Prosperity: Waterway Transportation of the Luoyang Section of the Canal during the Sui and Tang Dynasties

　　In a narrow sense, a canal is a man-made navigable channel.

Broadly speaking, a canal is an artificial waterway used to communicate water transport between regions or bodies of water, usually connected to natural waterways or other canals.

In addition to shipping, canals can also be used for irrigation, flood diversion, drainage, and water supply.

As early as the Spring and Autumn Period, King Fuchai of Wu organized the digging of an artificial canal-Hangou, the purpose of which was to communicate the north and the south and facilitate the then Wu State to go north to fight for hegemony.

The famous canals in the world include Kiel Canal, Suez Canal, Panama Canal, Sui and Tang Canal, Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, etc.

At the 38th World Heritage Conference in 2014, China's Grand Canal projects, including the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, the Sui-Tang Canal, and the East Zhejiang Canal, were successfully included in the World Cultural Heritage List.

　　During the Daye period of the Sui Dynasty, Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty built the Grand Canal in the Sui and Tang Dynasties with Luoyang as the center, from Yuhang in the south to Zhuo County in the north.

From north to south, the Grand Canal of Sui and Tang Dynasties is divided into four sections, Yongji Canal, Tongji Canal, Hangou and Jiangnan River, with a total length of more than 2,000 kilometers. Traffic arteries.

　　The Grand Canal of the Sui and Tang Dynasties drove the economic and commercial development of the cities along the route, and promoted the economic and cultural prosperity of the regions along the canal.

It was precisely because of the prosperity of the Grand Canal in the Sui and Tang Dynasties that Luoyang, which was at the center of it, became a metropolis where merchants gathered and materials were distributed at that time, thus opening the historical narrative between Luoyang City and the Canal.

　　During the Sui and Tang dynasties, the Luoyang section of the Grand Canal played an important role in water transportation and could be called a transportation hub. Every year, "Country and State boats and boats travel in thousands of ways" (Tang Dubao: "Da Ye Miscellaneous Notes") through the canal to Luoyang.

In the early Tang Dynasty, Chen Zi'ang also mentioned in "The Important Matters of the Military and the State" that "thousands of ships have been chartered in the Jiangnan and Huainan states today, and they have arrived in Gongluo, and there are more than one million Dendrobium".

In the late Tang Dynasty and the Five Dynasties, Wang Pu also said in "Tang Hui Yao": "The capital of the gods stores and stores millet, which has been enriched over the years. Warehouses and warehouses, and vacancies for common affairs, all use Luojing to transfer prices.” Every year, millions of stone grains are transported to Luoyang via Jiangnan, and then from Luoyang to Chang’an and Beijing.

During this period, Luoyang City was "collected by all the ships in the world, often more than 10,000 ships, filling up the rivers and roads, business, travel and goods, and filled with carriages and horses, like the Chongren Square in Xijing".

(Yuan "Henan Chronicle")

　　Thousands of boats competed, merchants gathered, and the extremely prosperous canal transportation made Luoyang an important city in the world at that time.

Commodities such as horses, jades, and glass products transported from the Western Regions flowed continuously from Luoyang to the southeastern hinterland, the northeastern frontier, and even Japan. .

　　The Grand Canal of the Sui and Tang Dynasties was of great significance to Luoyang. Without the bridge and hub status of Luoyang, the eastern capital at that time, the Grand Canal of the Sui and Tang Dynasties would have no core and soul, and its role in communicating the north and the south would be impossible to talk about; without the Grand Canal and Luoyang, Economic and cultural exchanges during the Sui and Tang dynasties would also be greatly weakened.

The Grand Canal of Sui and Tang Dynasties not only transported nutrients to Luoyang at that time, but also was the main artery of the national economy and culture at that time, which also strengthened Luoyang's status as a thousand-year-old ancient capital to a certain extent.

Decline: The Luoyang Section of the Canal in the Middle and Late Tang Dynasty

　　However, in the middle and late Tang Dynasty, with the An-Shi Rebellion and the peasant uprisings in the late Tang Dynasty, wars continued, and the Grand Canal of the Sui and Tang Dynasties had lost the busy scene of "hundreds of warships competing for flow" in the past, and became depressed.

　　According to the research of Mr. Pan Yong, a historian of the Sui and Tang Dynasties, the canal transportation of the Grand Canal in the Tang Dynasty can be divided into three stages: the first stage was from Tang Gaozu to Tang Zhongzong, where 100,000 to 200,000 stone grains were transported every year; the second stage was from the Kaiyuan to Tianbao years of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty. , the annual grain of grain is two or three million stone; the third stage is after Tang Xianzong Yuanhe, the water transport is declining day by day.

　　In fact, the grain transportation of the Luoyang section of the Grand Canal in the Sui and Tang Dynasties declined as early as the Kaiyuan period of Emperor Xuanzong.

In the 22nd year of Kaiyuan (734 AD), Emperor Xuanzong appointed Pei Yaoqing to carry out the reform of water transportation, and Pei Yaoqing changed the previous "long-term transportation" to segmented transportation.

He analyzed Sishui, Wuzhi and Yingze to set up Heyin County, Heyincang, Baiyacang in Qinghe County (now Jili District of Luoyang), Jijincang in the east of Sanmen on the north bank of the Yellow River, and west of Sanmenxia Set up Sanmen Warehouse, change Changping Warehouse in Shanzhou (Sanmenxia, ​​Henan) to Taiyuan Warehouse, and Guangtong Warehouse in Huazhou to Yongfeng Warehouse, forming a hub with Heyin Warehouse, Baiya Warehouse, Taiyuan Warehouse and Yongfeng Warehouse The new layout of the transshipment warehouse has not only improved the efficiency of water transportation and the quantity of grain, but also greatly changed the tradition of eating in Luoyang, the eastern capital of Xijing Chang'an, so that the Guanzhong area can obtain more grain through water transportation.

For example, from the 22nd to the 24th year of the Kaiyuan Period, as many as 7 million Dendrobium grains arrived in Guanzhong, and the grain supply in Guanzhong improved.

It is precisely because the difficulty of transporting grains to Guanzhong has been solved to a certain extent that the Tang Dynasty's dependence on Luoyang, the eastern capital, has been greatly weakened since then.

In the late Tang Dynasty, Caoboats did not even pass through Luoyang for a time, and "Zizhitongjian" mentioned that "the river boats reach Yangzhou, the Bian boats reach Heyin, the river boats reach Weikou, and the Wei boats reach Taicang".

Because of this, after the twenty-fourth year of Emperor Xuanzong's Kaiyuan era (AD 736), the Tang royal family rarely visited Luoyang again, and the status of the eastern capital Luoyang as a water transportation hub has become a thing of the past.

　　After entering the middle and late Tang Dynasty, with the An-Shi Rebellion and the subsequent intensification of the separatism of the feudal towns, the amount of grain passing through the Grand Canal became less and less, and there are many relevant historical records:

　　In the second year of Guangde... the year turned millet one hundred and one hundred thousand stone.

("New Book of Tang")

　　(March of the second year of Guangde) Since then, hundreds of thousands of meters of rice are transported every year to give Guanzhong.

("Zizhitongjian")

　　In the first year of Jianzhong... the annual income of hundreds of thousands of dendrobium was used to aid Guanzhong.

("Tang Hui Yao")

　　(July, the first year of the Jianzhong year), the grains are transported every year or to more than one million dendrobium.

("Zizhitongjian")

　　At the beginning of (Yuanhe) period, there were only 200,000 dendrobiums from Jianghuai rice to Weiqiao.

("New Book of Tang")

　　(In the second month of the fifth year of Dazhong), there are 400,000 Dendrobium Cao meters, and those who can reach Weicang are only 10,304.

("Old Tang Book")

　　At the end of the Tang Dynasty, the canal canal grain was reformed by Liu Yan, which once changed the phenomenon of the decline of water transport after the Anshi Rebellion. However, from the perspective of the whole long period of time, the amount of grain canal on the Grand Canal is still decreasing day by day.

Especially in the late Tang Dynasty, the separation of feudal towns seriously affected the water transport route from Jianghuai to Luoyang, the eastern capital.

For example, during the Jianzhong reign of Emperor Dezong of the Tang Dynasty, Li Zhengji, Li Baochen, Tian Chengsi, Liang Chongyi and other vassal towns were located in Shandong, Henan, Jiangnan, Hebei and other places, cutting off the transportation route of Jianghuai grain to the eastern capital Luoyang and Xijing Chang'an, resulting in a sharp decline in the amount of grain. :

　　Bianzhou city was built. At the beginning of the calendar, Li Zhengji had 15 prefectures in Zi, Qing, Qi, Hai, Deng, Lai, Yi, Mi, De, Di, Cao, Pu, Xu, Yan, and Yun. Li Baochen Youheng , Ding, Yi, Zhao, Shen, Ji, Cang seven states, Tian Chengsi has Wei, Bo, Xiang, Wei, Ming, Bei, Chan seven states, Liang Chongyi has Xiang, Deng, Jun, Fang, Fu In the land of the six states of Ying, tens of thousands of troops were gathered in each, and they were in power because of the rebellion.

The imperial court added a city and dredged a pond, and then there was a rhetoric of speeches, and after the completion of the repair of the city, there was little peace.

It was Tian Yuechu's order, and Liu Wenxi was killed, and the group of fierce people were terrified.

And even those who play the plan will return, but there is no gift, and once they return, they all constitute complaints.

First of all, Bianzhou is a city that does not tolerate many people, so please expand it.

In fact, fortification.

Zhengji and Tian Yue moved their troops to the border as a preparation, so the imperial edict divided Bian, Song, and Hua into three divisions, and moved 92,000 troops to the west of Beijing to guard against the autumn troops to suppress Guandong.

("Old Tang Book")

　　In the late Tang Dynasty, the barriers between the central government and the vassal towns were formidable, forming a situation that could not be eliminated, especially the vassal towns in the Jianghuai region, which seriously hindered the passage of grain transportation in the south of the Yangtze River.

According to the "Old Tang Book: The Biography of Zhang Wanfu", Li Zhengji entered the Jianghuai after the rebellion, blocking the passage of the court's water transport. The court finally relied on the prestige of the famous general Zhang Wanfu, and the water ship barely passed the whirlpool.

Regarding the decrease or even cutoff of grain in the Grand Canal of the Sui and Tang Dynasties in the late Tang Dynasty, Mr. Quan Hansheng, an economic historian, summed up six reasons: First, the chaotic army in the late Tang Dynasty looted the grain transported by the canal; The third is the corruption of officials in the canal, which affected the transportation of grain in the canal; the fourth is that the quality of shipbuilding during the Xiantong years declined, cutting corners caused the ships to break easily, and the water transportation was abandoned; The lack of food, the water transportation was cut off; six is ​​the separation of the vassal towns in the late Tang Dynasty, the canal could not achieve the function of connecting the north and the south.

There were no eggs under the nest. As a section of the Grand Canal in the Sui and Tang Dynasties, the Luoyang section of the canal during this period was also seriously affected, until it was cut off for a while.

Survival: The Luoyang Section of the Canal during the Five Dynasties Period

　　From the middle and late Tang Dynasty to the Five Dynasties, the Central Plains where Luoyang was located was one of the main battlefields for the melee at that time, and was ravaged by the war the most seriously.

Just as Liu Yan said in the Tang Dynasty: "The eastern capital is withered, and there are not a hundred households left... From Yiyang, Xiong'er, Hulao, and Chenggao five hundred miles away, there are only more than a thousand households, and there are no rafters... Ghost Cry" ("New Book of Tang").

The once prosperous city of Luoyang has thus become devastated.

At the end of the Tang Dynasty, the Huang Chao Uprising quickly occupied a large area including the eastern capital Luoyang.

After Huang Chao, "Following the brutality of Qin Zongquan and Sun Ru, only the ruins remain. The first time of the righteousness came, the bones covered the ground, the thorns were everywhere, the residents were dissatisfied with a hundred households, and there were no cultivators in the four fields." ("Zizhitong Jian") At this time, Luoyang was only left with ruins and sparsely populated.

During the Five Dynasties, Zhang Quanyi served as the prefect of Luozhou. "In addition to the turmoil in Luozhou, the counties and towns were deserted. They were all known to be haunted, white bones, and people living outside. In Luocheng, they were all burned down." ("Luoyang Jinshen Old News". ) During the Five Dynasties period, Luoyang became the capital of the Later Liang, Later Tang and Later Jin dynasties successively.

Although Zhang Quanyi has been in Luoyang for more than 40 years, Luoyang's economy has been restored and developed to a certain extent, but it is difficult to regain its former prosperity.

　　However, due to the relative stability of the Jiangnan region during this period, the northern regimes with Luoyang as the political center still relied on the Jiangnan grain, so the water transportation of the Luoyang section of the canal still existed.

For example, during the Kaiping years of Zhuwen and Zhuwen of the Later Liang, Luo Shaowei, the military envoy of Wei Bo, considered that Luoyang had a large population at that time and the food supply was not continuous, so he wrote a letter and proposed to cut wood and build ships. I would like to cut wood in Taihang, go down to Anyang and Qimen, take 300 boats, and transport them by water from the big river to Luokou. The old water will carry a million stones for Suwei. The Taizu was very impressed.” The History of the Five Dynasties") in the fourth year of Emperor Mingzong's Changxing reign of the Tang Dynasty (933 AD), officials of the Three Divisions requested to dig a bay pool on the north bank of the Luo River, so that the boat could pull and unload the grain: "The Luo River is transported by water to Luokou to Beijing, and the boats are led back and forth. When unloading, they are all transported by water, and each person is in charge of forty stone. It is a little far from Luoan to Cangmen. The warehouse gate is unloaded, and its workers want to borrow from the army." This petition was approved by Tang Mingzong.

Soon, Emperor Mingzong ordered Zhu Hongshi, the commander of the Holy Guard, to open up the river bay and reach the warehouse gate of the state.

("The Meeting of the Five Dynasties") These materials all show that the Luoyang section of water transport in the Five Dynasties period continued to be navigable, but it was difficult to reproduce the glory of water transport in the Tang Dynasty.

Restoration: The Luoyang Section of the Canal in the Northern Song Dynasty

　　During the Northern Song Dynasty, the transportation function of the Luoyang section of the canal was restored and strengthened, first of all, the attention of Song Taizu Zhao Kuangyin.

In 960 AD, the Northern Song Dynasty established and established Kaifeng as its capital.

At the beginning of the founding of the People's Republic of China, Song Taizu had the idea of ​​moving the capital to Luoyang.

"Shang was born in Luoyang, enjoys its customs and tastes the meaning of moving the capital."

("Xu Zizhi Tongjian Changbian") in the early years of Kaibao, "Emperor Taizu sent Xixing to Luo, ordered to repair the big interior, and supervised the military service very urgently. He also dug the Caohe River, left Jiayoufang in the east, and dug the people's fields. , to go to Gong, to enter the Yellow River, and for the benefit of the boats and boats, to transport army food to Luoxia." ("Luoyang Jinshen Old News") Kaibao nine years, that is, AD 976, to hold a grand ceremony in the southern suburbs in Luoyang, Xijing, Song Taizu used 5,000 people to dig a 35-li Cao Canal from Luoyang Cashiqiao to Caokou. This move not only restored the Luoyang Cao Canal construction at that time, but also laid the foundation for the Luoyang Tong Bian Project during the Song Shenzong period.

"Shaw Brothers Hearing and Seeing" also records: "Twenty miles southwest of Wuqiao, Luo Weir diverts Luo water, 18 miles south of Longmen Weir diverts Yi water... With a big rock as a lever, they receive two waters from each other. One branch enters the city from Houzaimen, divides into various gardens, forms a canal, enters Luomen from the east of Changxiamen to the north, and both waters enter the Caohe.”

　　Of course, the Luoyang section of water transport at this time cannot be compared with the Sui and Tang Dynasties in terms of scale.

Song Taizu proposed to move westward to Luoyang in the ninth year of Kaibao, but was opposed by Li Huaizhong, the commander of both the left and right sides of the iron cavalry. Hundreds of thousands of troops have been dispatched, and they will be given to you. Your Majesty lives here, will you take it safely? Besides, the heavy troops in the government and treasury are all in Daliang, and they have been firmly established for a long time and cannot be shaken. Convenience." ("Continued Funding and Zhitongjian Changjian") The convenience of water transportation in Kaifeng, Tokyo is an important guarantee for the clothing and food of hundreds of officials and the army. Once the capital is moved to Luoyang, it will immediately encounter the problem of inconvenient water transportation. The food supply for civil and military officials and the army are unsustainable.

This also reflects the embarrassing situation of Luoyang water transportation in the early Northern Song Dynasty.

　　Although the Luoyang section of the canal was repaired in the early years of the Northern Song Dynasty, the navigation effect was not satisfactory. In addition, the Luoyang section of the canal was often blocked due to the flooding of the Luo River. The "Guiding Luo to Bian" project, that is, the introduction of Luoshui into the Bian River, by increasing the water volume of the Bian River, ensures the smooth transportation of grain from the Bian River to the south of the Yangtze River.

Re-dred the old Cao Canal from Luoyang, Henan Prefecture, Xijing, to Yanshi and Gongyi, restored Caokou, Luomen and other water conservancy facilities, built 47 miles of long embankment, dredged 52 miles of Cao Canal, and the section of the canal from Xijing Luoyang to Jingshi Kaifeng was reopened to navigation .

　　However, due to the influence of various factors, the implementation effect of this project has been limited to a certain extent.

According to Li Tao's "Continuing Funds for Zhitongjian Changbian", "Although Luokou travels through the winter, the water is shallow and easy to freeze. He also set up soldiers to fight Ling, wasted money and food, and finally starved and frozen, and many died every year. When it freezes and closes, the lingering bank is swept away, and the people's fields are killed. The flow is shallow, the boat is small and light, and the harm is not one, and the public and private are blocked. Now, when the Yellow River lock is opened, the water is released into Qingluo, that is, the boat and the boat can go a long way. , the lock water has been exhausted, and the boat is stranded again. This shows that the Luo River is shallow, and it is not helpful for boating." Because the Luo River freezes in winter, in order to solve the navigation problem, it is necessary to hire a large number of manpower to "break" the ice.

The ice blocks hit the river bank, destroying the farmland, causing flooding, and at the same time consuming a lot of manpower and material resources, and the loss outweighs the gain.

However, considering that the Daoluo Tong-Bian project was implemented in the context of Shenzong Xifeng's reforms, Li Tao himself was against Wang Anshi's reforms, and later generations speculated that his relevant records may have exaggerated the Dao-luo Tong-Bian project to a certain extent. disadvantages.

　　Although the implementation is restricted, the project still has a positive effect on the promotion of water transportation in Luoyang, Xijing.

Not only the Caohe River was dredged and repaired, but also the Xijing Luomen was repaired. During this period, the Luoyang Canal section was restored to its former style to a certain extent.

The prosperity of the Luoyang section of water transport not only promoted the economic and cultural development of Xijing Luoyang, but also promoted the exchange of material and culture between the north and the south.

And the prosperity of the Luoyang section of the canal during this period, we can find relevant records in the collections of literati and doctors of the Northern Song Dynasty:

　　Ten thousand boats in the Tanhui Jiayouli, and Luo Shuyi goes to the north.

To lead the wind to pass the goods from far away, the success of Zhaoying is in Tang poetry.

(Wen Yanbo: "The Collected Works of Wenlu Gong")

　　In ancient times, I was helpless to Luoyang Chen, and who is my relative in the present day... Bo Sheng has a joy in Xian Tong Bian, and Yun Ying accompanied him until Qin.

(Chao said: "Jing Yu Sheng Ji")

　　Luoshuiyun moved from the sky, and the road entered the Sui Canal and went down to the Liang Song Dynasty.

Twelve pavilions on the Songdu Embankment, one by one, were astonished as a phoenix.

(Qin Guan: "Huaihai Collection")

　　Jun loves Luoyang officials, abandon me Huaishang Weng... This trip is 1,500 miles, whether Jun is happy or not.

If you have not seen Luoyang Mountain, you will see Luoyang Water first.

(Xu Ji: "Festival of Filial Piety")

　　In recent years, the archaeological excavation of Hanjiacang in Luoyang has also provided physical evidence for the navigation of the Luoyang section of the canal during the Song Dynasty.

Archaeologists found a well-preserved grain in No. 160 cellar in Hanjiacang.

When excavated, the grains in the cellar were distinct, some were brown, some were yellow.

The inscription bricks unearthed in the cellar site recorded the time, quantity, variety, source, location of the cellar and the name of the official who granted the grain.

No. 160 cellar has been used until the Song Dynasty.

Experts speculate that the reason why the cellar can be kept full of grains to this day is likely to be related to the sudden change of the granary during the war in the late Northern Song Dynasty and the hasty abandonment of the granary.

　　The Luoyang section of the canal was restored after the guide to Luotong and Bian and subsequent adjustments.

The restoration of the Luoyang section of the canal also brought prosperity to Luoyang City during this period.

"Shenzong led Luotong to Bian, but the master stopped Luoshui and prevented him from entering the city. The Luo people suffered a lot. Yan Bo sent Liu Weijian to Luo because of the middle. It is the endless benefit of Luocheng." ("Song History") Su Zhe, a famous writer in the Northern Song Dynasty, wrote in "The Poems of Li's Garden in Luoyang": "Luoyang's ancient capital... Cola. Pingchuan is widely spread, hundreds of miles from east to west, the high and young rooms of Song, the palace of the king of the Temple of Heaven, the rolling hills and ridges, all around Keying, Yi, Luo, Su, and Jian, flowing out of the flat land. Therefore, the prosperity of the mountains and forests and the cleanness of the springs, although the The people of Lu and Yan shared it with the princes. The palace of one acre has a view of green hills above and flowing water below, with rare flowers and bamboos, arranged on the left and right, and the magnificent view of the pavilion in the giant room garden of its noble family is truly the best in the world.” The record of Shaw Brothers Hearing and Seeing Records states: "At the beginning of Yuanfeng, Qing Bian was opened, Yiluo water was forbidden to enter the city, all gardens were abandoned, all flowers and trees were withered, so the situation in the capital was reduced. The old road was blocked, and the Yiluo water was re-introduced into the city, into the Caohe River, to Yanshi and Yiluohui, to pass the water transport, under the Baibo Transport Department, and it was approved by the edict. Naturally, from the Luozhou river to the capital, the public and private, Luocheng gardens are revived."

summary

　　From the mid-Tang Dynasty to the Five Dynasties, the Luoyang section of the Grand Canal was affected by many factors such as frequent wars and the separation of feudal towns and towns, and the water transportation capacity was greatly reduced.

In the early years of the Northern Song Dynasty, in order to move the capital to Luoyang, Song Taizu once repaired the old canal. Although the plan to move the capital was not completed, it laid the foundation for the implementation of the "Guo Luo Tong Bian" project during the Shenzong period.

Despite several restorations, the Luoyang section of the Grand Canal never regained its central position as a transportation hub during the Tang Dynasty.

Although there are many subjective and objective factors, it is undeniable that the fall of Luoyang's status and the rise of Kaifeng in Bianzhou are indisputable facts.

　　In the late Tang Dynasty, Bianzhou gradually developed into the canal hub at that time, "the need of the world, the complexity of boats and vehicles, the throat of Heshuo, and the transportation of Huai Lake." (Tang Liu Kuanfu: "Bianzhou Cao Cao Hall" The more convenient water and land transportation conditions than Luoyang, Kaifeng became the capital of the Five Dynasties Later Liang, Later Jin, Later Han, Later Zhou and Northern Song Dynasty, replacing the position of the political, economic and cultural center of Luoyang.

Since then, the Luoyang section of the Grand Canal has inevitably declined.

During the reign of the Southern Song Dynasty, the political and economic center of the Song court moved to the southeast. Song and Jin were bounded by the Huaihe River and were in a period of split and confrontation.

In the Yuan Dynasty, the political center moved north, and the shipping was opened. The Grand Canal was cut and straightened, and no longer passed through Luoyang and Kaifeng. The Luoyang section was completely withdrawn from the stage of history, and the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal became more and more prosperous.

Looking at the rise and fall of the Luoyang section of the Grand Canal in the Tang and Song Dynasties, it almost corresponds to the fate of the ancient capital Luoyang in this period.

　　After thousands of years of vicissitudes, the Luoyang section of the Grand Canal in the Sui and Tang Dynasties has lost its splendor, but it carries a heavy history and culture. Together with Luoyang, the ancient capital of thousands of years, it is still an important part of the ancient civilization and still has important practical significance.

For my generation of scholars, it is a duty to protect, inherit, utilize and study the culture of the Grand Canal well.