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146-467: China Salt's subsidiary, China National Salt Industry Co., Ltd. is a joint-stock company with limited liabilities, which would be the SPV to list most of the assets of the group on stock exchange. Within the history of China, every dynasty instituted a salt monopoly system, originally intended mainly for taxation purposes. Since salt was an essential and irreplaceable commodity used in everyday life, and therefore

292-468: A 2,000-man force led by Han Qianqiu (韩千秋) and Queen Dowager Jiu's brother Jiu Le (樛乐) to try to assist the king and the queen dowager, Lü staged a coup d'état and had the king and the queen dowager killed. Lü then made another son of Zhao Yingqi, Zhao Jiande , king and went on to annihilate the Han forces under Han and Jiu. Several months later, Emperor Wu commissioned a five-pronged attack against Nanyue. In 111 BC,

438-566: A 400 billion RMB high technology manufacturing hub which will surpass its car industry and account for 25% of its exports. The city has also invested heavily in infrastructure to attract investment. The network of roads and railways connecting Chongqing to the rest of China has been expanded and upgraded reducing logistical costs. Furthermore, the nearby Three Gorges Dam which is the world's largest, supplies Chongqing with power and allows oceangoing ships to reach Chongqing's Yangtze River port. These infrastructure improvements have led to

584-468: A Chinese woman whom Zhao Xing's father Zhao Yingqi had married while he served as an ambassador to Han – were both in favor of becoming incorporated into Han. This was opposed by the senior prime minister, Lü Jia (吕嘉), who wanted to maintain the kingdom's independence. Queen Dowager Jiu tried to goad the Chinese ambassadors into killing Lü, but the Chinese ambassadors were hesitant to do so. When Emperor Wu sent

730-443: A century earlier, a Chinese General named Wiman had taken the throne of Gojoseon and had established Wiman Joseon at Wanggeom-seong , (modern Pyongyang ), which became a nominal Han vassal. When Wiman's grandson King Ugeo refused to permit Jin 's ambassadors to reach China through his territories, Emperor Wei sent an ambassador She He (涉何) to Wanggeom to negotiate a right of passage with King Ugeo, but King Ugeo refused and had

876-407: A circle of young loyal supporters from ordinary backgrounds and promoted them to middle-level positions in order to infiltrate executive ranks in the government. These newly established officials, known as the "insider court" (内朝), took orders and reported directly to Emperor Wu. They had real influence over the operation of government affairs though lower in rank. They became a powerful counter against

1022-581: A city. As one of China's National Central Cities , Chongqing serves as a center for finance in the Sichuan Basin and the upstream Yangtze , as well as for manufacturing and transportation. It is a connection in the Yangtze River Economic Belt and a base for the country's Belt and Road Initiative . Chongqing Jiangbei International Airport is the second-busiest airport in China, and is one of

1168-509: A combination of more than 290 million population. Chongqing is one of the top 40 cities in the world by scientific research outputs as tracked by the Nature Index . Since its elevation to national-level municipality in 1997, the city has dramatically expanded its infrastructure. With the construction of railways and expressways to the east and southeast, Chongqing is a major transportation hub in southwestern China. As of October 2014 ,

1314-522: A crucial political alliance with Princess Guantao. Princess Guantao's daughter Chen Jiao , also known by the milk name A'Jiao (阿嬌), was of marriageable age (which was legally marked at the time by menarche ), making her at least eight years older than the young prince. Due to this age difference, Emperor Jing initially did not approve of this union. According to the Wei-Jin era fable Hanwu Stories (漢武故事 / 汉武故事 also called Stories of Han Wudi ), during

1460-532: A daughter from that marriage. However, her mother Zang Er (臧儿) (a granddaughter of the one-time Prince of Yan, Zang Tu , under Emperor Gao ) was told by a soothsayer that both Wang Zhi and her younger sister would one day become extremely honoured. She then got the idea to offer her daughters to the then crown prince Liu Qi, and forcibly divorced Wang Zhi from her husband at the time. After being offered to Liu Qi, Wang Zhi bore him three daughters – Princess Yangxin , Princess Nangong (南宫公主), and Princess Longlü. On

1606-528: A failed plan to trick a force of 30,000 Xiongnu into an ambush of 300,000 Han soldiers. While neither side suffered any casualties, the Xiongnu retaliated by increasing their border attacks, leading many in the Han court to abandon the hope for peace with the Xiongnu. The failure of the Mayi operation prompted Emperor Wu to switch the Han army's doctrine from the traditionally more defensive chariot – infantry warfare to

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1752-453: A general escort She back to Han territory. When they got close to Han borders, She assassinated the general and claimed to Emperor Wu that he had defeated Joseon in battle. Emperor Wu, unaware of his deception, made him the military commander of the Commandery of Liaodong (modern central Liaoning ). King Ugeo, offended, made a raid on Liaodong and killed She. In response, Emperor Wu commissioned

1898-547: A great strain on the national treasury and caused difficulties on the locales that he visited, twice causing the governors of commanderies to commit suicide after they were unable to supply the emperor's entire train. In 112 BC, a crisis in the Kingdom of Nanyue (modern Guangdong , Guangxi, and northern Vietnam ) erupted, leading to military intervention. At that time, the King Zhao Xing and his mother Queen Dowager Jiu (樛太后) –

2044-466: A highly mobile and offensive cavalry-against-cavalry warfare. At the same time, he expanded and trained officers from his royal guards. After a series of defeats by Wei Qing (the half-brother of Emperor Wu's favourite concubine) and Wei's nephew, Huo Qubing between 127 and 119 BC, the Xiongnu were expelled from the Ordos Desert and Qilian Mountains . As a result of these territorial acquisitions,

2190-494: A hybrid Legalist – Confucian doctrine. In the field of historical social and cultural studies, Emperor Wu is known for his religious innovations and patronage of the poetic and musical arts, including development of the Imperial Music Bureau into a prestigious entity. It was also during his reign that cultural contact with western Eurasia was greatly increased, directly and indirectly. During his reign as Emperor, he led

2336-750: A length of fortified wall along the border of the Hexi Corridor, colonizing the area with 700,000 Chinese soldier-settlers. The Battle of Mobei (119 BC) saw Han forces invade the northern regions of the Gobi Desert . The two generals led the campaign to the Khangai Mountains where they forced the Chanyu to flee north of the Gobi Desert, and then out of the Gobi Desert. The Xiongnu, destabilized and worried about further Han attacks, retreated further north into

2482-516: A lengthy prior political career in Chongqing. The municipal Political Consultative Conference ( zhengxie ) meets at around the same time as the People's Congress. Its role is to advise on political issues. The zhengxie is headed by a leader who is typically a former municipal or regional official with a lengthy career in the party and government bureaucracy. Chongqing was the wartime capital of China during

2628-654: A major recipient of China's investment in industrial capacity during the Third Front campaign. There has been a massive government push to transform Chongqing into the region's economic, trade, and financial center and use the municipality as a platform to open up the country's western interior to further development. Chongqing is facing rapid urbanization . For instance, statistics suggest that new construction added approximately 137,000 m (1,470,000 sq ft) daily of usable floor space to satisfy demands for residential, commercial and factory space. Thus, Chongqing

2774-652: A mediator in seeking the Emperor's reconciliation with his powerful grandmother. Princess Guantao took every opportunity to influence the Grand Empress and also constantly made demands on behalf of her nephew / son-in-law. Emperor Wu, already unhappy with his lack of an heir and Empress Chen's spoiled behavior, was further enraged by her mother Princess Liu Piao's greed, that she took a lot from him in everything she did for him. However, Emperor Wu's mother, Empress Dowager Wang, convinced him to tolerate Empress Chen and Liu Piao for

2920-525: A mere 5% in January to 43% in August. Extremes since 1951 have ranged from −1.8 °C (29 °F) on 11 January 1955 (unofficial record of −2.5 °C (27 °F) was set on 8 February 1943) to 43.7 °C (111 °F) on 18 and 19 August 2022 (unofficial record of 44.0 °C (111 °F) was set on 8 and 9 August 1933). Chongqing, with over 100 days of fog per year, is known as the "Fog City" ( 雾都 ); this

3066-771: A nationwide government monopoly over the salt industry in China. In 2003, administration of the government-controlled enterprise was shifted and placed under the management of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council of the People's Republic of China . A law titled "Regulation on the Management of the Salt Industry" ( 盐业管理条例 ) dictates that salt cannot be sold across different regions, and that private citizens are forbidden from selling their own manufactured salt, meaning that

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3212-399: A native of Chongqing. Notable individuals who have held the municipal Party Secretary position include He Guoqiang , Wang Yang , Bo Xilai , Zhang Dejiang , and Sun Zhengcai , the latter three were Politburo members during their term as party chief. The party chief heads the municipal party standing committee , the de facto top governing council of the municipality. The standing committee

3358-537: A number of years, as deemed auspicious or to commemorate some event. Thus, the practice for dating years during the reign of Wudi was represented by the n year of the [Reign Year Name] (where n stands for an ordinal integer) and "Reign Year Name" for the specific name of that regnal year. This practice was continued by later emperors until the Ming and Qing eras, whereby the emperors of the two dynasties used only one reign name for their entire reign (unless interrupted, as in

3504-436: A plan that many dynasties would repeat later: creating national monopolies for salt and iron . The national treasury would further purchase other consumer goods when the prices were low and sell them when the prices were high at profit, thus replenishing the treasury while at the same time making sure the price fluctuation would not be too great. In 109 BC, Emperor Wu started yet another territorial expansion campaign . Nearly

3650-511: A result of the salt monopoly; whilst average salt consumption as a percentage of personal income in the United States, France and Australia are 0.06%, 0.04% and 0.04% respectively, this value is 0.12% in China. The pricing of salt is set uniformly at a national level by China Salt, which centrally makes all decisions regarding market pricing. All legally manufactured table salt is branded as "China Salt" before shipments are transported and sold on

3796-518: A royal relative and the Prince of Huainan. Minyue nobles, fearful of the massive Chinese force, assassinated their king Luo Ying (骆郢) and sought peace. Emperor Wu then imposed a dual-monarchy system on Minyue by creating kings out of Luo Ying's brother Luo Yushan (雒余善) and nobleman Zou Chou (驺丑), thus ensuring internal discord in Minyue . Although initially launched as a punitive expedition by Emperor Wu against

3942-538: A second and shorter captivity by Xiongnu. After the Prince of Hunxie surrendered the Gansu region, the path to Xiyu became clear and regular embassies between Han and the Xiyu kingdoms commenced. Another expansion plan, this one aimed at the south-west, was aimed at the eventual conquest of Nanyue, which was viewed as an unreliable vassal. The plan was to first obtain submission of the south-western tribal kingdoms—the largest of which

4088-432: A subsequent royal gathering, Princess Guantao held the 5-year-old Liu Che in her arms and asked the nephew whether he wanted to marry his first cousin A'Jiao. The young prince boasted that he would "build a golden house for her" if they were married. Princess Guantao then used the boy's response as a divine sign to convince Emperor Jing to finally agree to the arranged marriage between Liu Che and Chen Jiao. This inspired

4234-563: A two-pronged attack (one by land and one by sea) against Joseon. Initially, Joseon offered to become a vassal, but peace negotiations broke down by the Chinese forces' refusal to let a Joseon force escort its crown prince to Chang'an to pay tribute to Emperor Wu. Han took over the Joseon lands in 108 BC and established four commanderies. Chongqing Chongqing is a direct-administered municipality in Southwestern China . Chongqing

4380-812: Is Secretary of the Municipal Committee of the Chinese Communist Party , which since 2007, has also held a seat on the Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party , the country's second highest governing council. Under the USSR-inspired nomenklatura system of appointments, individuals are appointed to the position by the central leadership of the CCP and bestowed to an official based on seniority and adherence to party orthodoxy, usually given to an individual with prior regional experience elsewhere in China and nearly never

4526-626: Is a recognized problem in the western, southern, and eastern regions of the country, which historically did not derive their salt from ocean water. China Salt is responsible for the iodization of edible table salt in China, where legal salt producers manufacture iodized salt in accordance with the requirements of China Salt. Since the monopoly is the sole provider of iodized salt, consumers have no choice over how much iodine they consume, which has led to health problems relating to iodine overdose; there have been noted increases in reported cases of thyroid cancer in China during 2013. As of 2014, table salt on

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4672-415: Is a reference to the Han dynasty of which he was a part. His family name is "Liu"; the ruling family or clan of the Han dynasty shared the family name of "Liu", the family name of Liu Bang , the founding father of the Han dynasty. The character "Di" ( 帝 ) is a title: this is the Chinese word which in imperial history of China means "emperor". The character "Wu" ( 武 ) literally means "martial" or "warlike", but

4818-427: Is also related to the concept of a particular divinity in the historical Chinese religious pantheon existing at that time. Combined, "Wu" plus "di" makes the name "Wudi", the emperor's posthumous name used for historical and religious purposes, such as offering him posthumous honours at his tomb. The emperor's temple tablet name is Shizong (世宗) One of Han Wudi's innovations was the practice of changing reign names after

4964-604: Is because in the spring and fall, a thick layer of fog enshrouds it for 68 days per year. During the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945), this special weather possibly played a role in protecting the city from being overrun by the Imperial Japanese Army . Since 1997 Chongqing has been a direct-controlled municipality in the Chinese administrative structure, making it a provincial-level division with commensurate political importance. The municipality's leader

5110-561: Is built on mountains and partially surrounded by the Yangtze and Jialing rivers. With its special topography , Chongqing's topography includes mountains, rivers, forests, springs, waterfalls, gorges, and caves. The Tang dynasty poet Li Bai was inspired by the natural scenery and wrote this epigram . The Zhongliang ( 中梁山 ) and Tongluo ( 铜锣山 ) mountains roughly form the eastern and western boundaries of Chongqing's urban area. Several high mountains are situated outside central Chongqing, including

5256-479: Is common in this area, and stone forests, numerous collections of peaks, limestone caves and valleys can be found in many places. The Longshuixia Gap ( 龙水峡地缝 ), with its Three Natural Bridges , has made the region a popular tourist attraction. The Yangtze River runs through the whole area from west to east, covering a course of 665 km (413 mi), cutting through the Wu Mountains at three places and forming

5402-657: Is considered one of the greatest emperors in Chinese history due to his strong leadership and effective governance, which made the Han dynasty one of the most powerful nations in the world. Michael Loewe called the reign of Emperor Wu the "high point" of "Modernist" (classically justified Legalist) policies, looking back to "adapt ideas from the pre-Han period." Especially later in his life, some of his most trusted advisers were proponents of Shang Yang , but did not necessarily support Shang Yang's harsh punishments. Despite establishing an autocratic, centralised state, Emperor Wu adopted

5548-447: Is generally seen as a symbolic body. It convenes in full once a year to approve party-sponsored resolutions and local regulations and duly confirm party-approved appointments. On occasion the People's Congress can be venues of discussion on municipal issues, although this is dependent on the actions of individual delegates. The municipal People's Congress is headed by a former municipal official, usually in their late fifties or sixties, with

5694-493: Is given jurisdiction over specific municipal departments. The mayor is the second-highest-ranking official in the municipality. The mayor usually represents the city when foreign guests visit. The municipality also has a Municipal People's Congress , theoretically elected by lower level People's Congresses. The People's Congress nominally appoints the mayor and approves the nominations of other government officials. The People's Congress, like those of other provincial jurisdictions,

5840-537: Is located in central-western China, would complement the other National Central Cities, all of which are located along China's eastern coastline. The same year on June 18, the Liangjiang New Area was established in Chongqing, which was the third state-level new area at the time of its establishment. Chongqing is located in the subtropics , situated in the transitional area between the Tibetan Plateau and

5986-458: Is one of the four direct-administered municipalities under the Central People's Government , along with Beijing , Shanghai , and Tianjin . It is the only directly administrated municipality located deep inland. The municipality covers a large geographical area roughly the size of Austria , which includes several disjunct urban areas in addition to Chongqing proper. Due to its classification,

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6132-575: Is one of the top 40 cities globally by scientific research output, as tracked by the Nature Index ; the municipality is home to several notable universities , including Chongqing University , Southwest University , and Chongqing University of Posts and Telecommunications . Chongqing's location is historically associated with the State of Ba . Its capital was first called Jiangzhou ( 江州 ). Jiangzhou subsequently remained under Qin Shi Huang 's rule during

6278-603: Is part of the West Triangle Economic Zone , along with Chengdu and Xi'an . As of 2022 , Chongqing hosts 70 institutions of higher education (excluding adult colleges), making it the fourth city with the most higher education institutions nationwide and the first city in Western China , which comprises Chongqing, six provinces ( Sichuan , Guizhou , Yunnan , Shaanxi , Gansu , and Qinghai ), and three autonomous regions ( Tibet , Ningxia , and Xinjiang ), with

6424-607: Is small due to its relatively disadvantageous inland location. Instead, factories producing local-oriented consumer goods such as processed food, cars, chemicals, textiles, machinery, sports equipment and electronics are common. Chongqing is China's third largest motor vehicle production center and the largest for motorcycles. In 2007, it had an annual output capacity of 1 million cars and 8.6 million motorcycles. Leading makers of cars and motorbikes includes China's fourth biggest automaker; Changan Automotive Corp and Lifan Hongda Enterprise , as well as Ford Motor Company , with

6570-410: Is typically composed of 13 individuals which includes the party chiefs of important subdivisions and other leading figures in the local party and government organization, as well as one military representative. The municipal People's Government serves as the day-to-day administrative authority, and is headed by the mayor , who is assisted by numerous vice mayors and mayoral assistants. Each vice mayor

6716-531: The Chinese idiom "putting Jiao in a golden house" (金屋藏嬌). Now sealed in the marriage alliance with Consort Wang, Princess Guantao began incessantly criticising Lady Li in front of Emperor Jing. Over time, Emperor Jing started to believe his sister's words, so he decided to test out Lady Li. One day he asked Lady Li whether she would happily foster-care the rest of his children if he were to pass away, only to have her rudely refuse to comply. This made Emperor Jing angry and worried that if Liu Rong were to inherit

6862-661: The Economist Intelligence Unit in the November 2010 Access China White Paper as a member of the CHAMPS (Chongqing, Hefei , Anshan , Maanshan , Pingdingshan and Shenyang ), an economic profile of the top 20 emerging cities in China. Traditionally, due to its geographic inaccessibility, Chongqing and Sichuan have both been important military bases in weapons research and development. Even though Chongqing's industries are diversified, unlike eastern China, its export sector

7008-533: The Greater Yuezhi and Kangju , which resulted in further diplomatic missions to Central Asia. Although historical records do not describe him as being aware of Buddhism , emphasizing rather his interest in shamanism , the cultural exchanges that occurred as a consequence of these embassies suggest that he received Buddhist statues from Central Asia, as depicted in the murals found in the Mogao Caves . Emperor Wu

7154-629: The Han conquest of Gojoseon in what is now present-day North Korea and Manchuria . Han Chinese colonists in the Xuantu and Lelang commanderies of northern Korea would later fight against frequent raids by the Goguryeo and Buyeo kingdoms. However, they would engage in mostly peaceful trade relations with surrounding Korean peoples over the centuries, the latter of whom became gradually and significantly influenced by Chinese culture . The exploration into Xiyu

7300-573: The Han forces captured the Nanyue capital Panyu (番禺, modern Guangzhou ) and annexed the entire Nanyue territory into Han, establishing ten commanderies. That same year, one of the co-kings of Minyue (modern Fujian ), Luo Yushan, was fearful that Han would attack his kingdom next and made a pre-emptive attack against Han, capturing a number of towns in former Nanyue and in the other border commanderies. In 110 BC, under Han military pressure, Luo Yushan's co-king Luo Jugu (骆居古) assassinated him and surrendered

7446-531: The Imperial Japanese Navy and Army Air Forces ; battles of which were fought entirely by the Chinese Air Force squadrons and anti-aircraft artillery units. Many lives were saved by the air-raid shelters which took advantage of the mountainous terrain. Chongqing was acclaimed to be the "City of Heroes" due to the indomitable spirits of its people as well as their contributions and sacrifices during

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7592-581: The Qin dynasty , the successor of the Qin State, as well as the rule of Han dynasty emperors. Jiangzhou was subsequently renamed during the Northern and Southern dynasties to Chu Prefecture ( 楚州 ), then again in 581 AD ( Sui dynasty ) to Yu Prefecture ( 渝州 ), and later in 1102 during Northern Song to Gong Prefecture ( 恭州 ). The name Yu however survives to this day as an abbreviation for Chongqing, as well as for

7738-624: The Second Sino-Japanese War (i.e., World War II), and from 1937 to 1945, the seat of administration for the Republic of China's government before its departure to Nanjing and then Taiwan . After the eventual defeat at the Battle of Wuhan General Chiang-Kai Shek and the army were forced to use it as base of resistance from 1938 onwards. It also contains a military museum named after the Chinese Korean War hero Qiu Shaoyun . Chongqing used to be

7884-487: The Siberian regions where they suffered starvation due to livestock loss from harsh climates. The battle was however also costly for the Han forces, which lost almost 80% of their warhorses. The cost of the war led the central Han government to introduce new levies, increasing the burden on average peasants, and the population census of the empire showed a significant drop from famines and people fleeing to avoid having to pay

8030-479: The Three Gorges Dam project. Its first official ceremony took place on 18 June 1997. On 8 February 2010, Chongqing became one of the four National Central Cities , along with Beijing, Shanghai and Tianjin. According to Zhou Liqun, a consultant for National Development and Reform Commission of China, Chongqing's status as a National Central City would encourage the development of Western China . Chongqing, which

8176-588: The War of Resistance-World War II . Many factories and universities were relocated from eastern China and ultimately to Chongqing during years of setbacks in the war, transforming this city from inland port to a heavily industrialized city. After World War II ended, Chongqing became one of the last refuges of the Nationalist Kuomintang government on the Chinese mainland during the Chinese Civil War . Following

8322-782: The Yangtze River Crossing campaign , the KMT capital of Nanjing was occupied by the Communists in 23 April. The KMT decamped first to Guangzhou , then Chongqing. Chongqing served as the KMT capital until late November 1949, when the Nationalist KMT government withdrew from the city by air. On 14 March 1997, the Eighth National People's Congress decided to merge the sub-provincial city with adjacent Fuling , Wanxian , and Qianjiang prefectures that it had governed on behalf of

8468-452: The most populous city proper in the world . As of 2010 , the metropolitan area encompassing the central urban area was estimated by the OECD to have, a population of 17 million. The Census also lists the male percentage as 50.55% and the female percentage as 49.55%. In terms of age distribution, of the total population, 15.91% were age 0–14, 62.22% were 15–64, and 21.87% were 65 and over. Of

8614-445: The political child marriage officially became Empress Chen . The Han dynasty up to this point was run according to a Taoist wu wei ideology, championing economic freedom and government decentralization . With regard to foreign policy-wise, periodic heqin was used to maintain a de jure "peace" with the powerful Xiongnu confederacy to the north. These policies were important in stimulating economic recovery following

8760-567: The post-Qin dynasty civil war , but had their drawbacks. The non-interventionist policies resulted in loss of monetary regulation and political control by the central government, allowing the feudal vassal states to become powerful and unruly, culminating in the Rebellion of the Seven States during Emperor Jing's reign. Nepotism among the ruling class also stagnated social mobility and encouraged nobles' rampant disregard of laws, leading to

8906-455: The "outsider court" (外朝) made up of the Three Lords and Nine Ministers that, at the time, were mostly composed of anti-reformists. Furthermore, Emperor Wu sent out nationwide edicts appealing to grassroots scholars such as Gongsun Hong to enrol in government services in an attempt to break the stranglehold that the older-generation noble class had on the nation's levers of power. In 138 BC,

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9052-532: The 1,709.4 m (5,608 ft)-high Wugong Ling Mountain in Jiangjin. Chongqing has a monsoonal humid subtropical climate ( Köppen Cwa ), bordering on a humid subtropical climate ( Köppen Cfa ) and for most of the year experiences very high relative humidity, with all months above 75%. Known as one of the " Three Furnaces " of the Yangtze River, along with Wuhan and Nanjing , its summers are long and among

9198-461: The Chinese market contains approximately 20–50 mg of iodine per kilogram. There have been numerous calls for the salt monopoly to be broken up and privatized. It is argued that a salt monopoly can no longer be justified, as the basis for its existence to protect national economic interests no longer exist, and that it harms consumers. On 8 March 2013, Taobao was forced to remove all listings of salt from its online marketplace, since it violated

9344-697: The General and remaining army had lived there for a time following their retreat in 1938 from the previous capital of Wuhan , it was formally declared the second capital city ( 陪都 ; péidū ; p'ei -tu ) on 6 September 1940. After Britain, the United States, and other Allies entered the war in Asia in December 1941, one of the Allies' deputy commanders of operations in Southeast Asia (Southeast Asia Command SEAC), Joseph Stilwell ,

9490-411: The Han court. Emperor Wu dispatched an amphibious expedition force led by Wang Hui (王恢) and Han Anguo (韩安国) to address the Minyue threat. Again fearing the Han intervention, Luo Yushan (雒余善), the younger brother of Minyue's King Ying, orchestrated a coup with other Minyue nobles, killed his brother with a spear, decapitated the corpse and sent the severed head to Wang. Following the campaign, Minyue

9636-469: The Han dynasty successfully opened up the Northern Silk Road , allowing direct access to trade with Central Asia. This also provided a new supply of high-quality horse breeds from Central Asia, including the famed Ferghana horse (ancestors of the modern Akhal-Teke ), further strengthening the Han army. Emperor Wu then reinforced this strategic asset by establishing five commanderies and constructing

9782-576: The Han dynasty through its greatest territorial expansion. At its height, the Empire's borders spanned from the Fergana Valley in the west, to northern Korea in the east, and to northern Vietnam in the south. Emperor Wu successfully repelled the nomadic Xiongnu from systematically raiding northern China, and dispatched his envoy Zhang Qian into the Western Regions in 139 BC to seek an alliance with

9928-407: The Han forces. The two states of Minyue and Dongyue were then completely annexed under the Han rule. In 135 BC, when Minyue attacked Nanyue , Nanyue also sought assistance from Han even though it probably had enough strength to defend itself. Emperor Wu was greatly pleased by this gesture, and he dispatched an expedition force to attack Minyue, over the objection of one of his key advisors, Liu An ,

10074-536: The Han. Enraged, Emperor Wu sent a combined army led by generals Han Yue (韩说), Yang Pu, Wang Wenshu (王温舒) and two marquesses of Yue ancestry. The Han army crushed the rebellion, and the Dongyue kingdom began to fragment after King Yushan stubbornly refused to surrender. Elements of the Dongyue army defected and turned against their ruler. Eventually, the king of the other Minyue state, Zou Jugu (驺居股), conspired with other Dongyue nobles to kill King Yushan before surrendering to

10220-529: The Middle East and Africa. Recently, there has been a drive to move up the value chain by shifting towards high technology and knowledge intensive industries resulting in new development zones such as the Chongqing New North Zone (CNNZ). Chongqing's local government is hoping through the promotion of favorable economic policies for the electronics and information technology sectors, that it can create

10366-509: The Prince of Huainan (a previously trusted adviser of Emperor Wu, and closely enough related to have imperial pretensions) and his brother Liu Ci (刘赐), the Prince of Hengshan, were accused of plotting treason. They committed suicide; their families and many alleged co-conspirators were executed. Similar action was taken against the other vassal Princes, and by the end of the reign, all the vassal kingdoms had been political and militarily disabled. A famous wrongful execution happened in 117 BC, when

10512-458: The US car giant having 3 plants in Chongqing. The municipality is also one of China's nine largest iron and steel producers in China as well as one of its three major aluminum producers. Important manufacturers include Chongqing Iron and Steel Company (重庆钢铁股份有限公司) and Southwest Aluminum (西南鋁業), which is Asia's largest aluminum plant. Agriculture remains significant. Rice and fruits, especially oranges, are

10658-451: The advice of General Yang Pu (杨仆), Emperor Wu rejected a military solution, and the Han forces arrived home without attacking Dongyue, though border garrisons were told to prepare for any military conflicts. After King Yushan was informed of this, he became overly confident and proud and responded by revolting against the Han, proclaiming himself emperor and assigned his "Han-devouring generals" (吞汉将军) to invade neighbouring regions controlled by

10804-473: The area's main produce. Natural resources are also abundant with large deposits of coal, natural gas, and more than 40 kinds of minerals such as strontium and manganese . Coal reserves total approximately 4,800,000,000 metric tons (4.7 × 10 long tons; 5.3 × 10 short tons). Chuandong Natural Gas Field is China's largest inland gas field with deposits of around 270 billion m – more than 1/5 of China's total. Has China's largest reserve of strontium (China has

10950-417: The arrivals of numerous foreign direct investors (FDI) in industries ranging from car to finance and retailing; such as Ford , Mazda , HSBC , Standard Chartered Bank , Citibank , Deutsche Bank , ANZ Bank , Scotiabank , Wal-Mart , Metro AG and Carrefour , among other multinational corporations. The city includes a number of economic and technological development zones: Chongqing itself

11096-472: The autonomous kingdom of Nanyue , the entire Nanyue territory (which includes modern Guangdong , Guangxi , and North Vietnam ) had been conquered by the Emperor's military forces and annexed into the Han Empire by 111 BC. Military tension had long existed between China and the northern " barbarians ", mainly because the fertile lands of the prosperous agricultural civilization presented attractive targets for

11242-525: The case of Emperor Yingzong of Ming ). In 104 BCE (1st year of the Tai'chu (太初) era), a new calendar was put into effect: the Tai'chu calendar (太初历). This calendar came about due to the observations of three officials (Gongsun Qing (公孙卿), Hu Sui (壶遂) and Sima Qian (author of Shiji ) that the calendar then in use was in need of reform. Among other reforms, the Taichu calendar made the zheng month (正月, also known as

11388-454: The city open on the same terms as other ports, although it was not until 1907 that a steamship made the journey without the help of manual haulers. From 1896 to 1904, the American, German, French, and Japanese consulates were opened in Chongqing. During and after the Second Sino-Japanese War , from November 1937 to May 1946, it was Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek 's provisional capital. After

11534-446: The city's hinterland than the boundaries of the other three provincial level municipalities (Beijing, Shanghai and Tianjin ), and much of its administrative area, which spans over 80,000 km (30,900 sq mi), is rural. At the end of year 2018, the total population is 31.02 million. As of 2022, Chongqing is the largest Chinese city by urban population, with a population of 22.80 million. Indicates with which district

11680-476: The city's historic center, where the old town once stood; its name is Yuzhong ( 渝中 , Central Yu). It received its current name in 1189, after Prince Zhao Dun of the Southern Song dynasty described his crowning as king and then Emperor Guangzong as a "double celebration" ( simplified Chinese : 双重喜庆 ; traditional Chinese : 雙重喜慶 ; pinyin : shuāngchóng xǐqìng , or chóngqìng in short). To mark

11826-546: The commanderies, initially nearby Chang'an , but later extending to much farther places, worshipping the various gods on the way, perhaps again in search of immortality . He also had a succession of magicians whom he honoured with great things. In one case, he even made one a marquess and married his daughter, the Eldest Princess Wei, to him; that magician, Luan Da , was later exposed as a fraud and executed. Emperor Wu's expenditures on these tours and magical adventures put

11972-448: The country's salt mines and wet salt farms whilst selling at expensive prices, various companies manufacturing food products such as soy sauce and food seasonings have resorted to the illegal use of industrial salt created by artificial manufacture in efforts to reduce costs, at the risk of being caught and fined. Emperor Wu of Han Emperor Wu of Han (156 – 29 March 87   BC), born Liu Che and courtesy name Tong ,

12118-407: The country's GDP and ranked 16th among province-level administrative units ; the municipality's primary, secondary and tertiary industries were worth CN¥201.21 billion (US$ 29.92 billion), CN¥1.169 trillion (US$ 173.86 billion) and CN¥1.542 trillion (US$ 229.3 billion) respectively. Its nominal GDP per capita was US$ 13,479 (CN¥90,663) and ranked 10th in the country. Chongqing has been identified by

12264-399: The crown prince to the Prince of Linjiang (臨江王) and exiling him from the capital city Chang'an in 150 BC. Lady Li was stripped of her titles and placed under house arrest ; she died of depression not long after. Liu Rong was arrested two years later for illegal seizure of imperial shrine lands and committed suicide while in custody. As Empress Bo had been deposed one year earlier in 151 BC,

12410-466: The day of Liu Qi's accession to the throne as Emperor Jing of Han (upon the death of his father Emperor Wen in 156 BC), Wang Zhi gave birth to Liu Che and was promoted to a consort for giving birth to a royal prince. While she was pregnant, she claimed that she dreamed of a sun falling into her womb. Emperor Jing was ecstatic over the divine implication, and made the young Liu Che the Prince of Jiaodong (胶东王) on 16 May 153 BC. An intelligent boy, Liu Che

12556-404: The desert, but was able to escape around 129 BC and eventually made it to Yuezhi, which by then had relocated to Samarkand . While Yuezhi refused to return, it and several other kingdoms in the area, including Dayuan ( Kokand ) and Kangju , established diplomatic relations with Han. Zhang was able to deliver his report to Emperor Wu when he arrived back in the capital Chang'an in 126 BC after

12702-429: The division was associated below prior to the merging of Chongqing, Fuling, Wanxian (now Wanzhou) and Qianjiang in 1997. The main urban area of Chongqing city ( 重庆主城区 ) spans approximately 5,473 km (2,113 sq mi), and includes the following nine districts: According to the 2020 national census , Chongqing has a population of 32,054,159, accounting for around 2.27% of the national total. This makes it

12848-654: The east, Sichuan and Shaanxi to the north, and Guizhou to the south. Chongqing covers a large area crisscrossed by rivers and mountains. The Daba Mountains stand in the north, the Wu Gorge in the east, the Wuling Mountains in the southeast, and the Dalou Mountains in the south. The area slopes downward from north to south towards the Yangtze valley, and features a large massif of mountains and hills, with steep sloping areas at different heights. Karst landscape

12994-500: The emperor even went so far as to construct a "House of Life" ( shou gong ) chapel at his Ganquan palace complex (in modern Xianyang , Shaanxi) specifically for this purpose, in 118 BC. One of the religious rituals that Emperor Wu organized was the Suburban Sacrifice, and the nineteen hymns entitled Hymns for Use in the Suburban Sacrifice were written in connection with these religious rites and published during Wu's reign. It

13140-510: The end of her life. But now with the military firmly in his control, Emperor Wu's political survival was assured, and his grandmother or anyone else could no longer threaten to dethrone him as directly, easily and quickly as before. In the same year, Emperor Wu's newly favoured concubine Wei Zifu became pregnant with his first child, effectively clearing his name and silencing any political enemies who had schemed to use his alleged infertility as an excuse to have him removed. When this news reached

13286-509: The fall of the Ming dynasty to a rebel army, Chongqing, together with the rest of Sichuan , was captured by Zhang Xianzhong , who was said to have massacred a large number of people in Sichuan and depopulated the province, in part by causing many people to flee to safety elsewhere. The Manchus later conquered the province, and during the Qing dynasty , immigration to Chongqing and Sichuan took place with

13432-415: The final step to defeat Lady Li — she persuaded a minister to officially advise Emperor Jing that he make Lady Li empress, as Liu Rong was already the crown prince. Emperor Jing, already firm in his view that Lady Li must not be made empress, was enraged and believed that Lady Li had conspired with government officials. He executed the clan of the minister who had made that proposal, and deposed Liu Rong from

13578-501: The first month) the beginning of a new year, rather than the tenth month in the Zhuanxu calendar. From then on, the Chinese calendar had retained the property of having the first month as the beginning of the year. Liu Che was the 11th son of Liu Qi , the oldest living son from Emperor Wen of Han . His mother Wang Zhi (王娡) was initially married to a commoner named Jin Wangsun (金王孫) and had

13724-470: The former state of Jin (in the area of the modern province of Shanxi ) as official religious functionaries of his new empire. Emperor Wu worshiped the divinity Tai Yi (or, Dong Huang Tai Yi), a deity to whom he was introduced by his shaman advisers, who were able to provide him with the experience of having this god (and other spiritual entities, such as the Master of Fate, Si Ming ) summoned into his presence;

13870-581: The founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, the practice of state monopolization of salt persisted; the salt tax continued to form a significant proportion of government revenue, representing 5.49% of the total national tax in 1950, however with a shift in economic development, this has diminished to 0.04% in 2006. Founded in February 1950 and formerly known as the China National Salt Industry Company ( 中国盐业公司 ), China Salt controls

14016-455: The gods of heaven and earth to seek immortality. He then decreed that he would return to Mount Tai every five years to repeat the ceremony, but only did so once in 98 BC. Many palaces were built for him and the princes to accommodate the anticipated cycles of the ceremony. It was around this time that, in reaction to the large expenditures by Emperor Wu that had exhausted the national treasury, his agricultural minister Sang Hongyang conceived of

14162-445: The government. While his mother, Empress Dowager Wang, and his uncle Tian Fen were still heavily influential, they also benefited from the death of the old woman, especially the mother of Emperor Wu, but they lacked the ability to restrain the Emperor's actions. Emperor Wu began military campaigns focused on territorial expansion. This decision nearly destroyed his empire in its early stages. Reacting to border incursions by sending out

14308-845: The headquarters of the 13th Group Army of the People's Liberation Army , one of the two group armies that formerly comprised the Chengdu Military Region , which was reorganized into the Western Theater Command in 2016. Chongqing is the largest of the four direct-controlled municipalities of the People's Republic of China. The municipality is divided into 38 subdivisions (3 were abolished in 1997, and Wansheng and Shuangqiao districts were abolished in October 2011 ), consisting of 26 districts, 8 counties, and 4 autonomous counties. The boundaries of Chongqing municipality reach much farther into

14454-458: The hottest and most humid in China, with highs of 34 °C (93 °F) in July and August in the urban area. Winters are short and somewhat mild, but damp and overcast. The city's location in the Sichuan Basin causes it to have one of the lowest annual sunshine totals nationally, at only 983 hours, lower than much of Northern Europe; the monthly percent possible sunshine in the city proper ranges from

14600-541: The interests of the nobles and were swiftly defeated by his powerful grandmother Grand Empress Dowager Dou , who held real political power in the Han court and supported the conservative factions. Most of the reformists were punished: Emperor Wu's two noble supporters Dou Ying (窦婴) and Tian Fen (田蚡, Empress Dowager Wang's half-brother and Emperor's uncle) lost their positions, and his two mentors Wang Zang (王臧) and Zhao Wan (赵绾) were impeached, arrested and forced to commit suicide in prison. Emperor Wu, deprived of any allies,

14746-509: The kingdom to Han. However, Emperor Wu did not establish commanderies in Minyue's former territory; instead, he moved its people to the region between the Yangtze and Huai Rivers. Later that year, Emperor Wu, at great expense, carried out the ancient ceremony of the Feng and Shan sacrifices fengshan (封禅) at Mount Tai ; this involved the worship of heaven and earth and presumably a secret petition to

14892-545: The law forbidding sale of salt across regions. Private businesses that violate salt regulations are fined and have their salt products seized. One such case occurred in Chongqing in 2013, where 90 tons of illegally manufactured industrial salt intended for sale as edible salt in Hubei , Sichuan , Shanxi , Shandong and Henan was confiscated by authorities, with a total street market value of 4 million yuan. Because China Salt controls

15038-528: The local garrison. However the tiger tally , which was needed to authorize any use of armed forces, was in Grand Empress Dowager Dou's possession at the time. Yan Zhu, as the appointed imperial ambassador, circumvented this problem by executing a local army commander who refused to obey any order without seeing the tiger tally and coerced the governor of Kuaiji to mobilize a large naval fleet to Dong'ou's rescue . Seeing that superior Han forces were on

15184-453: The management of salt is controlled by the state. In 2011, table salt production in China reached 81.98 million tons, making it the largest salt producing country in the world, and a significant increase over 18 million tons produced in 1987, and 40 million tons in 2000. This increase was in part due to development of salt manufacture from mineral and lake sources. However, despite high production figures, salt prices remain expensive in China as

15330-507: The minister of agriculture Yan Yi (颜异), was falsely accused of committing a crime, though he was actually targeted because he had previously offended the emperor by opposing a plan to effectively extort double tributes out of princes and marquesses. Yan was executed for "internal defamation" of the emperor, and this caused the officials to be fearful and willing to flatter the emperor. Starting about 113 BC, Emperor Wu began to display further signs of abusing his power. He began to incessantly tour

15476-418: The municipality had 31 bridges across the Yangtze River including over a dozen in the city's urban core. Aside from the city's first two Yangtze River bridges, which were built, respectively, in 1960 and 1977, all of the other bridges were completed since 1995. Public transport in Chongqing consists of metro , intercity railway, a ubiquitous bus system and the world's largest monorail network. According to

15622-564: The municipality of Chongqing is the largest city proper in the world by population, though Chongqing is not the most populous urban area. The municipality of Chongqing is the only Chinese municipality with a resident population of over 30 million; however, this number includes its large rural population. In 2020, Chongqing surpassed Shanghai as China's largest municipality by urban population; as of 2022 , it has an urban population of 22.8 million. The municipality contains 26 districts, 8 counties , and 4 autonomous counties . The city served as

15768-438: The nation to "rest and recover" (休养生息). Despite the periodic humiliation of appeasement and providing gifts, the Han borders were still frequented by Xiongnu raids for the next seven decades. Following the death of his powerful grandmother, Emperor Wu decided that Han China had sufficiently recovered enough to support a full-scale war. He first ended the official policy of peace with the Battle of Mayi in 133 BC, which involved

15914-548: The necessity of important policy reforms, but neither Emperor Wen nor Emperor Jing was willing to risk implementing such changes. Unlike the emperors before him, the young and vigorous Emperor Wu was unwilling to put up with the status quo . Only a year into his reign in late 141 BC, Emperor Wu took the advice of Confucian scholars and launched an ambitious reform, known in history as the Jianyuan Reforms (建元新政). The reforms included: However, Emperor Wu's reforms threatened

16060-561: The occasion of his enthronement, Yu Prefecture was therefore converted to Chongqing Fu . In 1362 (during the Yuan dynasty ), Ming Yuzhen , a peasant rebel leader, established the Daxia Kingdom ( 大夏 ) at Chongqing for a short time. In 1621 (during the Ming dynasty ), another short-lived kingdom of Daliang ( 大梁 ) was established by She Chongming ( 奢崇明 ) with Chongqing as its capital. In 1644, after

16206-471: The opportunity for Consort Wang and the young Liu Che to gain the emperor's favour. When Emperor Jing's older sister, Eldest Princess Guantao (馆陶长公主) Liu Piao (刘嫖), offered to marry her daughter with Chen Wu  [ zh ; ko ] ( 陳午 ), the Marquess of Tangyi, to Liu Rong, Lady Li rudely rejected the proposal out of her dislike of Princess Guantao, who often procured new concubines for Emperor Jing and

16352-616: The plain on the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze . Its climate features frequent monsoon conditions, often raining at night in late spring and early summer. The city's "night rain in the Ba Mountains", features in poems throughout Chinese history, including "Written on a Rainy Night—A Letter to the North" by Li Shangyin . Its territory is 470 km (290 mi) from east to west at its longest, and 450 km (280 mi) from north to south at its widest. It borders Hubei and Hunan to

16498-582: The poorer but more militaristic horseback nomads . The threat posed to the Xiongnu by the northward expansion of the Qin Empire ultimately led to the consolidation of the many tribes into a confederacy. Following the end of the Chu-Han Contention , Emperor Gao of Han realized that the nation was not yet strong enough to confront the Xiongnu. He therefore resorted to the so-called "marriage alliance", or heqin , in order to ease hostility and buy time for

16644-401: The population practices Chinese ancestral religion , while 1.05% of the population identifies as Christian . The reports did not give figures for other types of religion; 72.32% of the population may be either irreligious or involved in worship of nature deities , Buddhism, Confucianism , Taoism, or folk religious sects . In 2010, there were 9,056 Muslims in Chongqing. Chongqing was

16790-498: The population's highest education level achieved, 15.41% were college, 15.96% were high school, 30.58% were middle school, and 29.89% were elementary school. As of 2021 , 70.4% of Chongqing's population is estimated to be urban, and 29.6%. Religion in Chongqing The predominant religions in Chongqing are Chinese folk religions , Taoist traditions and Chinese Buddhism . According to surveys conducted in 2007 and 2009, 26.63% of

16936-512: The position of empress was left open and Emperor Jing made Consort Wang empress four months later. The seven-year-old Liu Che, now legally the oldest son of the Empress, was made crown prince in 149 BC. In 141 BC, Emperor Jing died and Crown Prince Liu Che ascended to the throne as Emperor Wu at the age of 15. His grandmother Empress Dowager Dou became the grand empress dowager , and his mother became Empress Dowager Wang . His cousin-wife A'Jiao from

17082-461: The principles of Confucianism as the state philosophy and code of ethics for his empire and started a school to teach future administrators the Confucian classics . These reforms had an enduring effect throughout the existence of imperial China and an enormous influence on neighbouring civilizations. The personal name of Emperor Wu was Liu Che (劉徹). The use of "Han" ( 漢 ) in referring to emperor Wu

17228-399: The province since September 1996, and grant it independence from Sichuan. The resulting single entity became Chongqing Municipality, containing 30,020,000 people in forty-three former counties without intermediate political levels. The municipality became the spearhead of China's effort to develop its western regions and to coordinate the resettlement of residents from the reservoir areas of

17374-450: The retail market. Salt producers have no decision-making powers in regards to sales and production, and only follow the directive of China Salt. As a result, there is no market competition amongst salt producers and a significant lack in product diversity. China Salt serves as both the operating company and the entity responsible for formulating administrative policy, having complete control over salt production standards. Iodine deficiency

17520-442: The rise of local despots who bullied and oppressed the population. The heqin policy also failed to protect the Han borders against nomadic raids, with Xiongnu cavalries invading as close as 300 li (100 miles, 160 km) from the capital during Emperor Wen's reign, and over 10,000 border residents abducted or enslaved during Emperor Jing's reign. Prominent politicians like Jia Yi and Chao Cuo had both previously advised on

17666-564: The southern autonomous state of Minyue (in modern-day Fujian ) invaded the weaker neighbouring state of Dong'ou (in modern-day Zhejiang ). After their king Zuo Zhenfu (驺贞复) died on the battlefield, the battered Dong'ou desperately sought help from the Han court. After a heated court debate over whether to offer military intervention for such a distant vassal state, Emperor Wu dispatched a newly promoted official Yan Zhu (严助) to Kuaiji (then still located in Suzhou , rather than Shaoxing ) to mobilize

17812-448: The state of Huainan, Liu An , who was hoping the young Emperor Wu's infertility would allow him to ascend to the throne, went into a state of denial and rewarded anyone who told him that Emperor Wu was still childless. In 135 BC, Grand Empress Dowager Dou died, removing the last major obstacle against Emperor Wu's ambition for reform. After the death of Grand Empress Dowager Dou in 135 BC, Emperor Wu had full and unrivaled control of

17958-579: The support of the Qing emperor. In 1890, the British Consulate General was opened in Chongqing. The following year, the city became the first inland commerce port open to foreigners, with the proviso that foreign ships should not be at liberty to trade there until Chinese-owned steamers had succeeded in ascending the river. This restriction was abolished by the Treaty of Shimonoseki in 1895, which declared

18104-540: The taxes. Emperor Wu carried out an invasion of the northern Korean Peninsula and established the Commandery of Canghai , but abandoned it in 126 BC. Some of the military colonies established at that time survived into the 4th century, leaving behind various particularly well-preserved funerary artefacts. After the conquest of Nanyue in 111 BC, Emperor Wu launched a second invasion of the Korean peninsula and by 108 BC completed

18250-405: The throne and Lady Li to become empress dowager , many of his concubines might suffer the tragic fate of Consort Qi in the hands of Empress Lü . Princess Guantao then began to openly praise her son-in-law-to-be to her royal brother, further convincing Emperor Jing that Liu Che was a far better choice for heir apparent than Liu Rong. Taking advantage of the situation, Consort Wang put in place

18396-463: The time being, as his aging grandmother was declining physically and would soon die. He spent the next few years pretending to have given up any political ambition, playing the part of a docile hedonist , often sneaking out of the capital Chang'an to engage in hunting and sightseeing and posing as an ordinary nobleman. Knowing that the conservative noble classes occupied every level of the Han court, Emperor Wu changed his strategy. He secretly recruited

18542-531: The top 50 busiest airports in the world. The city's monorail system is the world's longest and busiest , as well as having the greatest number of stations, with 70. Chongqing is ranked as a Beta (global second-tier) city. It is the headquarters of the Changan Automobile , one of the " Big Four " car manufacturers of China. As of 2023 , the city hosts 12 foreign representations, the fifth-most in China behind Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Chengdu. It

18688-419: The troops, Emperor Wu sent his armies in all directions but the sea. Following the successful manoeuvre against Minyue in 138 BC, Emperor Wu resettled the people of Dang'an into the region between the Yangtze and Huai Rivers. In 135 BC, Minyue saw an opportunity to take advantage of the new and inexperienced king of Nanyue , Zhao Mo . Minyue invaded its south-western neighbour and Zhao Mo sought help from

18834-420: The wartime capital for the Republic of China (ROC) during the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945). On 14 March 1997, the current municipality was separated from the surrounding province of Sichuan , with the goal of furthering development in the central and western parts of the country. University of Washington professor Kam Wing Chan argued that Chongqing's status is more akin to that of a province rather than

18980-452: The way, Minyue forces became fearful and retreated. This was a huge political victory for Emperor Wu and set the precedent of using the Emperor's decrees to bypass the tiger tally, removing the need for cooperation from his grandmother; Of course, this did not mean that Grand Empress Dowager Dou's influence and intervention would disappear, she was a serious and insurmountable obstacle and competing authority in administration for Emperor Wu until

19126-736: The well-known Three Gorges : the Qutang, Wuxia and Xiling gorges. Coming from northwest and running through "the Jialing Lesser Three Gorges" of Libi, Wentang and Guanyin, the Jialing River joins the Yangtze in Chongqing. Leaving at dawn the White Emperor crowned with cloud, I've sailed a thousand li through canyons in a day. With the monkeys' adieus the riverbanks are loud, My skiff has left ten thousand mountains far away. The central urban area of Chongqing, called Chongqing proper,

19272-409: The western region, part of his report indicated that embassies could more easily reach Shendu (India) and Anxi ( Parthia ) by going through the south-western kingdoms. Encouraged by the report, Emperor Wu sent ambassadors in 122 BC to try to persuade Yelang and Dian (modern eastern Yunnan ) into submission again. Han Gaozu , founder of the Han dynasty, had installed shaman cultists from the area of

19418-790: The world's 2nd biggest strontium deposit). Manganese is mined in the Xiushan area. Although the mining sector has been denounced as heavily polluting and unsafe. Chongqing is also planned to be the site of a 10 million ton capacity refinery operated by CNPC (parent company of PetroChina ) to process imported crude oil from the Sino-Myanmar pipelines . The pipeline itself, though not yet finished, will eventually run from Sittwe (in Myanmar's western coast) through Kunming in Yunnan before reaching Chongqing and it will provide China with fuels sourced from Myanmar,

19564-475: Was Yelang (modern Zunyi , Guizhou)—so that a route for a potential back-stabbing attack on Nanyue could be made. The Han ambassador Tang Meng (唐蒙) was able to secure the submission of these tribal kingdoms by giving their kings gifts; Emperor Wu established the Commandery of Jianwei (犍为, headquarters in modern Yibin , Sichuan) to govern over the tribes, but eventually abandoned it after being unable to cope with local revolts. Later, after Zhang Qian returned from

19710-577: Was a serious matter. These enemies of Emperor Wu wished to replace him with his uncle Liu An , the King of Huainan , who was renowned for his expertise in Taoist ideology. Even Emperor Wu's own maternal uncle Tian Fen switched camps and sought Liu An's favor, as he predicted the young emperor would not be in power for long. Emperor Wu's political survival now relied heavily on the lobbying of his influential aunt / mother-in-law, Princess Guantao (Liu Piao), who served as

19856-608: Was also during this time that Emperor Wu began to show a fascination with immortality . He began to associate with magicians who claimed to be able to, if they could find the proper ingredients, create divine pills that would confer immortality. However, he himself punished others' use of magic severely. In 130 BC, for example, when the witch Chu Fu tried to approach Empress Chen to teach her sorcery and love spells to curse Consort Wei and regain Emperor Wu's affections, he dispatched Zhang Tang to execute Chu Fu for witchcraft, which

20002-558: Was based in the city. This made it a city of world importance in the fight against Axis powers, together with London , Moscow and Washington, D.C. The city was also visited by Lord Louis Mountbatten , the Supreme Commander of SEAC which was itself headquartered in Sri Lanka. Chiang Kai Shek as Supreme Commander in China worked closely with Stilwell. From 1938 to 1943, the city suffered from continuous massive bombing campaigns of

20148-537: Was considered to be Emperor Jing's favourite son from a very young age. Emperor Jing's formal wife, Empress Bo , was childless. As a result, Emperor Jing's oldest son Liu Rong , born to Lady Lì (栗姬, Emperor Jing's favorite concubine and mother of three of his first four sons), was made crown prince in 153 BC. Lady Li, feeling certain that her son would become the future emperor, grew arrogant and intolerant, and frequently threw tantrums at Emperor Jing out of jealousy over him bedding other women. Her lack of tact provided

20294-431: Was diffusing the favor received by Lady Li. Insulted by the rejection, Princess Guantao then approached the next favorite of Emperor Jing's concubines – none other than Consort Wang, who had been observing these developments quietly from the sidelines. Guantao offered to marry her daughter to the consort's young son, Liu Che, then aged only 5. Seizing the opportunity, Consort Wang accepted the offer with open arms, securing

20440-417: Was first started in 139 BC, when Emperor Wu commissioned Zhang Qian to seek out the Kingdom of Yuezhi , which had been expelled by Xiongnu from the modern Gansu region. Zhang was to entice the kingdom to return to its ancestral lands with promises of Han military assistance, with the intention that Yuezhi forces would fight against the Xiongnu. Zhang was immediately captured by Xiongnu once he ventured into

20586-613: Was illegal at the time. Around the same time, perhaps as a sign of what would come to be, Emperor Wu began to trust governing officials who were harsh in their punishment, believing that such harshness would be the most effective method to maintain social order and so placing these officials in power. For example, one such official, Yi Zong (义纵), became the governor of the Commandery of Dingxiang (part of modern Hohhot , Inner Mongolia) and executed 200 prisoners, even though they had not committed capital crimes; he then executed their friends who happened to have been visiting. In 122 BC, Liu An ,

20732-409: Was now the subject of conspiracies designed to have him removed from the throne. For example, his first wife Empress Chen Jiao was unable to become pregnant. In an attempt to remain his first love, she had prohibited him from having other concubines. Emperor Wu's political enemies used his childlessness as an argument to seek to depose him, as the inability of an emperor to propagate a royal bloodline

20878-420: Was separated from Sichuan province and made into a municipality in its own right on 14 March 1997 in order to accelerate its development and subsequently China's relatively poorer western areas (see China Western Development strategy). By the 2000s the city had become an important industrial area in western China. As of 2022 , Chongqing's nominal GDP was US$ 433 billion ( CN¥ 2.91 trilion), about 2.41% of

21024-514: Was split into a dual monarchy: Minyue was controlled by a Han proxy ruler, Zou Chou (驺丑), and Dongyue (东越) was ruled by Luo Yushan. As Han troops returned from the Han–Nanyue War in 111 BC, the Han government debated military action against Dongyue. Dongyue, under King Lou Yushan, had agreed to assist the Han campaign against Nanyue, but the Dongyue army never reached there, blaming the weather while secretly relaying intelligence to Nanyue. Against

21170-511: Was the seventh emperor of the Han dynasty from 141 to 87 BC. His reign lasted 54 years – a record not broken until the reign of the Kangxi Emperor more than 1,800 years later – and remains the record for ethnic Han emperors. His reign resulted in a vast expansion of geopolitical influence for the Chinese civilization , and the development of a strong centralized state via governmental policies, economical reorganization and promotion of

21316-491: Was viable as a stable source of government revenue, various historical rulers employed a salt monopoly which forbade the production and sales of salt by commoners. The practice of monopolizing salt began during the rule of Emperor Wu of Han , and during the Tang dynasty , income obtained from salt taxes by the salt commission accounted for greater than half the government revenue; during the Yuan dynasty , this figure reached 80%. With

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