Hotels Hangzhou, China - Hotel Booking

Presentation of Hangzhou

Hangzhou (pinyin: Hángzhōu; Postal map spelling: Hangchow) is a sub-provincial city located in the Yangtze River Delta in the People's Republic of China, and the capital of Zhejiang province. Located 180 kilometres (112 mi) southwest of Shanghai, as of 2004 the entire Hangzhou Region or Prefecture-level city had a registered population of 6.4 million people. The urban agglomeration of the Hangzhou metropolitan area has a resident population of 3,931,900 as of 2003, of which 2,636,700 are permanent residents. There are 1,910,000 residents in the six urban core districts.

As one of the most renowned and prosperous cities of China for much of the last 1,000 years, Hangzhou is also well-known for its beautiful natural scenery, with the West Lake (Xī Hú) as the most well-known location.

History of Hangzhou

The city of Hangzhou was founded about 2,200 years ago during the Qin Dynasty, but the city wall was not constructed until the Sui Dynasty (591). It is listed as one of the Seven Ancient Capitals of China.

Hangzhou was the capital of the Wuyue Kingdom from 907 to 978 during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period. Named Xifu at the time, it was one of the three great centers of culture in southern China during the tenth century, along with Nanjing and Chengdu. Leaders of Wuyue were noted patrons of the arts, and especially of Buddhism and associated temple architecture and artwork. It also became a cosmopolitan center, drawing scholars from throughout China and conducting diplomacy not only with neighboring Chinese states, but also with Japan, Korea, and the Khitan Liao Dynasty.

Hangzhou was chosen as the new capital of the Southern Song Dynasty when they regrouped after their defeat at the hands of the Jin in 1123. It remained the capital from the early 12th century until the Mongol invasion of 1276, and was known as Lin'an.

The city remained an important port until the middle of the Ming Dynasty era when its harbor slowly silted up.

Hangzhou was ruled by Republic of China government under the Kuomintang from 1928 to 1949. On May 3, 1949, the People's Liberation Army entered Hangzhou and the city came under Communist control. After Deng Xiaoping's reformist policies began in 1978, Hangzhou took advantage of being situated in the Yangtze River Delta to bolster its development. It is now one of China's most prosperous major cities.

Hangzhou (next to West Lake) was where, in February 1972, President Richard Nixon and Zhou Enlai signed what came to be called the "Shanghai Communique" (which had been negotiated in Beijing).

See the full history of Hangzhou on Wikipedia.

Sister cities of Hangzhou

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