Abstract:

      Known as Pengcheng in ancient times, Xuzhou is the birthplace of Han dynasty and it is also a famous national historical and cultural city. Since more than 6,000 years ago (the neolithic age), Xuzhou has been an ideal place for the ancestors to live. Yu divided the ancient China and Xuzhou is one of the nine kingdoms. During Xia and Shang periods, Xuzhou was called for Dapeng and during the West and East Zhou period, Xuzhou firstly belongs to Xu and Song kingdom and then it belongs to Qi and Chu kingdom. During Qin and Han dynasty, the king of the West Chu dynasty, Xiang yu, ruled China and make Pengcheng as its capital. Then in Han dynasty, the central government successively granted here as Chu kingdom, Pengcheng kingdom, and Xipei kingdom. Since Han dynasty,Xuzhou was always the political and military center in the eastern part of China and the intersection of the north and south culture.

      Xuzhou is rich in cultural relics, including numerous heritage sites of neolithic age and Shang and Zhou periods, grand tombs of emperors of the Han dynasty, complete underground cities of the Ming dynasty and countless precious cultural relics. They have witnessed the work of our ancestors, the happiness of the people, the bravery of the soldiers and the luxury of the nobility. Here we can touch the past and look forward to the future.

       Known as Pengcheng in ancient times, Xuzhou is the birthplace of Han dynasty and it is also a famous national historical and cultural city. Since more than 6,000 years ago (the neolithic age), Xuzhou has been an ideal place for the ancestors to live. Yu divided the ancient China and Xuzhou is one of the nine kingdoms. During Xia and Shang period, Xuzhou was called for Dapeng and during the West and East Zhou period, Xuzhou firstly belongs to Xu and Song kingdom and then it belongs to Qi and Chu kingdom. During Qin and Han dynasty, the king of the West Chu dynasty, Xiang yu, ruled China and make Pengcheng as its capital. Then in Han dynasty, the central government successively granted here as Chu kingdom, Pengcheng kingdom, and Xipei kingdom. Since Han dynasty,Xuzhou was always the political and military center in the eastern part of China and the intersection of the north and south culture.

Xuzhou is rich in cultural relics, including numerous heritage sites of neolithic age and Shang and Zhou periods, grand tombs of emperors of the Han dynasty, complete underground cities of the Ming dynasty and countless precious cultural relics. They have witnessed the work of our ancestors, the happiness of the people, the bravery of the soldiers and the luxury of the nobility. Here we can touch the past and look forward to the future.

      Xuzhou is located in the lower reaches of Yihe, Shuhe and Sihe rivers, and lies in the transitional zone between South Lu hill and North Su plain. Traces of ancient human activity have been found at the Xinyi Hetoushan site of the paleolithic age (about 10,000 years ago). This area used to belong to Yu Haidai neolithic culture and once experienced Beixin culture,Dawenkou culture and Longshan culture, especially such large prehistoric settlements or graveyard as Ddunzi,Liulin, and other sites were found, which jointly interpret the civilized progress of Huanghuai region and is also an important archaeological finding of prehistoric China.
      Part2 The Birth of Xuzhou

      Xia, Shang and Zhou periods were the formation and development stages of the early kingdom in ancient China. From Xia period to early Shang period, Xuzhou was the area of Dongyi Yueshi culture. Yao ordered,the descendant of Huangdi, Peng zu to establish Dapeng kingdom, and Yu entitled, the son of Bo yi, Ruomu to establish Xu kingdom. These two kingdoms are both the important countries of Dongyi indigenous. Sometimes it would fight with kingdoms in the central plains and sometimes it was reconciled with them, but finally it caught up with the trend of developing an integrated China.
      Part3 Han Unified China

      Emperor Qinshihuang annexed six kingdoms and established a centralized and autocratic central empire. Pengcheng was set up as a county. At the end of the Qin dynasty, the uprising swept across the country. The king of West Chu, Xiangyu, did not live in Guanzhong but in Pengcheng.

      Xuzhou was the hometown of Liu bang, who defeated Xiangyu in the Chuhan war and established the West Han empire. The so-called "Han culture", "Han people" and "Sinology"  all originated from this 426-year dynasty. In 201 B.C., Liu bang granted his hometown, a rich strategic place, to his brother Liu jiao, which takes Pengcheng as its capital. Since then, the Chu kingdom centered on Xuzhou has been established. In West Han dynasty, there were twelve kings of Chu, and in the East Han dynasty, there were one king of Chu and five kings of Pengcheng. During the two Han dynasties, the politics, economy and culture of Xuzhou developed in an all-round way.

      During the period of Wei, Jin and South and North dynasties, the regime changed frequently, and Xuzhou, as a forth to the north and the south, became a place for soldiers to fight for. The West Jin dynasty was established by the Cao wei authority of The Three Kingdoms and governed by the Xuzhou officers. During the South and North dynasties, Pengcheng county was considered as a treasure of the north and south.

      From Sui and Tang dynasties to Song and Yuan dynasties, China entered into the heyday of feudal society. In the early Sui dynasty, Xuzhou established the general government. In the Tang, five dynasties and North Song dynast, military commander was set up.In 1353 (Yuan dynasty), Xuzhou was changed to Wu 'an state, and Pengcheng county was removed into the state.
     Part5 An Important Waterway

     The Ming and Qing dynasties were the peak and final stage of China's feudal dynasty. Because of its military position, Xuzhou is still known as an important town. In 1415 (Ming dynasty), the Beijing-Hangzhou canal was unblocked, and thousands of vessels ran out of water day and night. Xuzhou, as a key city of transportation, is very important to the national economy and people's livelihood.

      Xuzhou city has always been suffering from floods, especially in 1624. The flood burst into the city, and three years later the city is covered by mud. In the first year of Chongzhen, the city was restored, which was similar to Hongwu city (built at the beginning of Ming dynasty).It was used and repaired in the Qing dynasty and dismantled during the period of the republic of China.

      Recent archaeological achievements have witnessed a strange phenomenon in Xuzhou that “a city is under a city, a house under a house, a street under a street and a well under a well.”