History
The city's name “Handan” first appeared in the chronicle Bamboo Annals. A widely accepted explanation of its origin comes from Zhang Yan's annotation to Treatise on Geography of The Book of Han，which stated that the city got its name from the Hanshan Mountain on its east.“Han”（邯） is the name of the mountain，and “Dan”（单） means it is the terminus of a mountain range，with an added part （阝） denoting a city. Together，“Handan” means “the city at the terminus of Hanshan Mountain.”The name has remained unchanged for over 3，000 years，which is a unique case in the Chinese toponymic culture.
The history of Handan as a city could be dated back to the Shang Dynasty (c. 1600 BC-1100 BC). Over the several hundred years from the establishment of the capital of Shang in Xing (present-day Xingtai,Hebei),to the relocation of it to Yin (present-day Anyang,Henan),Handan remained an important city around the capital. The record of King Zhou of Shang building a palace in Handan in Bamboo Annals confirmed its long history.
Handan was a city of the State of Wei during the Western Zhou Dynasty (1046 BC-771 BC) and as the state of Jin during the Spring and Autumn Period (770 BC-476 BC). At that time,it was a famous city with developed agriculture,handicrafts and commerce. In 500 BC,Zhao Yang (alias Zhao Jianzi),the governing secretary of Jin,included Handan in his sphere of influence. Since then,Handan became a hereditary territory of the Zhao family. In 386 BC,Marquess Jing of Zhao moved the capital of Zhao from Zhongmu (west of present-day Hebi,Henan) to Handan during the Warring States Period. As a capital,Handan continued to flourish for 158 years,witnessing the lives of eight marquesses. King Wuling of Zhao pioneered a military reform which strengthened its national power and turned Zhao into one of the Seven Powers of the Warring States Period as well as one of Qin's greatest rivals.
In 228 BC,the city was conquered by the State of Qin. As King Qian of Zhao surrendered,Handan became a city of Qin. In 221 BC,Qin annexed Zhao. The following year,Ying Zheng unified the seven kingdoms and divided its country into 36 counties,with Handan the capital of Handan County. In 203 BC,Emperor Gaozu of Han made Zhang Er King of Zhao,with its capital set in Handan. In 198 BC,Emperor Gaozu named his beloved son Ruyi as the King of Zhao,and rebuilt palaces in Handan. It is during this period that Wenming Palace was built. Besides capital Chang'an,Handan was one of the five most famous metropolises at that time together with Luoyang,Linzi,Chengdu and Wan (Nanyang). Handan was known as the “richest city and famous capital of China” until the late Western Han Dynasty. From the Warring States Period to the Eastern Han Dynasty,Handan flourished for about 500 years.
At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty,Handan began to decline due to the numerous battles between rising powers that ravaged northern China. In 213,Emperor Xian of Han crowned Cao Cao as the Duke of Wei and established the capital of Wei in Yecheng. Cao encouraged the cultivation of lands,the development of water conservancy,the construction of roads to improve his capital. The capital of Wei is famous for its symmetry with three terraces of Tongque,Jinfeng and Bingjing in it. Rhapsody on the Capital of Wei written by Zuo Si in the Western Jin Dynasty depicted the prosperousness of the city at that time. The rise of Yecheng led to the southward movement of the political,economic,military and cultural center of Wei from the north of the Yellow River,thus reducing Handan to an ordinary city of Wei. In 221,it came within the jurisdiction of Guangping County and later shifted to that of Wei County in the Eastern Jin Dynasty. In contrast,Yecheng became the capital of Later Zhao,Ran Wei,Former Yan,Eastern Wei,and Northern Qi successively for a period of 364 years,which had a profound influence on later generations.
During the Sui and Tang dynasties,Handan successively came within the jurisdiction of the counties of Mingzhou,Cizhou,Wu'an and Zizhou,while Yecheng was burned to the ground,though it had been in full bloom. However,Daming,a city to the southeast of Handan,rose quietly during the Tang and the Five Dynasties. In 621,Daming,as the capital of Weizhou,had developed into a central city in a large area north of the Yellow River. In 758,Daming was expanded into the town of Weibo,which was called Daming Prefecture of Weizhou,where the Tianxiong Army was set up during the Five Dynasties. In 923,Li Cunxu ascended to the throne in Wei Prefecture,known as Emperor Zhuangzong of Later Tang.(https://www.daowen.com)
After the establishment of the Song Dynasty,Emperor Taizong of Song divided the country into 15 provinces,with Handan under the jurisdiction of Cizhou,Hebei Province while Daming the capital of Hebei. In 1042,Daming became the alternate capital. The ancient battlefield extending from Daming to Guantao had witnessed numerous battles between Song and Liao. Daming also became the capital of the vassal state of Daqi in the Jin Dynasty,where Liu Yu became the emperor in 1130. It remained a prosperous city to the southeast of Handan until the Yuan Dynasty.
In 1368,the Emperor Hongwu of Ming divided the country into 13 provinces and Handan came within the jurisdiction of Guangping Prefecture (present-day the old town of Yongnian). During the Qing Dynasty,Handan was still under the jurisdiction of Guangping Prefecture. During the Ming and Qing dynasties,Guangping Prefecture became the political and economic center near Handan. At the beginning of the Republic of China,Guangping Prefecture was abolished,and Handan was placed under the jurisdiction of Jinnan Prefecture,Zhili Province,which was changed to Hebei Province in 1928,and Handan County was directly under the provincial jurisdiction.
During the Counter-Japanese War and the Liberation War,Handan was the center of the Jin-Ji-Lu-Yu base area. Liu Bocheng and Deng Xiaoping led the 129th Division of the Eighth Route Army and fought in the Taihang Mountains,creating a base area with Handan as its center,which laid the foundation of the city as the center of the region bordering the four provinces of Shanxi,Hebei,Shandong and Henan. It is in Handan that North China Xinhua Radio Station,predecessor of China National Radio,started broadcasting,and that People's Daily and People's Pictorial were founded and Jinan Bank,one of the predecessors of the People's Bank of China,was born. Handan County was liberated by the People's Liberation Army on October 5,1945,and built into Handan City,which was under the direct governance of the government of the Jin-Ji-Lu-Yu Border Region,with Handan City as its capital. In March,1949,Handan City was reduced to Handan Town. In August of the same year,the People's Government of Hebei Province was founded,which established Handan Special District and placed Handan Town under its jurisdiction.
On October 1,1949,the People's Republic of China was founded. On December 22,1952,Handan Town was upgraded to Handan City. In 1954,it became a city under the jurisdiction of Hebei Province. In 1956,Fengfeng City was incorporated into Handan City. In 1983,Handan County was incorporated into Handan City. In 1984,Handan became a city under provincial jurisdiction. In 1986,Wu'an County (later upgraded to a city) was incorporated into Handan City. In 1992,Handan City was approved by the State Council as a “larger city.” In 1993,with the approval of the State Council,Handan Special District was abolished,and all the counties under the jurisdiction of Handan Special District were placed under that of Handan City. In 1994,Handan City was listed by the State Council as a National Historical and Cultural city. Over the 70 years since 1949,Handan has gradually developed into a prosperous city with a population of over a million,which is on its way to a full development.
After the adjustment of administrative divisions in 2014 and 2016,the urban area of Handan has expanded from 655.7 square kilometers to 2661.8 square kilometers,and its population has increased from 1.61 million to 3.67 million. With its development expanding,its allocation of resources optimizing,its functions as a regional central city improving,and its comprehensive carrying capacity enhancing,Handan plays a significant role in promoting the coordinated development of Beijing,Tianjin and Hebei,as well as accelerating the construction of the functional area in the middle and south of Hebei.