The ancient town of Xitang

One of the six ancient towns in the south of the Yangtze River is a living millennium old town, which has long been listed in the preparatory list of world historical and cultural heritage.

The biggest feature of Xitang is that the streets near the river have corridors and sheds, with a total length of nearly 1000 meters. When you come here to play, you can't get wet in rainy days, and you can't get the sun in sunny days.

There are many well preserved Ming and Qing architectural complexes in the ancient town, such as Zhongfu hall, Zunwen hall, Xue house, etc.

In the evening, the setting sun shines, the fishing boats sing late, the lights are shining, and the fragrance of wine is flowing. The whole ancient town of water town is like a poem and a picture.

The ancient town of Xitang

Xitang ancient town is located in Jiashan County, Jiaxing City, Zhejiang Province, at the junction of Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shanghai. The transportation is convenient, 90 km from Shanghai in the East, 110 km from Hangzhou in the West and 85 km from Suzhou in the north.

Xitang is listed in the preparatory list of China's world cultural heritage by the State Administration of cultural relics

It is also one of the first batch of famous historical and cultural towns in China

It is a national AAAAA scenic spot

And won the world heritage protection outstanding achievement award. Xitang has a long history and is one of the birthplaces of ancient Wu Yue culture.

On February 25, 2017, it was upgraded to a national 5A tourist attraction.

Historical evolution

Xitang, formerly known as Xietang. In the Ming Dynasty, it was built as a town with two townships, Yongan and Qianshan, named Xietang at the beginning and Xitang later.

During the Kaiyuan period of Tang Dynasty (713-741 AD), villagers built maming nunnery in wenshuiyang.

In the first year of Xianchun (1265 AD), Tang Jiefu donated his house as a temple. The son and grandson of the Tang family, Huan Xiang Fu Dang, lived in scattered areas, and was called Hu Shou Li in the Chunhu period.

In the fifth year of Xuande (1430 A.D.), Jiashan County was built. It was initially proposed that the county government should be located in Xietang.

In 1447, Taozhuang tax bureau moved Xietang, which was called Xietang city in Hongzhi of Ming Dynasty.

Zhengde (1506-1521 AD), known as Xitang town.

In the 35th year of Jiajing (1556 AD), the Japanese invaders invaded xigutan, destroyed the market and then moved eastward. Xietang town was again called Xietang town in Wanli.

In the 38th year of the reign of Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty (1733 A.D.), wangjiajiao of the town set up the county office.

Tongzhi eight years (AD 1869), moved to Nantang bridge Dongtu Yaqian street, to the end of the Qing dynasty Department abandoned.

At the beginning of the Republic of China, the county was divided into 12 autonomous regions, and Xitang town was the seat of Xitang autonomous region.

In the 19th year of the Republic of China (1930), the county was re divided into four districts, and Xitang was set up as the third district of Jiashan County.

In the 23rd year of the Republic of China (1934 AD), the system of the district was abolished and directly under the county government. Xitang Town Office was set up in Yaqian street.

In 1937, Xitang was occupied in the early hours of November 11 (the ninth day of the tenth lunar month).

In May 1949, Xitang was liberated. On June 5, the people's Government of Xitang district was established in jijianong.

In March of the next year, the people's Government of Xitang town was established, which was set up in the rice industry office.

In June 1951, Xitang town was changed into a town directly under the county.

In 2003, it was jointly named as a famous historical and cultural town in China by the Ministry of housing and urban rural development and the State Administration of cultural relics.

In 2005, Xitang was rated as a national AAAA tourist attraction.

In 2012, it was listed in the updated "China world cultural heritage preliminary list" by the State Administration of cultural heritage

On November 17, 2017, Xitang ancient town was rated as the top ten most popular ancient villages and towns among netizens in 2017.

Layout of scenic spots

Xitang has a flat terrain and dense rivers. Nine rivers meet in the town, dividing the town into eight plates. 24 stone bridges connect the five areas of the ancient town. Most of these ancient bridges are single hole stone column wooden beam bridges, which have been well protected up to now.

Zhainong is another major feature of Xitang. It is divided into jienong connecting two parallel streets, shuinong connecting the front street and the back River, and peinong located on the side of the hall in the mansion. 122 alleys intersect horizontally and vertically, which constructs the overall framework of the ancient town and connects the new and old towns.

More than 2000 meters of Yanyu corridor is the most unique symbol of Xitang building. The corridor shed is equipped with a bench on the side along the river.

Scenic spots

Historical celebrities

In history, there were 19 Jinshi and 31 Jinshi in Xitang. Since the Ming Dynasty, there have been nine records in local records and 103 works left in the world.

Yang Mao, Zhang Cheng

Xitang, two masters of Arts and crafts of the Yuan Dynasty, are masters of carving and painting. Yang Mao's "waterfall reunion box" has been preserved by the Beijing Palace Museum, and the work has also been printed into stamps; Zhang Cheng's "red and purple calyx disc" has been collected by the shengzhonglaiying temple in Otsu, Japan.

Gu Xidong

Playwright, former chairman of Zhejiang Federation of literary and art circles and President of Zhejiang Yueju opera academy. In 1954, he created Yue Opera "five girls", the most famous of which are "five girls' birthday" and "Han Palace resentment".

Zhao Xianchu

Chinese contemporary educators. He graduated from Shanghai Jiaotong University in 1924, and has been teaching in Nanyang Model middle school since then. He is one of the first batch of special grade teachers in Shanghai, and is recognized as "a generation of famous teachers" by the educational circles. He once served as the deputy head of Xuhui District of Shanghai, member and vice chairman of the Standing Committee of the Shanghai Municipal Committee of the Chinese people's Political Consultative Conference.

Ancient town value

Tiange

As a carrier of traditional cultural heritage, Xitang has thousands of years of rich folk grass-roots culture accumulation. Tiange is the original folk song of Han nationality, the first batch of intangible cultural protection projects in Zhejiang Province, and also the world intangible cultural heritage.

Ancient buildings in Ming and Qing Dynasties

Xitang ancient town retains 250000 square meters of ancient buildings of Ming and Qing Dynasties.

Rhododendron

Rhododendron is the town flower of Xitang, with a long history of cultivation, which can be traced back to the middle of Qing Dynasty. According to the latest edition of records of Xitang Town, there were 145 species of Rhododendron in Xitang, including 50 species of spring Rhododendron, 28 species of summer Rhododendron, 59 species of West Rhododendron and 8 species of hair Rhododendron. 119 families planted Rhododendron. Xitang, known as the "hometown of Rhododendron", had a total planting capacity of more than 5000 pots of Rhododendron in its heyday, and there were many varieties of Rhododendron, some of which won awards in previous national Rhododendron festivals.

Rare ancient and famous trees

Although affected by various factors, many ancient trees are facing the threat of extinction, but the planting enthusiasts in the ancient town try their best to protect, so that the ancient town still retains many ancient and famous trees. The oldest trees in the ancient town are two Ginkgo trees of Ming Dynasty, which have a history of more than 600 years. It has witnessed the historical development of the whole ancient town. According to the complete statistics of relevant departments, there are 123 trees aged over 50 years, 4 trees aged 200-300 years and 2 trees aged over 400 years in Xitang ancient town.

protective measures

Since the mid-1980s, Xitang ancient town has carried out scientific and reasonable urban construction planning in time, so that the original style of water town can be completely preserved. In 1986, Xitang town invited Zhejiang University to draw up the master plan of urban construction, and began to put forward the idea of "protecting the ancient town and developing the new town". On this basis, in 1996, experts from Shanghai Tongji University were invited to make a comprehensive revision of the overall planning of urban construction from the aspects of the nature, function and layout of the town, centering on the comprehensive protection of the style and features of the ancient town. In January 2001, the people's Government of Jiashan County promulgated the Interim Provisions on the protection of Xitang ancient town according to the regulations on the protection of historical and cultural cities in Zhejiang Province. In 2003, Xitang town compiled "Xitang Town Industrial Park Planning", "Xitang town tourism development planning" and "Xitang town environmental protection planning". Through the compilation and implementation of this series of protective planning, the layout structure of the ancient town has been optimized, which plays an important role in the comprehensive protection of Xitang ancient town. The government of Xitang town has also formulated the policy of "protection first, rescue first". So far, 275 million yuan has been invested in the construction of ancient town scenic spots, facade renovation, pipeline burial, demolition of disharmonious buildings, river dredging, etc. Comprehensive renovation work has been carried out to protect the style and features of ancient buildings and improve the quality of life of residents. It not only renovated 250000 square meters of Ming and Qing ancient buildings in the ancient town, but also innovated and designed new buildings integrating classical and modern art in the process of building a new city, creating a first-class living environment for Xitang. In addition, the government has also compiled the construction plan of Xitang Town, a famous cultural town. Through various channels and methods such as the government, associations and folk artists, the unique culture of the ancient town can be inherited and the historical context can be continued.

Tourism information

Ticket Price

Joint ticket: 100 yuan / person (including five girls theme park and 11 scenic spots)

Daytime Cruise: 150 yuan / line in the West (with tickets, limited to 8 people); 100 yuan / line in the East (with tickets, limited to 6 people)

Evening cruise: only 150 yuan / line in West District (with tickets, limited to 8 people)

Public transportation

Railway: Xitang is located in the center of Shanghai, Hangzhou and Suzhou. There are dense trains from all over the country to the three places. Shanghai Hangzhou railway passes through Jiaxing station and Jiashan station, and there are buses directly to Xitang in both places. Aviation: Xitang is within 2 hours' drive from Shanghai Pudong International Airport, Hangzhou Xiaoshan International Airport and Shanghai Hongqiao Airport, with high speed and convenient transportation

Chinese PinYin : Xi Tang Gu Zhen