Map Introduction

I. Continuity and Adjustment of the Administrative System

The Jinghu South Route, established as one of the fifteen routes in the 3rd year of the Zhidao era (997 AD) of the Northern Song, largely maintained its Northern Song administrative structure during the Southern Song period. Its seat remained at Tan Prefecture (modern Changsha), governing seven prefectures—including Tan, Heng, Dao, and Yong—along with Wugang Army and Guiyang Mine, totaling thirty-seven counties. To strengthen central authority, the Southern Song added the post of "Regional Co-Inspector" (1159 AD) at the route level, dedicated to supervising local military and civil affairs. This created a checks-and-balances system involving the Fiscal Commission, the Pacification Commission, and the Judicial Commission.

II. Economic Development and Military Defense

During the Southern Song, the Jinghu South Route became a crucial granary. It developed rice cultivation relying on the Dongting Lake Plain and conducted grain trade with the Guangnan West Route via the Xiang River-Lingqu Canal waterway. Militarily, Tan Prefecture served as the core of the middle Yangtze River defense system, forming a strategy of "coordinated northern and southern response" with Jiangling Prefecture in the Jinghu North Route. In the 4th year of the Shaoxing era (1134 AD), Yue Fei established the "Feihu Army" here, engaging in military farming to resist potential southward advances by Jin forces.

III. Cultural Integration and Local Governance

Southern Song migration waves altered the demographic structure of the Jinghu South Route. Interaction between northern scholar-official families and indigenous Yao, Miao, and other groups gave rise to distinctive regional cultures, such as "Meishan Culture." Administratively, the Baojia (household registration and mutual surveillance) and Jingjie (land boundary surveying) systems were implemented. Land surveys (1167 AD) helped curb land annexation by powerful families, while the Tea and Salt Office was established to manage the monopolized trade, its annual revenue constituting 3% of the Southern Song's state finances.

IV. Mongol Invasion and Demise

After Mongol forces captured the Jinghu North Route in the 3rd year of the Xianchun era (1267 AD), Tan Prefecture became the Southern Song's final stronghold in the middle Yangtze region. Tan Prefecture fell in 1275 AD, leading to the collapse of the Jinghu South Route's administrative system. Its territory was later incorporated into the Huguang Provincial Secretariat during the Yuan Dynasty.

Conclusion

During the Southern Song period, through administrative consolidation, economic development, and military strengthening, the Jinghu South Route became a vital region supporting the Southern Song's "half of the realm." Its three-tier "Route-Prefecture-County" governance model and multicultural integration laid the groundwork for the establishment of the later Huguang Provincial Secretariat.