The history map of Jinzhou’s Prefectural Governor Department in the Eastern Han Dynasty of China

Map reference

The history map of Jinzhou’s Prefectural Governor Department in the Eastern Han Dynasty of China

发布时间：2016-10-24 11:29:00 UTC

类别：Qin and Han Dynasties Historical Maps

Map Introduction

Jing Province during the Han Dynasty Period Jing Province was one of the Nine Provinces of ancient China described in the Chinese classic, the Tribute of Yu. The text states: "From the Jing Mountains to the south of Mount Heng lies Jing Province." The Jing Mountains are located in present-day Nanzhang County, Hubei. Jing Province broadly corresponded to the entire areas of modern Hubei and Hunan provinces, spanning from the Jing Mountains region south to the area around Mount Heng. It was one of the original heartlands of the Han Chinese people.

During the Western Han Dynasty, there were thirteen provinces (Zhou) and the Sili capital district. The thirteen provinces were: Bing, Ji, You, Qing, Yan, Yu, Xu, Yang, Jiao, Jing, Yi, Shuofang, and Liang. The Jing Province Inspectorate was the administrative equivalent of the ancient Jing Province from the Nine Provinces system.

In the 18th year of the Jian'an era (213 CE) during the Eastern Han Dynasty, a reorganization of the empire's territorial divisions re-established the Nine Provinces framework. The territory of Jing Province was temporarily expanded to include the whole of modern Guangdong, the city of Guilin in Guangxi, and parts of northern Vietnam.

The Jing Province Inspectorate was a significant local administrative and military institution during the Eastern Han period. Its historical evolution can be divided into three key phases:

Initial Establishment and Functional Evolution Established in 106 BCE (the 5th year of the Yuanfeng era of Emperor Wu of Han) as one of the thirteen provincial inspectorates, the Jing Province Inspectorate was responsible for supervising commandery-level officials and local powerful families. Initially, the Inspector was a mobile supervisory official dispatched by the central government without a fixed administrative seat. After 188 CE (the 5th year of the Zhongping era of Emperor Ling of Han), the provinces transitioned from purely supervisory regions to formal administrative entities. The Jing Province Inspectorate began to wield actual executive power and could command troops to suppress unrest.

Adjustments in Administrative Divisions In the late Eastern Han Dynasty, the Jing Province Inspectorate governed seven commanderies: Nanyang, Nan, Jiangxia, Lingling, Guiyang, Wuling, and Changsha. Following the Battle of Red Cliffs, Jing Province was partitioned among three powers:

Cao Wei: Controlled the commanderies of Nanyang, Jiangxia (north of the Yangtze River), Xiangyang, Nanxiang, etc.
Sun Wu: Held the commanderies of Nan, Changsha, Guiyang, etc.
Shu Han: Occupied the commanderies of Lingling, Wuling, etc.

Relocation of the Administrative Seat During the Eastern Han period, the seat of the Jing Province Inspectorate was located in Xiangyang County, Nan Commandery (present-day Xiangyang, Hubei). Due to frequent warfare, it was moved multiple times. For instance, after the Battle of Red Cliffs, Liu Bei stationed Guan Yu to defend Jing Province, with the seat remaining in Xiangyang. After Sun Quan captured the eastern part of Jing Province, the administrative seat was moved to Jiangling (present-day Jingzhou, Hubei).

Key Historical Figures * Liu Biao: Served as the Governor of Jing Province in the late Eastern Han period. He gained control over northern Jing Province by quelling rebellions, but was later succeeded by Liu Bei. * Liu Bei: Controlled central Jing Province after the Battle of Red Cliffs in 208 CE and assumed the title of Governor of Jing Province. After the loss of Jing Province by Guan Yu in 219 CE, Sun Quan appointed Lu Xun as the Governor of Jing Province.

The evolution during this period reflects the broader context of rising local power and the weakening of central control in the late Eastern Han Dynasty, ultimately leading to a fragmented situation centered on powerful regional governors.

Map Source

The history map of Jinzhou’s Prefectural Governor Department in the Eastern Han Dynasty of China is sourced from The Historical Atlas of China, Volume 2(3)—Maps of the Eastern Han Dynasty, published by SinoMaps Press on October 1, 1982, with Tan Qixiang as its author.

The Historical Atlas of China is an atlas focusing primarily on the historical administrative divisions and territories of China throughout its dynasties, compiled under the chief editorship of Tan Qixiang. The entire work spans from the primitive society to the end of the Qing dynasty, organized into 8 volumes and 20 sections according to historical periods, containing a total of 304 maps (not including illustrations). All maps juxtapose historical and modern geography. The compilation of this atlas began in the 1950s, it was seriously disturbed during the cultural revolution. The internal edition was published in 1975 but contained numerous errors. Publication of Volumes 1-8 occurred successively starting in 1982. The Historical Atlas of China is a rare and valuable resource for studying the historical administrative divisions of China.

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