xianbei nomad warriors into a hereditary military caste and extinguish their tribal loyalties. To the consternation of the Xianbei nobles, Han Chinese aristocrats started to be appointed to government positions by the Northern Wei emperors when the Central Plains population regrew in the middle of the 5th century. Han Chinese commoners started pledging their allegiance as buqu (部曲) (armed retainers) to elite Han Chinese aristocratic magnates in their wubao (塢堡) (fortified settlements) when

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3570-650: The Yellow River. The two walls of Northern Wei formed the basis of the double-layered Xuanfu – Datong wall system that protected Beijing a thousand years later during the Ming dynasty. Local society in northern China was not governed by civil bureaucrats but by military clientage during the reign of the Northern Wei Xianbei emperors, with the local Han Chinese aristocratic families jointly ruling and controlling power with them. The Han Chinese aristocrat families ruled over their private fiefs (home jurisdictions) with large military authority and civil authority as entrusted to them by

3655-474: The annual mean temperature is 7.33 °C (45.2 °F). Due to the aridity and elevation, diurnal temperature variation is often large, averaging 13.2 °C (23.8 °F) annually. There barely is any precipitation during winter, and more than 3 ⁄ 4 of the annual precipitation occurs from June to September. With monthly percent possible sunshine ranging from 54% in July to 66% in October, sunshine

3740-404: The borders, against both Eastern Wei and Western Wei, for several years. Early in Northern Wei history, the state inherited a number of traditions from its initial history as a Xianbei tribe, and some of the more unusual ones, from a traditional Chinese standpoint, were: As Sinicization of the Northern Wei state progressed, these customs and traditions were gradually abandoned. After building

3825-891: The city itself, there are a few surviving sites of historical interest such as the Nine-Dragon Wall , the Huayan Monastery ( 华严寺 ; Huáyán Sì ), and the Shanhua Temple . Further afield is the Hanging Temple built into a cliff face near Mount Heng . Most of the historical sites in this region date to the Liao, Jin and Ming dynasties, but the Hanging Temple dates to the Northern Wei dynasty (386–534). The railway locomotive works (see below) began to attract increasing numbers of railway enthusiasts from

3910-419: The city was still under construction at the time and that Geng's efforts resulted in "a half-finished city center and a complicated legacy" and that "To critics, the city had spent enormous sums of money without much to show for it." By 2020 the population of the old city was below 30,000 and there were fewer governmental facilities available for the residents. That year Su stated that the old city "still presents

3995-426: The city's 14th century Ming dynasty defensive wall. The controversial reconstruction project was in its final phase at the end of 2014. The documentary The Chinese Mayor documents two years of vigorous and highly controversial (due to summary demolition of about 200,000 homes) effort by Mayor Geng Yanbo to push the reconstruction project forward. Datong is known for its knife-cut noodles . The GDP per capita

4080-466: The common people. The reforms of Empress Dowager Feng boosted agricultural production and tax receipts on a long-term basis, and broke the economic power of local aristocrats who sheltered residents under their control living in fortified villages that dotted the rural landscape of the North from taxation. The Northern Wei dynasty had doubled the registered population to more than 5 million households since

4165-547: The completion between 533 and 544 CE. The text of the book is divided into ten volumes and 92 chapters, and records 1500-year-old Chinese agronomy , horticulture , afforestation , sericulture , animal husbandry , veterinary medicine , breeding , brewing , cooking , storage, as well as remedies for barren land. The book quoted nearly 200 ancient sources including the Yiwu Zhi . Important agricultural books such as Fàn Shèngzhī shū (氾勝之書) and Sì mín yuè lìng (四民月令) from

4250-635: The control of the Ming dynasty , serving as an important Ming military stronghold against the Mongols to the north. During the Ming period, many of Datong's notable historical structures such as the Drum Tower and the Nine-Dragon Wall were built. Datong was sacked again at the end of the Ming in 1649, but promptly rebuilt in 1652. By 1982 a portion of its city walls remained so it became one of

4335-455: The courts in Datong played a great part in this process. He introduced Han Chinese administrative methods and penal codes in the Northern Wei state, as well as creating a Taoist theocracy that lasted until 450. The attraction of Han Chinese products, the royal court's taste for luxury, the prestige of Chinese culture at the time, and Taoism were all factors in the growing Chinese influence in

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4420-473: The dynasty against any threats. After securing Xianbei hegemony in the hinterland of China, the North Wei regime, under the rule of Empress Dowager Feng (438-490; also known as Empress Dowager Wenming) implemented a package of reforms in 485-486 AD, greatly solidifying its fiscal foundations and strengthening state penetration to the local society. This reform introduced two far-reaching policies, namely,

4505-472: The dynasty moving its capital from Datong to Luoyang , in 494. The Tuoba adopted the surname Yuan (元) as a part of systematic sinicization . Many antiques and art works, both Taoist art and Buddhist art , from this period have survived. It was the time of the construction of the Yungang Grottoes near Datong during the mid-to-late fifth century, and towards the latter part of the dynasty,

4590-476: The east. As of the 2020 census, it had a population of 3,105,591 of whom 1,790,452 lived in the built-up (or metro) area made of the 2 out 4 urban districts of Pingcheng and Yungang as Yunzhou and Xinrong are not conurbated yet. The area of present-day Datong was close to the state of Dai , which was conquered by the Zhao clan of Jin in 457 BC. It was a frontier land between the agricultural Chinese and

4675-522: The emperor of Northern Wei. In summer 529, troops under Erzhu unable to stand up to Chen Qingzhi, forcing Emperor Xiaozhuang of Northern Wei to flee the capital Luoyang. After capturing Luoyang, Yuan Hao secretly wanted to rebel against Liang: when Chen Qingzhi requested Emperor Wu to send reinforcements, Yuan Hao sent Emperor Wu a submission advising against it, and Emperor Wu, believing Yuan Hao, did not send additional troops. Soon, Erzhu and Emperor Xiaozhuang counterattacked, and Luoyang fell. Yuan Hao fled and

4760-416: The emperor's unwillingness to advance past this line caused the destruction of the empire's ally, Xia , by the Wei. The emperor was to repeat this mistake as several northern states such as Northern Yan who had offered to ally with Liu Song against Wei were declined, eventually leading to Wei's unification of the North in 439. In 450, Emperor Wen attempted to destroy the Northern Wei by himself and launched

4845-530: The first since the Han dynasty. In 423, a defence line over 2,000 li (1,080 kilometres (670 mi)) long was built; its path roughly followed the old Zhao wall from Chicheng County in Hebei Province to Wuyuan County, Inner Mongolia . In 446, 100,000 men were put to work building an inner wall from Yanqing , passing south of the Wei capital Pingcheng , and ending up near Pingguan on the eastern bank of

4930-502: The fortress of Zhongli (鍾離, in modern Bengbu ), However, they were defeated by a Liang army commanded by Wei Rui and Cao Jingzong , effectively ending the war. After the Battle of Zhongli , there would continue to be border battles from time to time, but no large-scale war for years. In 524, while Northern Wei is plagued by agrarian rebellions to the north and west, Emperor Wu launched a number of attacks on Wei's southern territory. Liang forces largely met little resistance. In spring 525,

5015-493: The key cities requiring redevelopment, with part of this being in environmental cleanup, rehabilitation and industrial refocusing. Datong is a pilot city for rehabilitation studies following years of pollution. To this end it has already struck up strong relationships with other cities worldwide with similar backgrounds, and has begun plans, for example, to develop a tourism base focused on steam engine technology with antique locomotives to be used along designated tracks. Datong has

5100-700: The later part of this period (460–494). During the mid to late 520s, Pingcheng was the seat of Northern Wei's Dai Commandery . During the Tang dynasty , Datong became the seat of the Tang prefecture of Yunzhou , and the original Guandi temple was built. The city was renamed Datong in 1048. It was the Xijing ("Western Capital") of the Jurchen Jin dynasty prior to being sacked by the Mongols . Datong later came under

5185-641: The local communities relied on the magnates to direct their defense after the 311 sack of Luoyang . Oaths were pledged in alliances between paramount commanders who joined their fortress villages together in leagues. The magnates retained the services and fealty of their thrall retainers after the fighting was over. Subject to the emperor was overtaken by the concept of village membership. Magnates had both unrelated bondsmen, private clients and fellow clan kinsmen in their armies. 50 to 60 square leagues of farmland in Hebei's southwest Taihang mountain foothills were taken as

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5270-436: The new Southern Qi dynasty. Upon hearing the news, the Northern Wei emperor prepared to invade under the pretext of installing Liu Chang, son of Emperor Wen of Song who had been in exile in Wei since 465 AD. Wei troops began to attack Shouyang but could not take the city. The Southern Qi began to fortify their capital, Jiankang in order to prevent further Wei raids. Multiple sieges and skirmishes were fought until 481 but

5355-585: The nomads of the Great Steppe . The area was well known for its trade in horses . The area of present-day Datong eventually came under the control of the Qin dynasty , during which it was known as Pingcheng County (平城县) and formed part of the Qin commandery of Yanmen . Pingcheng County continued under the Han dynasty , which founded a site within present-day Datong in 200   BC following its victory against

5440-408: The north and bringing an end to the Sixteen Kingdoms period. War between Northern Wei and Han-ruled Liu Song dynasty broke out while the former had not yet unified northern China. Emperor Wu of Song while still a Jin dynasty general, had conquered both Southern Yan in 410 and Later Qin in 417, pushing Jin frontiers further north into Wei territories. He then usurped the Jin throne and created

5525-512: The northeast, although in summer 526, Shouyang fell to Liang troops after Emperor Wu successfully reemployed the damming strategy. For the next several years, Liang continued to make minor gains on the borders with Northern Wei. In 528, after a coup in Northern Wei, with the warlord Erzhu Rong overthrowing Empress Dowager Hu, a number of Northern Wei officials, including Yuan Yue, Yuan Yu, and Yuan Hao fled and surrendered territories they controlled to Liang. In winter 528, Emperor Wu created Yuan Hao

5610-404: The path of any Liu Song relief force for Hulao. In summer 423, Hulao fell. The campaign then ceased, with Northern Wei now in control of much of modern Henan and western Shandong. Emperor Wen of Song continued the northern campaigns of his father. In 430, under the able general Dao Yanzhi, Liu Song recovered the four cities of Luoyang, Hulao, Huatai and Qiao'ao south of the Yellow River. However,

5695-490: The period of the Northern and Southern dynasties . Described as "part of an era of political turbulence and intense social and cultural change", the Northern Wei dynasty is particularly noted for unifying northern China in 439, bringing an end to the chaotic Sixteen Kingdoms period, and strengthening imperial control over the rural landscape via reforms in 485. This was also a period of introduced foreign ideas, such as Buddhism , which became firmly established. The Northern Wei

5780-489: The reforms. These institutional infrastructures erected by the Northern Wei state survived the fall of the dynasty and paved the way for China's eventual unification in 589 AD under the Sui dynasty. The Northern Wei used the previous dynasties' Nine-rank system as a way of assigning official positions to wealthy and prestigious Han Chinese families, according to hereditary rank. Officials were also given considerable autonomy, such as appointing subordinate officials. During

5865-422: The reign of Emperor Daowu (386–409), the total number of deported people from the regions east of Taihangshan (the former Later Yan territory) to Datong was estimated to be around 460,000. Deportations typically took place once a new piece of territory had been conquered. As the Northern Wei state grew, the emperors' desire for Han Chinese institutions and advisors grew. Cui Hao (381–450), an advisor at

5950-431: The rest of Northern Wei's existence, the Rouran Khaganate was a recurring problem to the Wei on their northern borders. In 423, Emperor Taiwu of Northern Wei ascended the throne with ambitions to reunify northern China. In 426, he began a war with the Xiongnu -led Hu Xia dynasty , which controlled the Ordos and Guanzhong regions in the west. By the following year, the Wei had taken the Xia capital, Tongwancheng and

6035-404: The sage was bestowed on Kong Sheng (孔乘) who was Confucius's scion in the 28th generation in 472 by Emperor Xiaowen of Northern Wei. An anti-Buddhist plan was concocted by the Celestial Masters under Kou Qianzhi along with Cui Hao under the Taiwu Emperor. The Celestial Masters of the north urged the persecution of Buddhists under the Taiwu Emperor in the Northern Wei, attacking Buddhism and

6120-425: The state religion. The temples were often created to appear extremely lavish and extravagant on the outside of the temples. Also from 460 onwards the emperors started erecting huge statues of the Buddha carved near their capital Pingcheng which declared the emperors as the representatives of the Buddha and the legitimate rulers of China. The Northern Wei started to arrange for Han Chinese elites to marry daughters of

6205-505: The throne and continued his father's efforts to consolidate their state. Earlier, among the tribes that the Wei had subjugated were the Rouran . In 394, a branch of them, led by Yujiulü Shelun rebelled and fled westward. By 402, Shelun had conquered many of the Tiele tribes and held a large territory in the northern steppe. That same year, he declared himself Qiudoufa Khagan (丘豆伐可汗), and for

6290-580: The throne, Tuoba Gui began an invasion on Later Yan. During the invasion, Murong Bao decided to concentrate his forces in his capital and major cities, allowing the Wei forces to quickly overrun the Central Plains . A disastrous defeat at the Battle of Baisi and infighting among the imperial family finally forced the Later Yan to evacuate to Liaoning, while a branch in the south founded the Southern Yan in 398 before escaping to Shandong . With

6375-600: The war was without any major campaign. A peace treaty was signed in 490 with the Emperor Wu . In 502, the Southern Qi general Xiao Yan toppled the emperor Xiao Baojuan after waging a three-year civil war against him. Xiao Yan enthroned in Jiankang to become Emperor Wu of the Liang dynasty . As early as 503 AD, the Northern Wei was hoping to restore the Southern Qi throne. Their plan was to install Xiao Baoyin ,

6460-639: Was honoured in sacrifices as was Earth and Heaven by the northern dynasties of non-Han origin. Kongzi was honored by the Murong Wei Former Yan Xianbei leader. Kongzi was honored by the Di ruler Fu Jian (337–385) . Kongzi was honored in sacrifices by the Northern Wei Xianbei dynasty. Kongzi was honored by Yuoba Si, the Mingyuan emperor. Han dynasty emperors, Shang dynasty ruler Bigan, Emperor Yao and Emperor Shun were honored by Yuoba Si,

6545-909: Was in turn overthrown by Erzhu Rong's nephew Erzhu Zhao and cousin Erzhu Shilong. However, Yuan Yue realized that the Erzhus then became firmly in control of Luoyang and that he would be unable to defeat them, and so returned to Liang in winter 530. In 532, with Northern Wei again in civil war after the general Gao Huan rose against the Erzhus, Emperor Wu against sent an army to escort Yuan Yue back to Northern Wei, and subsequently, Gao Huan welcomed Yuan Yue, but then decided against making Yuan Yue emperor. Subsequently, Emperor Xiaowu of Northern Wei, whom Gao made emperor, had Yuan Yue executed. With Northern Wei divided into Eastern Wei and Western Wei in light of Emperor Xiaowu's flight, Emperor Wu initially continued to send his forces to make minor territorial gains on

6630-407: Was infeasible. Importantly, mulberry land was inheritable because of the long-term investment and care mulberry orchards required. Households possessing slaves and plow oxen were entitled to substantially larger allocations. The open land allocations would be doubled or tripled in areas where the land was less fertile or the population sparse. Sale of these land grants was forbidden, although subleasing

6715-665: Was internally unstable and allied with the stronger Xianbei-led Later Yan dynasty that ruled most of present-day Hebei and Liaoning . As Wei grew in power by subjugating neighbouring tribes such as the Tiefu and Rouran , their alliance came to an end in 391 when Tuoba Gui refused to send more tribute after Yan detained his brother at their capital, and the Wei re-aligned themselves with the Western Yan in Shanxi . Wei continued hostilities even after Western Yan fell in 394, and in 395,

6800-497: Was killed in flight, and Chen's own army was destroyed, although Chen himself was able to flee back to Liang. In 530, Emperor Wu made another attempt to establish a vassal regime in Northern Wei by creating Yuan Yue the Prince of Wei, and commissioning Yuan Yue's uncle Fan Zun (范遵) with an army to escort Yuan Yue back to Northern Wei. Yuan Yue made some advances, particularly in light of the disturbance precipitated soon thereafter when Emperor Xiaozhuang ambushed and killed Erzhu Rong and

6885-662: Was married to Zhang Huan, a Han Chinese, according to the Book of Zhou (Zhoushu). His name is given as Zhang Xin in the Book of Northern Qi (Bei Qishu) and History of the Northern Dynasties (Beishi) which mention his marriage to a Xianbei princess of Wei. His personal name was changed due to a naming taboo on the emperor's name. He was the son of Zhang Qiong. When the Eastern Jin dynasty ended Northern Wei received

6970-539: Was permitted under some circumstances. Land allocations would be adjusted annually to account for changes in the composition of the household and its number of oxen. Another policy was the establishment of the three-elders system (sanzhang-zhi) in 486, which was designed to compile accurate population registers and to integrate village society into the state administration. In this system, five households were to make up one neighborhood (li), headed by one neighborhood elder (linzhang) while five neighborhoods were grouped into

7055-474: Was referred to as "Plaited Barbarians" (索虜; suǒlǔ ) by writers of the Southern dynasties , who considered themselves the true upholders of Chinese culture. During the Taihe period (477–499), Empress Dowager Feng and Emperor Xiaowen instituted sweeping reforms that deepened the dynasty's control over the local population in the Han hinterland. Emperor Xiaowen also introduced changes that eventually led to

7140-465: Was researching the theory of evolution he made reference, in his book On The Origin of Species , to an "Encyclopedia of Ancient China". The book he referenced was in fact Qímín yàoshù . The book's name "Qímín yàoshù" can be explained as "techniques by which common people make their livelihood", but can also be explained as "techniques to harness the people's livelihood". Northern Wei Dynasty Wei ( / w eɪ / ), known in historiography as

7225-412: Was ¥17,852 (US$ 2,570) per annum in 2008, ranked no. 242 among 659 Chinese cities. Coal mining is the dominant industry of Datong. Its history and development are very much linked to this commodity. Development zones Datong Economic and Technological Development Zone Due to its strategic position, it is also an important distribution and warehousing center for Shanxi, Hebei and Inner Mongolia. Datong

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