Baoding

Baoding is a city with a history dating back to the Western Han Dynasty. It was destroyed by the Mongols in the 13th century, but after the Mongols established the Yuan Dynasty, it was rebuilt. It acquired the name "Baoding" during the Yuan dynasty — the name is roughly interpreted as "protecting the capital", referring to the city's proximity to Beijing. Baoding served for many years as the capital of Zhili, and was a significant centre of culture in the Ming Dynasty and early Qing Dynasty. During the Boxer rebellion, Boxer rebels killed a Turk, two Swiss, and an Italian in Baoding.

On August 1, 1949, the people's Government of Hebei province was established, Baoding was the capital of the province, and the city of Baoding was a provincial municipality. On August 9, the administrative inspector's office of the Baoding district was established, and it was established as the administrative inspector's office of the county district.

In May 1958, the capital of Hebei was moved to Tianjin.

In January 1966, the provincial capital was moved from Tianjin to Baoding.

In February 1968, the provincial capital moved to Shijiazhuang.

In December 1994, the Baoding area merged with Baoding to become a provincial city.

In April 2017, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the State Council announced the decision to transform Baoding's Xiong, Rongcheng, and Anxin counties into Xiong'an New Area, a new development area of national significance, with a focus on innovation, sustainability and quality of life, following the success of Shenzhen Special Economic Zone and Shanghai's Pudong New Area.

Baoding is located in the west-central portion of Hebei province and lies on the North China Plain, with the Taihang Mountains to the west. Bordering prefecture-level cities in the province are Zhangjiakou to the north, Langfang and Cangzhou to the east, and Shijiazhuang and Hengshui to the south. Baoding also borders Beijing to the northeast and Shanxi to the west.

Elevations in Baoding's administrative area decrease from northwest to southeast. The western parts are dominated by mountains and hills that are generally more than 1,000 metres (3,300 ft) tall; this area includes parts of Laishui, Yi, Mancheng, Shunping, Tang and Fuping Counties as well as the entirety of Laiyuan County, occupying 30.6% of the prefecture's area.[1] The highest peak is Mount Waitou (歪头山), with an elevation of 2,286 metres (7,500 ft).[1] Moving southeast from this area, one encounters low-lying mountains and hills, taking up 18.9% of the prefecture's area.[1] Further to the east lies generally flat terrain of 30 to 100 metres (98 to 330 ft) elevation. Here the primary rivers are the Juma, Yishui (易水), Cao (漕河), Longquan (龙泉河), Tang (唐河), and Sha Rivers. Baiyangdian Lake, the largest natural lake in northern China, can be found nearby.

Map including Baoding and surrounding region (NIMA, 1998)

Baoding prefecture-level city consists of 5 municipal districts, 4 county-level cities, 15 counties:

Map
1 2 Mancheng Qingyuan Xushui Laishui County Fuping County Dingxing County Tang County Gaoyang County Laiyuan County Wangdu County Anxin County Xiong County Rongcheng County Xiong'an Yi County Quyang County Li County Shunping County Boye County Zhuozhou (city) Dingzhou (city) Anguo (city) Gaobeidian (city) 1. Jingxiu 2. Lianchi
Division code[7]	English name	Simp. Chinese	Pinyin	Area in km2[8]	Seat	Postal code	Divisions[9]
							Subdistricts	Towns	Townships	Ethnic townships	Residential communities (居委会)	Villages (村委会)
130600	Baoding	保定市	Bǎodìng Shì	22185	Jingxiu District	071000	28	142	170	3	389	6209
130602	Jingxiu District	竞秀区	Jìngxiù Qū	149	Xianfeng Subdistrict (先锋街道)	071000	5		6		80	79
130603	Lianchi District	莲池区	Liánchí Qū	82	Wusi Road Subdistrict (五四路街道)	071000	10		7		91	121
130605	Mancheng District	满城区	Mǎnchéng Qū	658	Huiyang Subdistrict (惠阳街道)	072100	1	5	7		6	204
130606	Qingyuan District	清苑区	Qīngyuán Qū	856	Qingyuan (清苑镇)	071100		8	10		6	266
130607	Xushui District	徐水区	Xúshuǐ Qū	723	Ansu (安肃镇)	072500		7	7		15	304
130633	Yi County	易县	Yì Xiàn	2535	Yizhou (易州镇)	074200		9	18	1	7	469
130630	Laiyuan County	涞源县	Láiyuán Xiàn	2431	Laiyuan (涞源镇)	074300		7	10		8	285
130626	Dingxing County	定兴县	Dìngxīng Xiàn	714	Dingxing (定兴镇)	072600		5	11		8	274
130636	Shunping County	顺平县	Shùnpíng Xiàn	712	Puyang (蒲阳镇)	072200		5	5		4	237
130627	Tang County	唐县	Táng Xiàn	1414	Renhou (仁厚镇)	072300		7	13		8	345
130631	Wangdu County	望都县	Wàngdū Xiàn	358	Wangdu (望都镇)	072400		2	6		7	143
130623	Laishui County	涞水县	Láishuǐ Xiàn	1662	Laishui (涞水镇)	074100		7	8	1	6	284
130628	Gaoyang County	高阳县	Gāoyáng Xiàn	496	Gaoyang (高阳镇)	071500		4	5		11	170
130632	Anxin County	安新县	Ānxīn Xiàn	728	Anxin (安新镇)	071600		9	3		5	207
130638	Xiong County	雄县	Xióng Xiàn	513	Xiongzhou (雄州镇)	071800		6	3		7	223
130629	Rongcheng County	容城县	Róngchéng Xiàn	311	Rongcheng (容城镇)	071700		5	3		4	127
130634	Quyang County	曲阳县	Qūyáng Xiàn	1076	Hengzhou (恒州镇)	073100		5	13		6	367
130624	Fuping County	阜平县	Fùpíng Xiàn	2494	Fuping (阜平镇)	073200		5	8		5	209
130637	Boye County	博野县	Bóyě Xiàn	331	Boye (博野镇)	071300		3	4		4	133
130635	Li County	蠡县	Lǐ Xiàn	653	Liwu (蠡吾镇)	071400		8	5		6	232
130682	Dingzhou City	定州市	Dìngzhōu Shì	1284	Nanchengqu Subdistrict (南城区街道)	073000	3	17	5	1	31	486
130681	Zhuozhou City	涿州市	Zhuōzhōu Shì	751	Shuangta Subdistrict (双塔街道)	072700	3	6	5		39	404
130683	Anguo City	安国市	Ānguó Shì	485	Qizhouyaoshi Subdistrict (祁州药市街道)	071200	1	6	4		6	198
130684	Gaobeidian City	高碑店市	Gāobēidiàn Shì	674	Xinghua Road Subdistrict (兴华路街道)	074000	5	6	4		19	442
	Xiong'an New Area	雄安新区	Xióng'ān Xīnqū	106.46	Rongcheng (容城镇)
Note: Baoding New High Technology Product Development Zone (保定高新技术产业开发区) includes Damafang Township (大马坊乡) of Jingxiu District and Jiantai Township (贤台乡) of Mancheng District; the Baigou New City (白沟新城) includes Baigou Town (白沟镇) of Gaobeidian City.

• Dissolved districts: Beishi District and Nanshi District

According to the 2010 Census, the residence population stood at 11,194,379, an increase of 605,100 (5.71%) from 2000. The male-female ratio was 101.94:100. Children aged up to 14 numbered 1,915,800 (17.11% of the population), citizens 15 to 64 numbered 8,370,600 (74.78%), and 65+ numbered 908,000 (8.11%). The urban area of Baoding has a population of around 1,006,000 (2009). The overwhelming majority of the population is Han Chinese. The language of Baoding is Mandarin Chinese — specifically, the Baoding dialect of Ji-Lu Mandarin. Despite Baoding's proximity to Beijing, the Chinese spoken in Baoding is not particularly close to the Beijing dialect — rather, it is more closely related to Tianjin dialect.

Baoding is located in the centre of the Bohai Rim economic area which includes Beijing, Tianjin and Shijiazhuang. One of the largest employers in Baoding is China Lucky Film, the largest photosensitive materials and magnetic recording media manufacturer in China.[12] And, Yingli group, 2010 World Cup sponsor, has its headquarters in Baoding, who is the Global Top 10 solar panel manufacturer. More renowned companies include ZhongHang HuiTeng Windpower Equipment Co., Ltd (Wind Turbine), Baoding Tianwei Group Co., Ltd (Transformer) and Great Wall Motor.

In April 2017, an area in Baoding was designated as a Xiong'an New Area, a development zone of initially 100 km² and up to 2000 km², the site of what will eventually be a new city and the hub of the Beijing-Tinajin-Hebei development area.

• Baoding High-tech Industrial Development Zone[13]

Great Wall Motors Company Limited is a Chinese automobile manufacturer headquartered in Baoding, Hebei, China. The company is named after the Great Wall of China and was formed in 1984. It is China's largest sport utility vehicle (SUV) and pick-up truck producer. It sells passenger cars and trucks under the Great Wall brand and SUVs under the Haval and WEY brands.

In 2016, Great Wall Motors set a historical sales record of 1,074,471 cars worldwide, increased by 26% compared to 2015.

Baoding city has one of China's biggest plants which manufacture blades used in wind turbine generators, catering mainly to the domestic market. Tianwei Wind Power Technology is one of the three main plants in Baoding that produces wind turbine generators. It wheeled out its first 20 turbines in 2008, and it will produce 150 units in 2009 and another 500 in 2010. Nevertheless, Baoding is currently listed as the most polluted city in China.[14]

Bus line 1

Baoding has good connections to other cities, being located on one of the main routes in and out of Beijing. The Jingshi Expressway connects the two cities, and Baoding is also the western terminus of the Baojin Expressway linking Baoding with Tianjin, which is one out of two nearest ports (Huanghua is the other one). The Jingguang Railway provides frequent services to Beijing West railway station. On 30 December 2012, a new Baoding station was opened, while the old train station was closed for passengers.[15] Baoding East railway station lies 9.5 km (5.9 mi)to the east on the Beijing–Guangzhou–Shenzhen–Hong Kong high-speed railway.

Baoding is headquarters of the 38th Mechanized Group Army of the People's Liberation Army, one of the three group armies that comprise the Beijing Military Region responsible for defending the PRC capital.

Baoding balls

A street of Baoding

Perhaps the best-known item to supposedly originate in Baoding are Baoding Balls, which can be used to relax one's keyboard hand and strengthen one's wrist. The most famous local specialty food is the Donkey Burger (Chinese: 驴肉火烧).

Anxin County is home to the Quantou Village Music Association (圈头村音乐会), a well known traditional music group performing on guan (oboes), sheng (mouth organs), and percussion. The village of Quantou is located on an island in Lake Baiyangdian.

The city's streets follow a rough grid pattern, although this is less obvious in the older part of the city. The traditional main street of old Baoding is Yuhua Road, running from the city's centre to its eastern edge — most of Baoding's historic buildings are located in this area, along with some of its larger shopping centres. Other major streets include Dongfeng Road and Chaoyang Avenue. There is a ring road around the city.

Baoding is home to Hebei University, North China Electric Power University with other 3 universities and 12 colleges.

Historic sites

A courtyard in the mansion of the governor of Zhili

Baoding contains a number of notable historic sites. In the city proper, there can be found a historic provincial governor's mansion and an ancient lotus garden. In the hills to the northwest of the city, near the suburb of Mancheng, there are the Mancheng Han Tombs, where Prince Liu Sheng and his wife Dou Wan were buried.

The greater Baoding administrative area has 16 designated state-level cultural relics:

1. Yan State Capital Relics (475BC-221BC, Yixian County)
2. Great Wall at Zijinguan Pass (1368–1644, Yixian County and Laiyuan County)
3. Stele of Lao Tzu's Tao Te Ching (618-907, Yixian County)
4. Western Qing Tombs (1730–1915, Yixian County)
5. Geyuan Temple (916-1125, Laiyuan County)
6. Ciyun Pavilion (1306, Dingxing County)
7. Yicihui Stone Pillar (550-577, Dingxing County)
8. Kaiyuan Temple (960-1127, Dingzhou County)
9. Kaishan Temple (618-907, Gaobeidian County)
10. Dingzhou Porcelain Kiln Relic (960-1127, Quyang County)
11. Beiyue Temple (386-543, Quyang County)
12. Jin-cha-ji Border Region Headquarters Ruins (1938, Fuping County)
13. Ranzhuang Underground Tunnel (1937–1945, Qingyuan County)
14. Mancheng Han Tombs (154BC-113BC, Mancheng County)
15. Zhili Provincial Governor Office (1730–1911, Baoding)
16. Historical Site of the Baoding Military Academy (1902–1923)

• Abbie Goodrich Chapin (1868-1956), American missionary teacher based in Baoding
• Fan Hongbin—gymnast, Olympic silver medalist in 1996 Summer Olympics
• Fan Ye—gymnast, 2003 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships balance beam gold medalist
• Guo Jingjing—diver and Olympic gold medalist in 2004 and 2008 Summer Olympics
• Qian Hong—swimmer and Olympic gold medalist in 1992 Summer Olympics
• Shi Changxu—materials scientist, recipient of the 2010 State Preeminent Science and Technology Award
• Tie Ning—author, president of the China Writers Association
• Wei Jianjun—billionaire, chairman of Great Wall Motors[16]
• Yan Su—Chinese playwright and lyricist

• Charlotte, North Carolina, United States[17]

• Images from Baoding
• 
  Temple in the centre of old Baoding
• 
  Dongfeng Road, Baoding
• 
  Part of Yuhua Road, the main street of old Baoding
• 
  Arch on Yuhua Road, old Baoding
• 
  An intersection in Yuhua Road's shopping district
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  The Wanbo Tower in a sunny afternoon, Baoding CBD
• 
  A civic monument
• 
  A public park
• 
  A public park
• 
  Baoding Cathedral
• 
  Baoding Railway Station
• 
  Baoding East Railway Station for High-Speed Rail Trains
• 
  Baoding city buses before 2007
• 
  Baoding in the evening
• 
  Old Baoding railway station
• 
  Old Baoding railway station
• 
  Baoding Old Quarter
• 
  Skylines in Baoding CBD
• 
  Closer look at the Wanbo Tower in a sunny day
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  Closer look at the Maoye Tower in a sunny day, Baoding CBD
• 
  The Wanbo Plaza at night, Baoding CBD
• 
  The Wanbo Plaza at night, Baoding CBD
• 
  The Wanbo Plaza at night, Baoding CBD

• List of twin towns and sister cities in China

• Preston, Diana (2000). The Boxer Rebellion: The Dramatic Story of China's War on Foreigners That Shook the World in the Summer of 1900 (illustrated, reprint ed.). Bloomsbury Publishing USA. ISBN 0802713610. Retrieved 24 April 2014.

Media related to Baoding at Wikimedia Commons

• Official website