Why did the Western Han Dynasty move its capital to Chang 'an?
There are many cities in the history of China, which have been chosen as capitals by many dynasties. Each dynasty has its own advantages and disadvantages. When faced with different situations, each dynasty will choose different capitals, but it is always based on these cities, including Luoyang and Chang 'an. During the Western Han Dynasty, there were two cities that were once the capitals of the Western Han Dynasty, namely Luoyang and Chang 'an. Luoyang was the most favored city at the beginning of the Western Han Dynasty, but Liu Bang decided to move the capital to Chang 'an after making its capital for a period of time. Emperor Gaozu built Changle Palace on the basis of Xingle Palace in five years (the first 22 years), Weiyang Palace two years later, and officially moved the capital to Chang 'an.
when the western Han dynasty was just founded, the choice of capital was hovering between Chang' an and Luoyang. Compared with Chang 'an, Luoyang is more cordial to Liu Bang, because Liu Bangsheng was in Kanto and made his fortune in Hanzhong. At that time, Luoyang was the real center of the world. Because of the opening up, many famous writers wrote books and spread their ideas widely here, and various ideas collided and blended here, making Luoyang gradually have a strong cultural atmosphere and become the real center of Chinese civilization. In business, Luoyang is also highly open. At that time, all the merchants had to pass through Luoyang. After a long period of wealth accumulation, Luoyang gradually became the most important commercial city in China. After Qin destroyed the Six Kingdoms, Luoyang was more likely to be regarded as the old capital than Chang 'an. In terms of feelings, people who missed the original Six Kingdoms were more likely to accept Luoyang as their new capital. Historical Records of the Emperor Gaozu:? The world is big, the emperor is Luoyang, and the princes are all ministers. ?
But not long after, Liu Bang changed his mind and decided Chang 'an as the capital and Luoyang as the capital. The first suggestion to move the capital was Lou Jing, a garrison soldier in the State of Qi. He was sent to Longxi, and when he passed Luoyang, he asked to meet the great-grandfather Liu Bang. At first, because of his humble status, it was impossible to meet the emperor. However, he finally got Liu Bang's sympathy and appreciate each other's hard life in his early years because of his shabby clothes, so that Liu Bang could sit down and listen carefully to what he had to say. So Lou Jing put forward a proposal about moving the capital to Chang 'an, and elaborated on its advantages and disadvantages.
His proposal was attractive and reasonable. Liu Bang also had the idea of moving the capital, but it was unanimously opposed by the ministers of the DPRK. Because ministers are mostly from the East, they have more affinity for Luoyang, and family forces are mostly entrenched around Luoyang. If they move the capital, they will be far away from their homeland, and many places will have to start from scratch, so most of the courtiers who have been following Liu Bang are opposed to moving the capital to Chang 'an. However, Zhang Liang, a famous minister, agreed with this proposal very much, and recorded Zhang Liang's original words in Historical Records:? Among them, it is small, but hundreds of miles, with thin fields and being attacked on all sides. Is this a country that must use force? ; Chang' an? Jincheng is a thousand miles away, a land of abundance? . Explain that Luoyang is too small to be the capital of the whole country, and at this time, the country has just been unified, and many places are not very stable. It needs a strong political center to maintain the stability of all places. Choosing Chang' an, which is not far from Xianyang, the old capital of the Qin Dynasty, also has such a meaning. However, because of his birth, Liu Bang had a unique preference for Luoyang, and he avoided Luoyang when he enfeoffed the children of his family and the kings with different surnames, and did not enfeoffment them to anyone.
In these two choices, Liu Bang hesitated for a long time, and reason and sensibility have been arguing. However, as Liu Bang's most dependent counselor, Zhang Liang's opinion is very important, which greatly influenced Liu Bang's choice. So Gaozu finally listened to Zhang Liang's suggestion and decided to move the capital to Chang 'an, and made Luoyang the capital.