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Opens New Manufacturing Facility in Suzhou, China to Produce Rapid... bd.com |
This article is about the city in Jiangsu province. For other places called Suzhou, see Suzhou (disambiguation).
Suzhou (simplified Chinese: 苏州; traditional Chinese: 蘇州; pinyin: Sūzhōu; ancient name: 吳; Suzhou dialect: [səu][tsøʏ]) is a city on the lower reaches of the Yangtze River and on the shores of Lake Taihu in the province of Jiangsu, China. The city is renowned for its beautiful stone bridges, pagodas, and meticulously designed gardens which have contributed to its status as a great tourist attraction. Since the Song Dynasty (960-1279), Suzhou has also been an important centre for China's silk industry and continues to hold that prominent position today. The city is part of the Yangtze River Delta region. The GDP per capita was ¥106,412 (US$15,322) in 2008, ranked 2nd among 659 Chinese cities.[citation needed]
[edit] HistorySuzhou, the cradle of Wu culture, is one of the oldest towns in the Yangtze Basin. 2500 years ago in the late Shang Dynasty, local tribes who named themselves "Gou Wu" lived in the area which would become the modern city of Suzhou. In 514 BC, during the Spring and Autumn Period, King Helu (闔閭/阖闾) of Wu established "Great City of Helu", the ancient name for Suzhou, as his capital. In 496 BC, Helu was buried in Huqiu (Tiger Hill 虎丘).  In 473 BC Wu was defeated by Yue, a kingdom to the east which was soon annexed by the Chu in 306 BC. The golden era of Suzhou ended with this conquest. Remnants of this culture include remainders of a 2,500 year old city wall and the gate through it at Pan Gate. By the time of the Qin Dynasty, the city was known as Wu County. Xiang Yu (项羽) staged his historical uprising here in 209 BC, which contributed to the overthrow of Qin. During the Sui Dynasty - in 589 AD - the city was renamed Suzhou. When the Grand Canal was completed, Suzhou found itself strategically located on a major trade route. In the course of the history of China, it has been a metropolis of industry and commerce on the south-eastern coast of China. During the Tang Dynasty (825 AD), the great poet Bai Juyi (白居易) constructed the Shantang Canal (called "Shantang Street" or 山塘街) to connect the city with Huqiu for tourists. In 1035 AD, the temple of Confucius was founded by famed poet and writer Fan Zhongyan (范仲淹). It became the venue for imperial civil examinations. In February 1130, the advancing Jin army from the north ransacked and massacred the city. This was followed by the Mongol invasion (1275). In 1356, Suzhou became of the capital of Zhang Shicheng, one of the leaders of the Red Turban Rebellion against the Yuan Dynasty and the self-proclaimed King of Wu. In 1367 Zhang's main rival, Nanjing-based Zhu Yuanzhang took the city after a 10-month siege. Zhu - who was soon to proclaim himself as the first emperor of the Ming Dynasty - demolished the royal city (in the centre of Suzhou's walled city), and imposed crushing taxes on the city's and prefecture's powerful families.[2] Despite the heavy taxation and the resettlement of some of Suzhou's prominent citizens' to the area of Hongwu's capital, Nanjing, Suzhou soon was prosperous again. When in 1488 the shipwrecked Korean official Choe Bu had a chance to see much of Eastern China - from Zhejiang to Liaoning - on his way home, he described Suzhou in his travel report as exceeding every other city in China he had seen.[3] Many of the famous private gardens were constructed by the gentry of the Ming and Qing dynasties. However, the city was to see another disaster in 1860 when Taiping soldiers advanced on and captured the city. In November 1863 the Ever Victorious Army of Charles Gordon recaptured the city from the Taiping forces. The next crisis that met the city was the Japanese invasion in 1937. Many gardens were devastated by the end of the war. In the early 1950s, restoration was done on gardens such as Zhuo-Zheng Yuan (Humble Administrator's Garden) and Dong Yuan (East Garden) to bring them back to life. In 1981, this ancient city was listed by the State Council, the PRC government, as one of four cities (the other three being Beijing, Hangzhou and Guilin) where the protection of historical and cultural heritage as well as natural scenery should ideally be treated with utmost care. Since then, Suzhou has developed into one of the most prosperous cities in China. In the wake of the rapid economic development, a major demolition and reconstruction program has been carried through in the central parts of the ancient city. Where narrow streets, alleys and canals once existed, multi-lane highways and shopping malls have been constructed. Similar developments have also taken place in Beijing and Hangzhou, where very little classical architecture now remains. The classical gardens in Suzhou were added to the list of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 1997 and 2000. An online tour of the gardens can be seen at the 'World Heritage Tours' website. [1] [edit] Administrative divisionsBecause Suzhou is one of the most prosperous cities in China, its development has a direct correlation with the growth of its satellite cities, most notably Kunshan, Taicang, Mudu, and Zhangjiagang, which together form the greater Suzhou region. Suzhou's jurisdictional areas are home to many high-tech development enterprises. Suzhou has jurisdiction over (at county level):
[edit] ClimateSuzhou has a humid subtropical climate with hot, humid summers, and cool to cold, cloudy, damp winters with occasional flurries. The spring and autumn are much more pleasant.
[edit] Landmarks ,_Suzhou.jpg) 
[edit] Transportation[edit] RailwaySuzhou is conveniently located on the Jinghu Railway linking Shanghai and Nanjing, the provincial capital, to both of which there is hourly railway service. Suzhou Railway Station is among the busiest passenger stations in China, having 139 trains stopping daily. The Station is currently being renovated and expanded to serve the needs of the future. It will possibly have similar designs like the Shanghai South Railway Station and Beijing South Railway Station. T-Series Trains only take 45 minutes to Shanghai and an hour and half to Nanjing. [edit] Expressway and Highway The Jiangsu-Shanghai Expressway connects Suzhou with Shanghai, alternatively, there is also the Yangtze Riverine Expressway and the Suzhou-Jiaxing-Hangzhou Expressway. In 2005, the new Suzhou Outer Ring was completed, linking the peripheral county-level cities of Taicang, Kunshan, and Changshu. China National Highway 312 also passes through Suzhou. [edit] Air TransportAlthough Wuxi Shuofang Airport and Guangfu United Airlines Airport serve as two municipal airports, and the State Council approved of the construction of an airport exclusively serving Suzhou in 2003, air transportation from Suzhou continues to be conducted primarily at Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport and Shanghai Pudong International Airport in Shanghai. [edit] Water TransportBy water, Suzhou is connected with Zhangjiagang, Luzhi, Liujia, Changshou and Shimonoseki, Japan. [edit] MetroThe Suzhou Metro is currently being constructed, it consist of two independent lines, one running East<->West and one running North<->South serving Suzhou Industrial Park and Wuzhong Dirstrict. Two lines are scheduled to open in 2011.[4] [edit] Culture  
[edit] Notable people
[edit] Quotes
[edit] EducationHigh Schools  Public institutions having full-time Bachelor's degree programs include:
Postgraduate Institution
Private Schools [edit] Sister citiesSuzhou (including 7 districts and 5 county-level cities under Suzhou's jurisdiction) has more than 50 sister cities, twin towns and provinces: [edit] See also
[edit] References
[edit] Suggested reading[edit] External links
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