Ancient China According to the
Bamboo Annals, during the late
Shang dynasty, the kings constructed palaces in the Handan area, with a time span of 3,050 to 3,100 years ago. In the early
Western Zhou period, during the reign of
King Cheng of Zhou, Handan was part of the
Bei state and was inhabited by
Wu Geng, the son of
the last king of Shang. Later, it came under the control of the state of
Wey. In 661 BCE, the
Di people conquered Handan and ruled it for over 40 years after destroying Wey. In 588 BCE, the
Jin state defeated the Di, and Handan was incorporated into Jin. In 546 BCE, after Wey's restoration, a rebellion forced members of the Wey royal family to flee to Handan for refuge. This event is recorded in
The Spring and Autumn Annals (Guliang Commentary). During the
Warring States period (5th–3rd centuries BCE), Handan was an important city of the state of
Zhao. In 386 BCE,
Marquess Jing of Zhao officially relocated the capital to Handan and initiated large-scale construction. It was their second capital, after
Zhongmu. It remained the capital for 158 years, until Zhao was conquered by the Qin.
King Wuling of Zhao turned Zhao into one of the Qin state's most stalwart foes, pioneering the use of walls to secure new frontiers (which would inspire the eventual construction of the Great Wall of China). The city was conquered by the
State of Qin after the virtual annexation of Zhao by Qin in 228 BCE, except for the
Dai Commandery.
Imperial China The first emperor of China,
Qin Shi Huang, was born in Handan. His father
King Zhuangxiang of Qin, had been a political hostage in Handan before ascending the throne of Qin, and his mother,
Queen Dowager Zhao, was a Handan native. At the beginning of the
Han dynasty, Handan was
Liu Bang's base for suppressing
Chen Xi's rebellion in 197 and 196 BCE. By the late Western Han period, Handan remained one of the five major cities in the country, covering an urban area of 13.6 square kilometers with a population of over 150,000. Its handicrafts, commerce, and iron smelting industries were highly developed. In the late Western Han, a peasant uprising erupted, and
Wang Lang launched a rebellion in the Handan area in support of the peasant army. After
Liu Xiu, the founding emperor of the
Eastern Han dynasty, raised an army in Hebei, he captured Handan and downgraded it to Handan County, marking the first time the city was demoted from a capital to a county seat. This began Handan's decline. By the late Eastern Han period,
Yuan Shao seized control of Hebei and established
Ye, which gradually replaced Handan and rose to prominence. Note that Ye is still contained in Handan Prefecture nowadays, located in the current
Linzhang County. During the
Three Kingdoms period,
Cao Cao established his base in Ye, marking the rise of Ye City. After the founding of the
Cao Wei state, Ye became the northern capital of Wei, serving as the political center of northern China. The construction of the Wei capital was renowned for its symmetrical design along a central axis, and iconic structures such as the
Bronze Bird Terrace. In the late
Western Jin period, northern China fell into chaos during the
Upheaval of the Five Barbarians, and Handan was occupied by various non-Han ethnic groups, such as the
Xianbei and
Jie people, leaving the city in ruins. During the
Sixteen Kingdoms period, Ye City in Linzhang served successively as the capital for
Later Zhao,
Ran Wei,
Former Yan, and later the
Eastern Wei and
Northern Qi during the
Northern Dynasties, spanning a total of 364 years. In 580, the
Northern Zhou general
Yuchi Jiong, stationed in Ye, launched a rebellion against
Yang Jian but was defeated, leading to the destruction of the ancient city of Ye by fire. During the late
Sui dynasty, Handan became the center of activities for
Dou Jiande's rebel army in Hebei. Dou Jiande established Guangfu, which is in current
Yongnian, Handan, as the capital of the short-lived Xia regime. Under the
Tang dynasty, Handan was incorporated into
Mingzhou and Cizhou. Meanwhile, Weizhou in the region began to rise in prominence and was later renamed Daming Prefecture, which is the current
Daming County in Handan. By 621, Daming had emerged as the central city north of the Yellow River. During the
An Lushan rebellion, Ye has been a base for
An Qingxu. There was the famous Battle of Ye, after which An Qingxu was killed by
Shi Siming. In 923,
Li Cunxu ascended the throne in Daming, proclaiming himself emperor and establishing the
Later Tang dynasty, known historically as Emperor Zhuangzong of Later Tang. During the
Song dynasty, in response to the
Liao invasion, Daming Prefecture was elevated to serve as the auxiliary capital to the main capital (present-day
Kaifeng). At its peak, the city had a population of over one million, with a bustling trade that attracted merchants from as far as the
Western Regions. In the late
Northern Song period, the
Jurchen Jin dynasty invaded the
Central Plains. In the Handan region, locals joined Wang Yan's "Bazijun" guerrilla force in the
Taihang Mountains, resisting the Jin for decades until the southern campaign of
Wanyan Liang. Due to the prolonged warfare, Handan fell into decline and was eventually submerged by flooding. The ruins of Song-era Handan remain preserved beneath four meters of
Yellow River silt. After the
Jin dynasty fell to the
Mongol Empire, Handan was incorporated into the Mongol realm. During the early
Yuan dynasty, it was part of the capital region of Dadu (modern-day
Beijing). However, in the later Yuan period, the area suffered from frequent flooding and locust plagues, leaving the population in hardship. In 1368, with the establishment of the
Ming dynasty, the Handan area was placed under the jurisdiction of
Northern Zhili. It was governed by the prefectures of
Guangping and
Daming. Emperor
Zhu Yuanzhang implemented a resettlement policy, relocating impoverished families from
Shanxi to Daming and Guangping, revitalizing the region after its decline during the
Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. In the late Ming period, influenced by
Li Zicheng, the people of Handan staged uprisings. In 1644, after the
Qing army crossed the
Great Wall and entered the Central Plains, local resistance, led by Zhang Zhibang, fought against the invaders but was brutally suppressed. Under the Qing, the administrative structure remained similar to that of the Ming, with the area still called
Zhili. Daming Prefecture served as the seat of the Zhili Governor-General, while Handan County remained under Guangping Prefecture, which functioned as the political and economic center of southern Hebei and northern Henan during the Ming and Qing periods.
Modern China In 1928, Zhili was renamed Hebei Province, and Handan came under direct provincial administration. During the
Warlord Era, Handan became a contested site between the Zhili and
Anhui warlords. In 1927, a Communist Party branch was established in Handan, and the region was embroiled in the
Central Plains War. By the mid-1940s, Handan had declined to a small commercial town, covering only 1 square kilometer with a population of about 28,000. During the
Second Sino-Japanese War, the former headquarters of the
Eighth Route Army’s 129th Division, also known as the
Liu-
Deng Army Headquarters, is located in
She County, within Handan. Following Japan's defeat in 1945, Handan was designated a city and served as the seat of the Jin-Ji-Lu-Yu (晋冀鲁豫) Border Region Government. In October 1945, during the
Chongqing Negotiations, the
National Revolutionary Army advanced north along the railway, passing through Communist-controlled areas. Armed conflict broke out, leading to the
Handan Campaign. By November, the Communist forces achieved a decisive victory, consolidating the North China
Liberated Zone into a unified territory. In 1946, the
Chinese Communist Party’s Central Bureau of the Jin-Ji-Lu-Yu region planned to launch a major official newspaper in Handan. Initially considered names included Jin-Ji-Lu-Yu Daily and Taihang Daily, but
Mao Zedong suggested the title
People's Daily. Although the inaugural issue was printed on May 15, 1946, in
Xibaipo, the project originated in Handan, and the publication became known as the “Handan Edition of the People's Daily (人民日报邯郸版).” On December 22, 1952, Handan was reestablished as a city and became a provincial city in 1954. In 1956,
Fengfeng City was merged into Handan, followed by the incorporation of Handan County in 1983. In 1984, Handan was again designated a provincial city, and
Wu'an (later Wu'an City) was annexed in 1986. Handan maintained a reputation for its fine
Cizhou ware well into the Qing dynasty (1644–1911). It was also the birthplace in the 19th century of
Yang-style tai chi, one of Tai Chi's five major schools. Though much of Handan's ancient history is no longer visible, it still has some attractions, deriving from the many
Chinese idioms that the city inspired, such as the road into which
Lin Xiangru, courier of the precious
Heshibi, backed in order to let his nemesis
Lian Po pass first, as well as the location in which
Lian Po begged for
Lin Xiangru's forgiveness. Modern-day Congtai Park is located on the site of the historical Zhao court. Next to Congtai Park is the legendary "Xuebu Bridge" (), or "Learning to Walk Bridge". Legend has it that a noble from the state of Yan heard of a particularly elegant manner of walking unique to Handan. Arriving in Handan, he spent weeks trying to master the Handan style of walking on a bridge, only to fail. In the process, however, he had forgotten how to walk normally and had to crawl back to Yan. This story inspired the Chinese expression, "
to learn the walk of Handan" (,
Hándān xué bù), which means learning something difficult too intensely, thereby forgetting the basics in the process. The nearby
Xiangtangshan Caves contain massive Buddha statues carved into the mountainside, some dating to the 6th century, many of which were severely damaged by invading Japanese forces during World War II. At that time, Handan was prized by the Japanese invaders for its coal reserves. Many parts of the Buddhist statues are now in museums arouns the world. For example, several parts are currently in
Metropolitan Museum of Art,
The San Diego Museum of Art, and
Penn Museum. See for a complete list. In 2007, Handan was the location of
China's largest-ever bank robbery. == Administration ==