Home to three of China's seven ancient capitals, Henan's history is as convoluted and rich as the silt-laden Yellow River (Huang He) that carves its way through the fertile loess plains from which Chinese civilization first emerged.
The river gives Henan both its name ("south of the river") and a legacy that reaches back through the millenia. The Chinese refer to the river and its plain as the "cradle of Chinese civilization"; it's here where many believe the first dynasty rose along with core features of Chinese culture that endure to this day. Indeed, the Erlitou archaeological site near Henan's Luoyang provides much evidence that the legendary Xia Dynasty (ca. 2100-1600 BC) was a reality.
For discerning tourists, Henan can be incredible value, especially if you're a Chinese history buff. While many may hear "ancient Chinese history" and immediately think "Great Wall," "Forbidden City" and "Terracotta Army," Henan goes just as deep—much deeper, in fact.
From the Longmen Caves and their Buddhist artifacts to the mysterious Shang oracle bones, from the holy Taoist mountains of Song Shan to China's oldest Buddhist temple, Baima Si (White Horse Temple), Henan is treasure house of Chinese history. And though tourism is booming, crowds are generally much smaller and prices lower than at the mass tourism destinations cultivated in other parts of the country.
Henan has a modern history too, of course, having grown into China's most populous province during the 20th century with over 100 million inhabitants who are now as dependent on industry for their measure of prosperity as their ancestors were on farming and the flood-prone Yellow River.
Tourism is booming in the ancient capitals Luoyang and Kaifeng, and throughout Henan new roads, airports and rail upgrades are making exploration easier than ever. Still, development remains several steps behind that of eastern seaboard China and Beijing, which can be a blessing in disguise, making for a mellower feel, slower pace and great deals for travelers.
Zhengzhou—itself site of an ancient dynastic seat and now the provincial capital—is Henan’s most modern city and serves as an excellent place to start an exploration of Henan, starting with the outstanding Henan Provincial Museum.
Anyang is the site of China's Shang Dynasty (ca. 1600 BC-1046 BC) capital of Yin and source of many of the oracle bones and bronze relics from which archaeologists have pieced together key chapters in the story of ancient China.
More recent historical Henan attractions include the legendary Shaolin Temple, the traces of the Kaifeng Jewish community, the remote southern English-colonial mountain retreat of Jigong Shan, and one of People's Republic's early industrial triumphs, the Red Flag Canal.
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Northern Henan is an archeologists' dream. Remnants of the prehistoric Yangshao, Longshan and Erlitou cultures continue to surface from the soils of the Yellow River plain, joining oracle bones and Shang bronzes as pieces in an intricate puzzle promising to reveal just how, when and where civilization first emerged in China.
Recorded history begins the earlies known instances of Chinese characters, found on the renowned oracle bones, many of which have been excavated from the Yinxu Ruins outside of Anyang and which date back 3,500 some years.
The region's dynastic pedigree runs deep—until the Song moved their capital to modern-day Hangzhou at the rather late date of 1127 AD, ancient cities located in the vicinities of modern Luoyang, Kaifeng, Zhengzhou and Anyang enjoyed more than 2,000 years of dominance.
Eventually, power shifted to the east coast, south to the Yangzi River and north to Beijing, leaving Henan in relative obscurity.
The Shang Dynasty (ca. 1600-1046 BC), whose last capital, Yin, located on the site of present-day Anyang, was responsible for much that defines Chinese culture, from the characters engraved on the oracle bones to the distinctive artifacts unearthed in northern Henan.
The Shang were followed by the Zhou Dynasty (1045-256 BC), which established a capital at Luoyang in 722 BC, only to lose control during a chaotic period when rival states and warlords rose, fighting bitterly for control of China's heartland.
In 221 BC, this period came to an end with the establishment of the Qin Dynasty (221-206 BC), which unified greater China for the first time in history. Although the Qin capital was just outside of modern Xi'an in Shaanxi, the center of power in China returned to Luoyang in the latter half of the Han Dynasty (206 BC-220 AD).
After the Han fell, Luoyang was the capital of a series of short-lived dynasties as China entered an era of strife that ended only when the Tang (618-907) established order, ruling from Chang'an (present-day Xi'an).
Following the Tang, it was Kaifeng's turn to rule, as four dynasties made their capital there, culminating in the powerful Song Dynasty (960-1279 AD).
Kaifeng was not only the center of the Chinese world for over 150 years, but also the largest and wealthiest metropolis of its time. A time of fantastic wealth and cultural achievement, Kaifeng's heyday under the Song was to also be the end of Henan's role as China's political center.
With the Jin invasion in 1127, decline began and by 1142 the Song had fled south to the Yangzi Delta region, establishing a new capital in present-day Hangzhou.
The region remained strategically important, however, falling to Jurchen and then to Mongol invaders pressing the beleaguered Song south. After the fall of the Mongol Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), the Miing (1368-1644) created the borders of present-day Henan, which continued to serve as an agricultural base for northern China.
In the 20th century, new invaders came. The Japanese occupied the crucial northern third of the province during the Second Sino-Japanese War, though the south remained under Chinese control. The people of Henan suffered greatly, not only from Japanese aggression but also from Chinese defensive measures. In an effort to slow Japan's advance, Chiang Kai-shek destroyed number of Yellow River levies, causing extensive flooding that killed tens of thousands.
As China recovered from war under the communists, urban Henan industrialized, with the 1954 creation of a Beijing-Hankou rail line turning Zhengzhou into a regional transportation center. Rural Henan was also the epicenter of agricultural reform, with Yashan becoming the first model "people's commune" under Mao Zedong's "Great Leap Forward" policies, which tragically contributed to the starvation of millions.
In recent years, Henan's industrialization has continued along the Yellow River corridor even as awareness of the region's archeological value has risen; the result for visitors is a fascinating blend of the ancient and modern China.