Nanjing

In 220 AD, after the collapse of the Eastern Han, Nanjing became the capital of the state of Wu when the emperor moved his court here.

The 6th century brought many disasters to the city, floods in 507 and 533, a great fire in 521, a pestilence in 529 and peasant rebellions in 533, 541, 542, and 544. In 548, the army of General Hou Jing planned to overthrow the southern emperor and sacked the city, only to become the victim of yet another palace intrigue.

In 589, the first emperor of the Sui Dynasty, Wen Di, destroyed Nanjing nearly completely. During the Tang dynasty, it enjoyed a period of prosperity, but gradually faded into obscurity.

Yet another peasant rebellion, led by Zhu Yuanzahng, restored Nanjing to its former glory as the capital. After having captured Nanjing in 1356 and Beijing in 1368 and overthrowing the Yuan Dynasty, Zhu took the name Hong Wu and established Nanjing as the new capital of the new Ming Dynasty. Huge city walls, that still can be seen, an enormous palace and other important buildings were built. The city grew to the administrative, cultural, and economic metropolis of the country. In 1420, the next Ming emperor, Yong Le, moved the capital north again to Beijing while Nanjing declined once again.

In 1842, Nanjing became world famous when some 80 British war ships threatened to bomb the city. The resulting "Treaty of Nanjing", the first of the "Unequal Treaties" opened several Chinese ports to the West and established the colony of Hong Kong.

From 1851 until 1864, the Taiping rebellion had its centre in Nanjing. A Qing army helped by British and American forces finally managed to suppress this Chinese Christian army after heavy bombing of Nanjing for seven months.

In 1922, Dr. Sun Yatsen established the Chinese republic, first with the capital in Bejing, and later in Nanjing. The city was captured by the Japanese in 1937, and nearly exterminated the population. The real figure of dead during the "Rape of Nanjing" is unknown, but official numbers are around 300'000 to 400'000. After the defeat of the Japanese in 1945, the Guomindang moved their capital back to Nanjing and in the two following years peace talks between them and the Communists were held.