A series of activities, such as the 2300th anniversary of the founding of Shenyang, have begun, so how did the experts come to a conclusion?

The former vice president and researcher of Shenyang Palace Museum said that Biography of Xiongnu in Historical Records was the earliest historical document that recorded the establishment of a county in Liaodong: "After Yan, there was a sage who opened the Qin Dynasty, and Hu believed in its quality, but he returned to attack Donghu, which was only a thousand miles away. ..... Yan also built the Great Wall, and made Yang as ... Liaodong County refused Hu. "According to the analysis, the actions of opening the East Lake, building the Great Wall and setting up five counties in the north in Qin can only be carried out in the six years from 3065438 BC to 296 BC. The first two years were the time when Zhao took, built the Great Wall and set up three counties, which did not meet the time limit of "post". He said that, to be exact, Liaodong County could only be established between 299 BC and 297 BC. This is in line with the "post" time limit mentioned in Historical Records. Going forward becomes "pre", and going back is the minister of Yan State, and the focus of the struggle has shifted to the Central Plains. Qin's pioneering work must be in these three years.

Zhong Yuan Li also said that "History of Han Geography" specifically recorded the nature of Liaodong counties for the first time, in which "Hou Yi" was mentioned. This is the first time that Hou Cheng appeared in historical documents. The system of Qin, the system of Qin Yan, Liaodong county and its counties have a long history and continue. Houcheng was not built by the Han Dynasty, but by Yan Jian in Liaodong County. Through literature analysis and archaeological proof in 18 county, the site of Houcheng is located in the center of the old city of Shenyang.

Experts believe that Houcheng is connected to Wuci (now Fengcheng County) in the east and Leiyou (now Beizhen County) in the west. Nantong Xiangping (now Liaoyang) is a corner of each other and coordinates with each other, becoming an important link in the middle of the northern Great Wall defense line. As the northern barrier of Qiaxiangping County, Houcheng is the most suitable location in Shenyang. According to the "History of Counties and Counties in the Later Han Dynasty", Gao County originally belonged to Liaodong, later belonged to Liaodong, and Liaoyang belonged to Liaodong ... According to textual research, Gao County is now the ancient city of Weijialouzi in Shenyang. Liaoyang is located in Ciyutuo, Liaozhong County. It is an adjacent area, which is connected with three counties and faces Fushun in the east. It is reasonable to stay in Shenyang.

Jiang Niansi, vice president and researcher of Shenyang Palace Museum, said that the archaeological discovery solved the problem that Shenyang had built a city during the Warring States Period. 197 1 year and 1975, ancient residential sites were discovered in the courtyard of Donggong Road in Shenyang and the courtyard of Shenhe District Public Security Bureau in Lunan. The cultural layer is more than 6 meters thick, and the bottom layer is the cultural layer of Warring States and Han Dynasty, with a thickness of 1.5 meters. In this layer, large rammed earth building abutments, ancient well sites, building components and coins were found. Especially important are the excavations of Warring States tile and Long Live Hanwa. According to this analysis, this is probably an ancient city site during the Warring States and Han Dynasties. But because the ancient city wall has not been found, it is still inconclusive.

Fortunately, in 1993, during the construction of East Asia Commercial Plaza, the ruins of the ancient city wall were found behind the original palace outside the north wall of Shenyang Forbidden City. The wall is east-west, with a storage length of 1.20 meters and a residual height of about 2 or 3 meters. The loess is compacted and the compacted layer is clear. According to the results of cleaning, the digger determined that the wall was built in three times, starting in the Warring States Period and being repaired twice in the Han Dynasty. In the north of the city wall, the remains of the moat were also found. When this discovery is linked with the discovery in 1970s, it can be concluded that it is a site in Ji Cheng, which was built in the Warring States period and continued to be used in the Qin and Han Dynasties. The rammed earth wall found behind the original palace should be its north wall. The Forbidden City and Shenhe Public Security Bureau are both in the city, and its south wall is still in the south. In this way, according to the above archaeological findings, the origin of Shenyang can be defined as the Warring States period. In other words, Shenyang existed as early as the Warring States period, and the location of the city is in the old city. For more than 2000 years, the position of Shenyang has not changed much.

Since the 1950s, the tombs of the Warring States discovered by Huoli Road Warehouse in Shenhe District and Guangxin Machinery Factory in Dadong District are all related to the relevant departments of Shenyang Warring States Ancient City. According to the shape of the ancient city and the analysis of unearthed cultural relics, it can be further inferred that the ancient city of Shenyang was built in the late Warring States period. In addition, from the archaeological discoveries such as large rammed earth abutments in the city site, there were already county-level palaces at that time. Therefore, the ancient city of Shenyang should be a county government when Yan established Liaodong County. In this way, as long as we know the specific time when Yan set up Liaodong County, it can also be regarded as the earliest architectural age of Shenyang ancient city. According to historical records, the establishment of Sheyan Five Counties can only take place within 15 years from 300 BC to 284 BC. 300 BC is its upper limit and 284 BC is its lower limit. The ancient city of Shenyang can only be built in this period at the earliest. Of course, if you want to determine an absolute age to commemorate the beginning of Shenyang, it is also possible to take its upper limit. Xu Bingkun, former director of the Liaoning Provincial Museum, believes. It is reasonable to say that the Great Wall was built by Yan during the Warring States Period, and it is appropriate to set Liaodong County as the first 300 years, while setting Liaodong County as the first waiting city of the Warring States Period.

Hou Cheng's word "Shi Ming" means protection, which means protection and guarding. Later, it was called guarding the frontier fortress and guarding the enemy's situation, which was also written in this way. As a border city near the Great Wall in the east of Liaodong County, Houcheng has built an ancient city with a thick city and a high castle on the highland north of Shenshui, which really has the status and function of watching the dynamics, observing the enemy's situation and guarding the border. It's called Houyi, which is worthy of the name. The naming of Houcheng highlights the characteristics of its military defense, which is the basis of its naming.

Before the county was established in Liaodong, Shenyang was the activity area of Donghu people. The economic, cultural and social structure is relatively backward. Yan Ziqin attacked East Lake, built the Great Wall and set up counties, which is an extension of advanced production mode and progressive social system to the northeast, an extension of civilization to the wilderness, and a progress in the establishment and unification of ancient China. It was in these two historical opportunities that the Houcheng was established on this land. The establishment of Liaodong County and Houcheng is a turning point for Northeast China to enter the Chinese civilization system, and a sign for the beginning of a new historical period. The establishment of Houcheng laid a solid foundation for the development of Shenyang in later generations, and it was abandoned several times. After the expansion, it finally became the largest town in Northeast China. As an ancient historical city, Shenyang has grown from scratch, and the ancient back city is the brilliant starting point. From this perspective, Shenyang people want to thank Qin Kai for his outstanding achievements. Qin Kai is not as famous as his grandson Qin Wuyang in history, but Qin Wuyang and Jing Ke went to Xianyang to assassinate the king of Qin, and they were afraid in front of Xiong Wei, so they were not heroes. Qin Kai's immortal achievements in opening up the Northeast deserve to be remembered forever. On the threshold of 2 1 century, Shenyang has decided to celebrate the 2300th anniversary of its founding, which will make us love Shenyang even more and build it better.

First, several main viewpoints of historians on Shenyang's urban construction

There have always been different views on when Shenyang began to build a city. Because the historical documents are too brief, scholars have great differences on this issue. But one thing is consistent, that is, most people think that the construction of Shenyang began with the establishment of Houcheng County. To illustrate this problem, here are some related statements:

Li Zhaoluo, a historical geographer in the Qing Dynasty, said: "The back city is north of Shenyang."

"Shenyang is located in Houcheng County of Han Dynasty," Liu said in the Dictionary of Geographical Names of China compiled in 1930.

1987 The History of Northeast China, edited by Tong Dong, also said: "The back city is now Shenyang."

1988 Tan Qixiang wrote in "Notes on the Atlas of Chinese History and the Northeast Volume": "Later (the central capital,

Wei Zhi), an ancient city twenty miles southeast of Shenyang, Liaoning Province. "

1990, Wang Mian Hou and Li wrote the book "Ancient Traffic in Northeast China", saying: "Houcheng should be located in Boguantun Seoul by the Hunhe River in Dongling District, Shenyang, or in the ancient city of southeast Shenyang. Han and Wei relics have been found in both places. Among them, Guantun ancient city in Shang Bo is in danger of controlling Xiaoliao River (now Hunhe River), and its north is closer to Liaodong. In terms of military transportation, its place is expected to be close to the traffic jam, and it is more suitable and moderate to be placed in the central military station. "

The article "Shenyang City" in "The Encyclopedia of China China Geographical Volume" published by 1993 holds that "Shenyang was named after being located in the north of Shenshui (Hunhe River), and was an important town of Yan State during the Warring States Period, so it was named Houcheng."

Zhong Yuan Li's "Examination of Ancient Houcheng" published in the fourth issue of Journal of Liaoning University on 1999 also thinks that "Shenyang Ancient City is a Houcheng County under Liaodong County established by Yan Kai during the Warring States Period, which was set between 299 BC and 297 BC". "The site of Houcheng is located in the center of the old city of Shenyang."

The above are the main views of China historians on Shenyang's urban construction since 100, with similarities and differences. First, the establishment of Shenyang started with the establishment of Chengxian County in Liaodong County, which is the same point. As for where Houcheng is located in Shenyang today, there are different opinions. Second, regarding the time when Houcheng was first established, some people think it was the Han Dynasty, while others think it was the Warring States Period. This article will discuss when Houcheng County was established.

Second, the construction of Houcheng did not begin in the Han Dynasty.

The name of Houcheng was first seen in History of Han Geography, so many researchers set the initial time of Houcheng County in the Han Dynasty. Some scholars further pointed out: "The establishment time of Houcheng should be determined in the fourth year of Han Yuanfeng, that is, BC 107, which is more appropriate." Because "Han Yuanfeng opened the border and expanded the county in four years, it is possible to build a city in the later period." (See the minutes of the special demonstration meeting on the time of the establishment of Shenyang). ) I think the above views are debatable.

Fifty-seven copies of Historical Records, zhou bo Family, recorded that in the twelfth year of Emperor Gaozu (BC 195), "Lu Wan, the prince of Yan, rebelled, Bo replaced General Fan Kuai, defeated Ji, ... defeated Wan Jun to go to Lan, and then defeated Wan Jun to catch up with the Great Wall. Eleven counties in Shanggu, sixteen counties in Beiping, twenty-nine counties in Liaodong in western Liaoning and twenty-two counties in Yuyang. ..... Bo Lizhi returned to Yan, and Gao Zu has collapsed. " The word "Ding" recorded here is in Zhou Bo's Ding Yan and Ding Shanggu ... Liaodong in western Liaoning is pacified, not established. Therefore, the "determination" and "Twenty-nine counties in western Liaoning and eastern Liaodong" mentioned in this record do not mean that he established twenty-nine counties in western Liaoning and eastern Liaodong, but that he settled the existing twenty-nine counties in western Liaoning and eastern Liaodong at that time, that is to say, the twenty-nine counties in western Liaoning and eastern Liaodong were established before 195 BC. Although the names of these 29 counties are not recorded in the families of Emperor Jiang Houdi and zhou bo, there are names of Liaodong 18 county and Liaoxi 14 county in the geographical records of Han Dynasty. The book records: "Liaodong County, Qin Family." It lists the names of 18 counties under its jurisdiction, including "Houcheng", and the order is "Xiangping, Xinchang,,, Fanghou, Houcheng, Liaoning Tunnel ..." Houcheng ranks sixth. It can be seen that it is obviously too late to set up Houcheng County in Liaodong in the fourth year of Yuanfeng (107 years ago).

Scholars who advocate that Houcheng County was built in the Han Dynasty mainly rely on the records in Geography of Hanshu: "Liaodong County (Youzhou of Qin Family) has 55,973 households with a population of 272,539. 18 counties: Xiangping, Xinchang, Wuxu (western captain system), Fanghou, Houcheng (central captain system), Liaotun, Liaoyang, Xiandu, Maojiu, Gaoxian, Anping, Wuchi (eastern captain system), Pingguo, Anping, Wenfan, Fanhan. "Literally, this record can be understood as Liaodong County and its subordinate counties in the Han Dynasty, which was built by the Qin Dynasty. It can also be understood that Liaodong County in the Han Dynasty inherited the Qin system, and all its subordinate counties were established in the Han Dynasty.

As mentioned earlier, Liaodong County had a county organizational system when the Lu Wan rebellion was put down by frequency in BC 195. So, were these counties in Liaodong established by the Han Dynasty before 195 BC? If so, the theory that the Han Dynasty established and waited for the city to be established can be established; If not, the theory that the Han Dynasty was founded in Houcheng could not be established. Now let's take a look at the situation in Liaodong after the demise of the Qin Dynasty. In 207 BC, the Qin Dynasty perished, and around this time, Liaodong became a separatist situation. Separatist forces change frequently and are actually in the midst of war turmoil. In 209 BC, Han Guang was established as the prince of Yan by Yan people, and controlled Liaodong. In 206 BC, Xiang Yu named Han Guang the king of Liaodong and Feng named Zangcha the prince. Zangcha killed Han Guang and annexed his land. In order to win over Zangcha, Liu Bang also recognized him as the Prince of Yan. In 202 BC, after Liu Bang defeated Xiang Yu, Zangcha immediately set out against Han and sent troops to compete with Liu Bang for the world. Liu Bang personally led Qiu Lu Wan to defeat Zangcha, made Lu Wan a prince, and Liaodong was divided up by Lu Wan. In fact, the direct control of Liaodong power by the Han Dynasty can only be counted from the decision of Yan at the earliest. At that time, Liaodong had set up a county. Therefore, the establishment of counties in Liaodong did not begin in the Han Dynasty.

According to Records of the Historical Records of Qin Shihuang, Yan was destroyed in the 25th year of Qin Shihuang (the first 222 years) and Qi was destroyed in the 26th year (the first 22 years1year), which unified China. At that time, Prime Minister Wang Wan and others put forward suggestions: "When the princes first broke, Yan Qi was far away, not for the king, but for the town. Please establish a philosopher." In other words, Yan State should implement the system of enfeoffment. In this regard, Ting Wei and Li Si expressed their opposition. He said that there were many children with the same surname, which led the princes to attack each other, and Zhou could not ban it. He suggested that the world should be "all countries", which is "the art of peace". Qin Shihuang agreed with Lisi's suggestion to implement the county system throughout the country, including five counties in Liaodong and western Liaoning in Yan. In this regard, the following records can prove that in the thirty-fourth year of Qin Shihuang (2 13 BC), "the first emperor bought wine in Xianyang Palace, celebrated his birthday 70 years ago, and his servant Zhou paid tribute: it was only a thousand miles away from Qin, relying on your holiness, pacifying the coastal areas, banishing barbarians, and shining the sun and the moon, all of which were in his business, with princes as counties and counties, and everyone was happy." The above records show that Qin did implement the county system in the land of six countries, including Yan Qi. At the same time, it also proves once again that the 29 counties in western Liaoning and eastern Liaoning were not established by the Han Dynasty when the frequency decided to annex them. Therefore, it is also untenable to say that Houcheng County in Liaodong County was founded in the Han Dynasty.

3. The establishment of Liaodong County of Yan State, which was established in Houcheng County during the Warring States Period, did not begin in the Qin Dynasty, but in the Yan State during the Warring States Period, with a clear history and little controversy. The question is whether there is a county in Yanshi of Liaodong County. History is not clear about this. But by the Qin Dynasty, there were 29 counties in Liaodong and Western Liaoning. According to Hanshu Geography, there are 18 counties in Liaodong County and 14 counties in Liaoxi County. It seems that the jurisdiction of Liaodong County is very broad. In such a vast area, it is impossible to rule without other institutions at or below the county level. Moreover, historical documents also prove that Yan did implement the county system. According to one of the articles, The Warring States Policy and Qin Ce I, there are 36 counties in Shanggu County of Yan State. This shows that there are counties under the county of Yan State. According to "San Ji Merchants of Tongzhi Jianzhou", he thought he was a general and led his troops to cut Qi. "Yan's victory drove the dragon, and Qi City was driven by the wind." In June, more than 70 cities were all counties. During the Warring States period, Qi was a country that did not implement the county system, "there were more than 70 cities, all of which were counties", which actually extended the county system implemented by Yan to Qi. Jin Yufu, an expert in the history of Northeast China, wrote in "A General History of Northeast China": "In fact, during the Warring States period, many countries set up counties, while Yan set up two counties in Liaodong and Liaoxi, which made the text clearer. Although Qin is in the northeast, it is still famous for its old days. " In other words, the counties set up by the Qin Dynasty in Yan State inherited the old system of Yan State. This view is reasonable. Since 1950s, tombs and sites of the Warring States Period have been discovered in Shenyang. In the 1970s, "cultural relics from the Warring States to the Han Dynasty were discovered in front of the Grand Hall of the Forbidden City in Shenyang and in the courtyard of the Shenhe District Public Security Bureau, which were confirmed as residential sites of that year, and a large number of building materials and ceramic daily necessities from the Warring States to the Han Dynasty were unearthed". 1993, the ruins of the city wall from the Warring States Period to the Han and Wei Dynasties were found in the ruins of Houli Dongya Commercial Plaza, which was the outer wall of the Northern Palace Museum in Shenyang. "The ruins of the city wall are east-west and belong to the north wall of the city site. The city wall was built three times. Among them, the initial repair period was the Warring States period, with an exposed length of more than 20 meters. The second and third buildings belonged to the Han and Wei Dynasties and were formed by widening the walls of the Warring States period in turn. The exposed length of the second wall construction exceeds120m. The wall of the third construction was destroyed by the construction unit, and the remaining residual wall was about 30 meters long. " The moat site of that year was also found in the corresponding position on the north side of the city wall site. In addition, a large number of architectural relics such as bricks, tiles and tiles were discovered during the Warring States Period and the Han and Wei Dynasties, among which rope-patterned tiles were discovered for the first time (practical test of the back seat of Shenyang Palace, published in China Place Names No.2, 1998). )。 This shows that as early as the Warring States period, there was already a city in Shenyang. Zhong Yuan Li's textual research on the ancient Houcheng, combined with archaeological discoveries and documentary records, proves that this newly discovered ancient city is the site of the Houcheng of Yan State during the Warring States Period. The convincing question of this conclusion is: When was Houcheng County built? According to literature and archaeological data, it is still difficult to say this question accurately. To infer the age of the establishment of Houcheng, we must first understand the time when Liaodong County was established. In Historical Records Biography of Xiongnu, it is recorded that the State of Yan set up Liaodong County: "King Wuling of Zhao is also vulgar and used to riding and shooting. In the north, Hulin and Loufan were broken and the Great Wall was built. Generation after generation, the Yinshan Mountain was merged, the highest pavilion was sealed, and Liyun, Yanmen and Dai Jun were established. Later, Yan Youxian opened the Qin Dynasty, but Hu believed that it was true. He attacked and broke Donghu, but Donghu was thousands of miles away. Qin Wuyang, the king of Qin, was stabbed to death by Kay's grandson Jing Ke. Yan also built the Great Wall, from Yangyang to Xiangping, and set up five counties: Gu, Yuyang, Youbeiping, Liaoxi and Liaodong, in order to refuse Hu. "

It was in 307 BC that King Wuling of Zhao became vulgar, riding and shooting arrows in Hu clothes, and the Great Wall was built in 300 BC. Yan and attack the East Lake, build the Great Wall with Yan, and establish Liaodong and other five counties, all behind the Great Wall in Zhao Jian. Yan Zhaowang ascended the throne in 365438 BC. 300 BC is the twelfth year of Yan Zhaowang. Yan Zhaowang died in 279 BC. Therefore, it is generally believed that the Qin Dynasty will break the East Lake, Yan Xi will build the Great Wall, and Liaodong and other counties will be established during the reign of Yan Zhaowang. After Qi killed the prince, Yan Zhaowang acceded to the throne. At that time, it was Qi in the south and East Lake in the north that threatened Yan. After Yan Zhaowang acceded to the throne, he made great efforts to reform. In order to reduce the threat of Donghu, he sent the wise general Qin Kai to Donghu as a hostage. In 295 BC, I thought I was green, and in 284 BC, I conquered Qi. These are obviously out of date. However, there are no specific dates for Qin to break the East Lake, Yan to build the Great Wall and Liaodong County, and researchers can only determine the dates through analysis.

According to Records of the Historian Zhao, King Wuling of Zhao "re-attacked Zhongshan in the 26th year (the first 300 years), and the prosperous land reached Yan and Dai in the north and Yunzhong and Jiuyuan in the west", so researchers generally designated Zhao as the Great Wall and Yunzhong and Yanmen in this year, that is, 300 BC. When did Qin Kai break the East Lake and set up Liaodong and other counties? "I don't know when Yan was born, and Qin Wuyang is the grandson of Kai. Count his years or when he was born." Therefore, he set the time for Qin to break East Lake and Yanding Liaodong in fifteen years, that is, twelve years (the first three hundred years).

In the Qing Dynasty, Huang (1789- 1862) wrote in Zhou Lue that in fifteen years, "Yan Kaiqin broke the East Lake, but the East Lake was thousands of miles away, and Yan set the valley, Yuyang, Youbeiping, western Liaoning and Liaodong County".

Later, Jin Yufu wrote in "A General History of Northeast China": "Lv Zuqian's memorabilia and Huang's three-part Zhou Ji are related to Zhou Nanwang's fifteen years and Yan Zhaowang's twelve years, which makes sense." The Atlas of Chinese History compiled by Gu Jiegang and Zhang Xun (published in 1955) also defined the clouds in 300 BC as Zhao, Yanmen, and Yan as Shanggu, Yuyang, Youbeiping, Western Liaoning and Liaodong County. This theory was later adopted by many scholars.

However, according to the Huns Biography, King Wuling of Zhao built the Great Wall and set it in Yunzhong and other counties. "Later", Qin Kai broke the East Lake and Cai Yan was located in Liaodong and other counties, so some scholars set the time for Qin Kai to break the East Lake and Yan Jia to break Liaodong and other counties after 300 BC, and some even set it in 284 BC. For example, Yang Kuan's "Warring States Policy" said: "Yan set up Yuyang, Liaodong and other counties, which may be set up by Yan one after another." Tong Dong's "General History of Northeast China" also set the time for Qin to break the East Lake and Yan to set up Liaodong County in 284 BC, after the generals of Yan State broke more than 70 cities. But these statements are only speculation, and there is no conclusive historical basis. They can only be regarded as an opinion, not a conclusion. In fact, it is impossible to accurately point out the year of Liaodong County at present.

According to the records in Hun Biography and Zhao Family Records, it can be determined that the counties where Zhao built the Great Wall and built clouds were in the twenty-sixth year of King Wuling of Zhao, that is, fifteen years, twelve years and 300 BC respectively. Qin Kai broke the East Lake, and counties such as Liaodong in Yan Jia were also "left behind". "Afterwards" is a vague concept. But what is absolutely certain is that the upper limit of the Qin Dynasty to break the East Lake and the Yan State to set up Liaodong County will never be earlier than 300 BC. Therefore, many scholars from Lv Zuqian in Song Dynasty to modern times set this matter in 300 BC. Because any other year can only be speculation, and there is no historical basis. Therefore, I think, instead of speculating the date subjectively, it is better to adopt the saying since the Song Dynasty and set the time of Yan's family in Liaodong County at 300 BC. Yan implements the county system, and Houcheng County belongs to Liaodong County, which can be regarded as being established at the same time. In other words, the time when Shenyang began to build a city was around 300 BC.