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40-711: As part of the Northern Silk Road , running northwest from the western section of the Ordos Loop between Yinchuan and Lanzhou , the Hexi Corridor was the most important trade route in Northwest China . It linked China proper to the historic Western Regions for traders and military incursions into Central Asia . It is a string of oases along the northern edges of the Qilian Mountains and Altyn-Tagh , with

80-486: A Majiayao site in the Hexi Corridor, and the Bronze Age began in the Hexi Corridor around 4200   BP with the arrival of bronze-smelting technology. Domesticated livestock were also introduced to the area around this time, so Bronze Age cultures of the Hexi Corridor typically farmed millet and wheat, while keeping livestock such as sheep, pigs, cattle and horses as well as producing bronze objects. Bronze age societies in

120-690: A bilingual inscription on a stone pillar outside the Jokhang in Lhasa . The Western Xia dynasty was established in the 11th century by the Tangut people . Western Xia controlled from 1038 CE up to 1227 CE the areas in what are now the northwestern Chinese provinces of Gansu , Shaanxi , and Ningxia . Genghis Khan began the conquest of the Jin dynasty around 1207 and Ögedei Khan continued it after his death in 1227. The Jurchen -led Jin dynasty fell in 1234 CE with help from

160-794: A garrison at Hami . After the new Protector General of the Western Regions Chen Mu was killed in 75 CE by allies of the Xiongnu in Karasahr and Kucha , the garrison at Hami was withdrawn. At the Battle of the Altai Mountains in 89 CE, Dou Xian defeated the Northern Chanyu , who retreated into the Altai Mountains . The Han forces, allied with the subjugated Southern Xiongnu, again defeated

200-407: A narrow trackway , where relatively small fortifications could control passing traffic. There are several major cities along the Hexi Corridor. In western Gansu Province is Dunhuang (Shazhou), then Yumen , then Jiayuguan , then Jiuquan ( Suzhou ), then Zhangye ( Ganzhou ) in the center, then Jinchang , then Wuwei ( Liangzhou ) and finally Lanzhou in the southeast. In the past, Dunhuang

240-601: Is an ancient Iron Age culture in the area of Gansu , to the northwest of the Central Plains of China. The village of Shajing is about 250 km northwest of Wuwei , while the village of Yushugou, another important Shajing site, is about 140 km to its southeast. The Shajing culture is closely associated to the Saka culture of the Xinjiang , the Ordos culture of Inner Mongolia and

280-712: The Shiji which mentions "golden (or gilded) men used by the King of Xiutu to worship Heaven". According to Christoph Baumer and others, "it is conceivable that this 'Golden man' was a statue of the Buddha". The area of the Shajing culture and the Hexi Corridor were conquered by general Huo Qubing of Han dynasty in 121 BCE, as part of the Han–Xiongnu War . The Xiongnu were defeated, and

320-577: The An Lushan Rebellion . It was during this rebellion that the Tang withdrew its western garrisons stationed in what is now Gansu and Qinghai , which the Tibetans then occupied along with the area that is modern Xinjiang . Hostilities between the Tang and Tibet continued until they signed a formal peace treaty in 821. The terms of this treaty, including fixed borders between the two countries, are recorded in

360-518: The Donghu . The Xiongu installed a king named Xiutu (休屠) for the south and another named Hunye (浑邪) for the northern area. Alternatively, Xiutu himself may not have been a Xiongnu, and may have already ruled when the Xiongnu invaded, since it is reported that his territory was occupied by the Xiongnu when they were pushed westward by the Han dynasty . Xiutu was known for worshipping a golden statue, as reported in

400-514: The Gobi desert to the north. Geologically, the Hexi Corridor belongs to a Cenozoic foreland basin system on the northeast margin of the Tibetan Plateau . The ancient trackway formerly passed through Haidong , Xining and the environs of Juyan Lake , serving an effective area of about 215,000 km (83,000 sq mi). It was an area where mountain and desert limited caravan traffic to

440-595: The Han -ruled Southern Song dynasty . Ögedei also conquered the Western Xia dynasty in 1227, pacifying the Hexi Corridor region, which was later absorbed into the Yuan dynasty . The Hexi Corridor is a long, narrow passage stretching for some 1,000 kilometres (620 mi) from the steep Wushaolin hillside near the modern city of Lanzhou to the Jade Gate at the border of Gansu and Xinjiang . There are many fertile oases along

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480-524: The Han–Xiongnu War , Han general Huo Qubing expelled the Xiongnu from the Hexi Corridor and even drove them from Lop Nur when King Hunye surrendered to Huo Qubing in 121 BCE . The Han Empire acquired a new territory with trade access to the Western Regions, and also cutting the Xiongnu off from their Qiang allies. Again in 111 BCE , Han forces repelled a joint Xiongnu-Qiang invasion, and to consolidate

520-780: The Karakum Desert towards Merv , joining the southern route briefly. One of the branch routes turned northwest to the north of the Aral and Caspian seas and then on to the Black Sea . Shajing culture Hamadun ( Yongchang County ) Yushugou ( Yongdeng County ) Sanjiaocheng 三角城 ( Jinchang ) Liangucheng 连古城 Yangchaodun 柳湖墩 Xichengyi culture (2000-1600 BCE) Siba culture (1700-1300 BCE) Siwa culture (1350-650 BCE) Western Han dynasty (121 BCE-) The Shajing culture (Ch: 沙井文化, 800/700–100 BCE),

560-702: The Majiayao culture and the Qijia culture had benefited. Usually, such arid conditions lead to material and cultural decline, but the Shajing Culture was able to flourish along the lower Shiyang River as the Zhuye Lake was retreating, and the Xiongnu were able to establish the city of Xiutu along the Hongshui River, leading to a flourishing of nomadic culture within a context of drought. Archaeological remains suggest that

600-561: The Protectorate of the Western Regions in 60 BCE, which dealt with the region's defense and foreign affairs. During the turbulent reign of Wang Mang , Han lost control over the Tarim Basin, which was reconquered by the Xiongnu in 63 CE and used as a base to invade the Hexi Corridor. Dou Gu defeated the Xiongnu again at the Battle of Yiwulu in 73 CE, evicting them from Turpan and chasing them as far as Lake Barkol before establishing

640-459: The Roman Empire . It is the northernmost branch of the several Silk Roads providing trade , cultural exchanges and military mobilizations between China and the outside world. The route was first developed by the Han dynasty in the latter part of the 1st century BC to secure diplomatic alliance against the Xiongnu confederacy, with whom China had been having escalating conflicts , and

680-528: The Tian Shan and Dunhuang is now sometimes thought to be a better candidate. The Shajing culture had walled settlements, probably for defensive purposes, inside which portable yurts were set up. The Sanjiaocheng walled settlement (三角城 38°59′N 103°19′E  /  38.99°N 103.32°E  / 38.99; 103.32 ) in Jinchang belongs to the Shajing culture as confirmed by its ceramic types, and

720-584: The Upper Xiajiadian culture of Liaoning . It was a culture essentially based on pastoral nomadism. As of 2017, seven sites had been excavated and almost as many fortified settlements built with walls of compacted loess. The ecological context of the Shajing culture was one of general aridification, following the warm and humid climatic conditions from the Late Glacial to the Middle Holocene from which

760-722: The Yuezhi overcame previous settlers, the Wusun and Qiang , occupying the western Hexi Corridor. All three were possibly connected with the Shajing, and the Wusun were possibly associated with the Shanma culture. Later, the newly risen Xiongnu armies under Modu Chanyu vanquished and expelled the Yuezhi , and established a dominant confederacy empire during the Chu-Han contention and the early Han dynasty . During

800-644: The ancient Chinese capital of Chang'an (modern day Xi'an ), westwards through the Hexi Corridor (in what is the modern Gansu province ) into the Tarim Basin , going around north of the Taklamakan Desert along the two sides of the Tianshan Mountains , and then past the Pamir Mountains to reach the ancient kingdoms of Bactria , Sogdia , Kushan , Parthia and eventually the eastern provinces of

840-510: The Hexi Corridor at this time include the Qijia , Xichengyi , Siba , Shajing , and Shanma cultures. The Hexi Corridor underwent further aridification around 3500 BP during the Iron Age , and cultures at the time (such as the Shajing culture) saw a decrease in their number of settlements, becoming dominated by nomadic production rather than agriculture. At the end of the Qin dynasty (221–206 BCE),

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880-566: The Northern Chanyu twice in 90 CE and 91 CE, forcing him to flee west into Wusun and Kangju territories. The Tang dynasty fought the Tibetan Empire for control of areas in Inner and Central Asia. There was a long string of conflicts with Tibet over territories in the Tarim Basin between 670 and 692. In 763 the Tibetans even captured the Tang capital of Chang'an for fifteen days during

920-628: The Right . At this point, the Hexi Corridor was under complete Xiongnu control, mainly occupied by the two tribes of Hunye and Xiutu . In 138 BCE , Emperor Wu sent Zhang Qian as the ambassador to the Western Regions in an attempt to make contact with Greater Yuezhi. Zhang Qian's envoy was intercepted by Xiongnu while travelling through the Hexi Corridor, and he was held a captive for ten years, until he finally escaped and continued his mission further west. He eventually arrived at Yuezhi territory, but

960-626: The chief commercial hub of the Hexi Corridor along the Northern Silk Road . The Hexi Corridor was first settled around 4800 BP by Chinese millet farmers from the Yangshao Culture in the western Loess Plateau , who enabled the transfer of millet to Central Asia , and consequently to the rest of Eurasia and Africa . Wheat and barley from the Fertile Crescent arrived in the Hexi Corridor via Central Asia around 4000 BP, and later spread into China proper . By 3700 BP, most likely due to

1000-405: The city of Jiayuguan . The Jiayuguan fort is the first fortification of Great Wall of China in the west. 38°42′N 100°47′E  /  38.700°N 100.783°E  / 38.700; 100.783 Northern Silk Road The Northern Silk Road is a historic inland trade route in Northwest China and Central Asia (historically known as the Western Regions ), originating in

1040-466: The control of the region, four new commanderies were established in the Hexi Corridor, namely (from east to west) Wuwei , Zhangye , Jiuquan and Dunhuang , collectively known as the Four Commanderies of Hexi ( Chinese : 河西四郡 ). From roughly 115–60 BCE, Han forces fought the Xiongnu over control of the oasis city-states in the Tarim Basin . Han was eventually victorious and established

1080-566: The high and desolate Tibetan Plateau further to the south. To the north are the Longshou, Heli and Mazong Mountains separating it from the arid Badain Jaran Desert , Gobi Desert and the cold steppes of the Mongolian Plateau . At the western end, the route splits into three, going either north of the Tianshan Mountains or south on either side of the Tarim Basin . At the eastern end,

1120-595: The mountain ranges to the north and south of the Taklimakan Desert to rejoin at Kashgar ; and the other going north of the Tian Shan mountains through Turpan , Talgar and Almaty (in what is now southeast Kazakhstan ). The routes split west of Kashgar with one branch heading down the Alay Valley towards Termez and Balkh , while the other traveled through Kokand in the Fergana Valley , and then west across

1160-658: The mountains around Lanzhou grants access to the Longxi Basin , which leads east through Mount Long along the Wei River valley into the populous Guanzhong Plain , and then into the Central Plain . The Hexi Corridor is located in western Gansu province, bordered to the south by the Qilian Mountains and to the north by the Gobi Desert . It extends for approximately 1,000–1,200 kilometres (620–750 mi) from Wushao Mountain in

1200-517: The northern steppes, with motifs of eagle, deer or dog. Remains of chariots have been found, as well as iron spades. In the final centuries, the Shajing culture was bordered to the south by the first Great Wall built by King Zhao of Qin in 271 BCE, and by the Xirong Majiayuan culture which had been incorporated within it. The Shajing culture was overrun by the Xiongnu circa 150 BCE, as they expanded westward following their victory over

1240-563: The path, watered by rivers flowing from the Qilian Mountains , such as the Shiyang , Jinchuan , Ejin (Heihe), and Shule Rivers. A strikingly inhospitable environment surrounds this chain of oases: the snow-capped Qilian Mountains (the so-called "southern mountains" or "Nanshan") to the south; the Beishan ("northern mountains") mountainous area, the Alashan Plateau , and the vast expanse of

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1280-449: The people of the Shajing culture engaged in pastoralism but also in extensive agricultural production. The bronze objects of this culture follow the Animal style of the northern steppes, with motifs of eagle, deer or dog. Remains of chariots have been found, as well as iron spades. Archaeological finds of iron knives and spades suggest that the Shajing culture may have been instrumental in

1320-574: The reign of Emperor Wen of Han , Modu's son Laoshang Chanyu defeated Yuezhi again in 162 BCE , forcing the westward exodus of majority of the Yuezhi survivors (later known as the Greater Yuezhi) into Central Asia, while the small portion of Yuezhi population that didn't migrate (known as the Lesser Yuezhi) was forced to mixed among the Qiang people and become the subjects of Xiongnu's Worthy Prince of

1360-436: The south to Dunhuang in the north, and covers approximately 5,100 square kilometres (2,000 sq mi). There are several major cities along the Hexi Corridor. From west to east, the major cities are: Dunhuang, Yumen , Jiayuguan , Jiuquan , Zhangye , Jinchang , Wuwei , and finally Lanzhou in the southeast. Just south of the provincial boundary of Gansu lies Xining , the capital of Qinghai Province, which served as

1400-411: The transmission of iron technology to China. Overall, Scythian-like artifacts form the core of this culture, but the ethnic affiliation of the Shajing people remains uncertain: they could have been Yuezhi , proto-Tibetean Qiang or Rong , or even Iranian Wusun , or a composition of these ethnic and cultural elements. The Shajing culture may well have belonged to the Yuezhi, although the zone between

1440-554: The weakening and retreat of the East Asian monsoon in the area, the more drought-resistant wheat and barley had replaced millet as the main staple crop in the Hexi Corridor. Several Neolithic cultures developed in the Hexi corridor at this time, such as the Majiayao , Banshan , and Machang . The oldest bronze object to be discovered in China, dating to around 5000-4500   BP, was found at

1480-455: Was constructed circa 800 BCE (in the period 855–797 cal BCE), making it the oldest known walled settlement in the Hexi Corridor . It may have been one of the bases from which nomadic culture diffused into China 600–400 BCE. The site was still inhabited in the period 384–116 cal BCE, until the Chinese conquest by Huo Qubing . The bronze objects of the Shajing culture follow the Animal style of

1520-487: Was part of the area known as the Western Regions . South of Gansu Province, in the middle just over the provincial boundary, lies the city of Xining , the capital of Qinghai Province. Xining used to be the chief commercial hub of the Hexi Corridor. The Jiayuguan fort guards the western entrance to China. It is located in Jiayuguan pass at the narrowest point of the Hexi Corridor, some 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) southwest of

1560-559: Was progressively transformed into a major trade route during the subsequent dynasties to project Chinese influence towards the west. The route started at Chang'an, the capital of the Western Han and Tang dynasty , which was moved further east to Luoyang during the Eastern Han dynasty . The route travels northwest through the Chinese province of Gansu from Shaanxi Province, and splits into three further routes, two of them following

1600-479: Was unable to convince the Yuezhi leaders to ally against Xiongnu. On his return journey he was once again captured by Xiongnu while traversing the Hexi Corridor, but again managed to escape two years later. He finally returned to Chang'an in 125 BCE , bringing back invaluable detailed information about the various Central Asian kingdoms such as Dayuan , Daxia and Kangju , as well as other farther countries such as Anxi , Tiaozhi , Shendu and Wusun . During

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