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Histoty of Luoyang China
As a city famous for its splendid history and profound culture, Luoyang has become a shining gem in central part of China for its abundant and characteristic modern civilization.
The original city was constructed by the Duke of Zhou in the 11th century BC as a settlement for the remnants of the captured Shang nobility and was named Chengzhou. It became the capital of the Zhou Dynasty in 770 BC. The city was destroyed in a civil war in 510 BC and rebuilt the next year at the request of the king.
In AD 25, Luoyang became the capital of Eastern Han Dynasty. For several centuries, Luoyang was the center of gravity of China.
In AD 68, the White Horse Temple, the first Buddhist temple in China, was founded in Luoyang. The temple still exists, though the architecture is of later origin, mainly from the 16th century. An Shihkao was one of the first monks to popularize Buddhism in Luoyang.
In AD 190, Chancellor Dong Zhuo ordered his soldiers to ransack, pillage and raze the city as he retreated from the coalition set up against him by regional lords from across China. The court was subsequently moved to the more defensible western city of Chang'an. Following a period of disorder, Luoyang was restored to prominence when Emperor Wen of the Wei Dynasty declared it his capital in AD 220.
The Jin Dynasty, successor to Wei, was also established in Luoyang. When Jin was overrun by invaders and forced to move its capital to Jiankang (modern day Nanjing), Luoyang was nearly totally destroyed.
In AD 493 the Northern Wei Dynasty moved its capital from Datong to Luoyang and started the construction of the artificial Longmen Grottoes. More than 30,000 Buddhist statues from the time of this dynasty have been found in the caves
Luoyang has been known as "an ancient capital of nine dynasties ". It is among the first cities to be declared by the State Council as the ancient capitals and famous historical and cultural cities. Starting from the first dynasty of China---Xia, it served as capital for 13 dynasties---Shang, Western Zhou, Eastern Zhou, Eastern Han, Cao Wei, Western Jin, Northern Wei, Sui, Tang, etc. It served as a capital for 1,529 years, and thus of the 7 great ancient capitals in China, it was the first one to have served as the capital for the most numerous dynasties and for the longest time. Luoyang is one of the important birthplaces of the Chinese civilization. Culture in the Yellow River and the Luo River symbolized by the Pattern of the Yellow River and the Writing of Luoyang is regarded as a key origin of the ancient Chinese civilization. It was here that Taoism initiated, Confucianism originated. Buddhism first introduced and Li School--a Confucian school of idealist philosophy of the Song and Ming Dynasties born. Many Chinese descendants found their roots here and cherished a deep love for the homeland.
"If you want to know the rises and falls in China, please just look at the city of Luoyang.” We warmly welcome people from all over the world to come to Luoyang to go on sightseeing and make friends, to search for roots, to build industry and business, to pursue joint development with us, and to reconstruct the splendor of the ancient capital!
