Culture of Chingqing as a Temporary Capital

With the outbreak of the Anti-Japanese War (1937-1945), on October, 1938,

the Japanese army occupied Guangzhou and Wuhan. Then, the government

 of the Kuomintang (KMT) party withdrew to Chongqing from Nanjing, and 

made Chongqing the temporary wartime capital. As a result, Chongqing 

became the political, military, economic, and diplomatic center of China 

at that time.

Chongqing, together with Washington in America, London in England, and 

Moscow of the former Soviet Union, are recognized as the four famous historical

 cities of the Allies in World War II. In addition, Chongqing played a significant 

political role in the construction of the united line between the KMT and CPC.

During the 7 years of the Anti-Japanese War, many historic people, events, and 

places were pushed onto the historical stage of China, reserving many peculiar 

human cultural scenes for Chongqing.

As the temporary capital during the Anti-Japanese War, many historical places

 were built in Chongqing and over 400 relics have survived, according to 

incomplete statistics. However, due to the fast rate of construction in Chongqing,

 many relics have been lost. Presently, the representative relics include the former 

residences of such important persons as Chiang Kai-shek and Soong May-ling, 

as well as the memorial museum for the second cooperative agreement between

 the KMT and CPC, which held such documents as the Chongqing Negotiation 

and the Double Ten Agreement.

The Huangshan Official Residence for Chiang Kai-shek on the South Mountain

 in Chongqing has been better preserved for its incomparable integrity. During 

the peace negotiation between KMT and CPC, Mao Zedong, the leader of 

the CPC, accompanied by Zhou Enlai and Wang Ruofei, the representatives

 of the CPC, flew to Chongqing and negotiated with the KMT in Hongyancun and 

Guiyuan, etc. Guiyuan, originally the residence of General Zhang Zhizhong (KMT),

 was prepared for Mao Zedong’s stay in Chongqing. On October 10, 1945, the Talk 

Summary for the peace negotiation between KMT and CPC was signed exactly 

at the living room of Guiyuan.

As the temporary capital during the Anti-Japanese War period, many industries 

and schools were marshaled in Chongqing. Many famous enterprises today in Chongqing 

developed from wartime initiatives. At the same time, many young, 

patriotic students flooded into Chongqing to fight against the invasion of Japan.

 Many cultural celebrities like Guo Moruo, Liu Yazi, Ma Yinchu, Tao Xingzhi,

 Liang Shuming, Xu Beihong, and Lao She settled and worked in Chongqing.

 Therefore, the culture in the temporary capital Chongqing was flourishing and 

Chongqing became the cultural and educational center for the Sichuan province. 

The cultural district Shapingba, gathering a lot of schools and universities, 

became the famous “cultural dam” at the southwest and northwest area 

during that time. The former building of the state-run Central University is 

still standing on the campus of Chongqing University today.

First Published by cqnews

http://www.yourmandarin.org

the Big Picture of Chongqing History

Chongqing is a renowned cultural city with a long history. Far more than 20,000 

years ago, in the Paleolithic Age, human activity began on this land. Until the

 Neolithic Age, there were primitive villages inhabited by eight nationalities, 

such as the Yi, Pu and Ju people. These early Chongqing residents created the

 most ancient history and civilization of Chongqing.

During the period of the Xia, Shang and Zhou Dynasties (about 3,000-4,000

 years ago), the slave-owning tribal alliances generally called the "Ba" nation 

had strongly developed widely in the core areas of Chongqing. References to

 them have been found in ancient Chinese characters carved on tortoise shells

 or animal bones.The name of Chongqing, originally called Ba, has been changed

 many times in history.

In the 5th year of the Emperor Shenjing of the Zhou Dynasty (316 BC), Qin 

overthrew the original Ba nation and set up a new administration, which retained 

the Ba name. In the 26th year of the first emperor of the Qin Dynasty (221 BC),

 the country was subdivided into 36 counties, and Ba County, one of the 36 

counties, was established. In the Han Dynasty, Ba County was called Jiangzhou. 

And in Wei, Jin and Southern & Northern Dynasties, it was renamed as Jingzhou, Yizhou, Bazhou and Chuzhou.

In the 1st year of the Emperor Wendi of the Sui Dynasty (581), since the city was 

surrounded by Yushui (old name of the Jialing River), its name was changed 

from Chuzhou to Yuzhou. That's why the Chinese sometimes refer to Chongqing

 as "Yu".

With the Song Dynasty, the prefecture (Yuzhou) got the new name of Gongzhou.

 In the 16th year of the Emperor Xiaozong (Chunxi) of the Song Dynasty (1,189), 

Zhao Chun became Prince Gong, and administered the prefecture, later 

succeeding to the throne as Emperor Guangzong of the Southern Song Dynasty.

 To celebrate his double fortune, the emperor changed Gongzhou to Chongqing

 Fu ("prefecture of double celebration"). So far Chongqing has kept the name

 for over 800 years.

From the Qin Dynasty on, Chongqing has been organized into different 

administrative bodies, such as a county, a state, a city, and a province. 

After the Xinhai Revolution in 1921, Chongqing became a commercial 

port supervision office. In 1929, Chongqing

 was established as a city. On May 5, 1935, ordered by the Kuomintang (KMT)

 government, Chongqing became a municipality directly under the central

 government. After the Anti-Japanese War broke out, the KMT government 

moved westward to Chongqing, and Chongqing became the wartime capital

 in November 1937. In 1940, Chongqing officially became the temporary capital

 of China.

After its liberation on November 30, 1949, Chongqing became the station of the

 Southwest Military Political Commission and a municipality directly under the 

central government. It was put under the administration of Sichuan Province in 

July 1954 and became a city directly under the province level. In 1983, Chongqing

 became the first city in China which enjoys provincial-level economic management 

authority. On March 14, 1997, the Chinese National People's Congress examined 

and approved the proposal to set Chongqing as a municipality directly under the

 central government. On June 18, 1997, Chongqing formally became a municipality. 

With a population of 30.97 million, Chongqing has become China's largest and most 

populous city. Although there are over 40 ethnic minorities, like the Tujia and Miao, 

the Han nationality is still the main people of Chongqing.

First published by www.cqnews.net