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Luzhou

Prefecture-level city in Sichuan, People's Republic of China

  • 13 min read
  • 10 chapters
Luzhou, Sichuan
PhiLiP · CC BY-SA 4.0

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Luzhou is best known for its alcoholic beverages, particularly baijiu.

History

Luzhou was incorporated into the Ba state early in the Shang and Zhou period, in the 11th century BC. In 316 BC, during the Warring States period, King Huiwen of Qin established Ba prefecture, which included most of Luzhou, after he conquered the states of Ba and Shu. The local economy and culture expanded as a result of the advanced production technique and culture introduced by immigrants from the rest of China. During the Western Han dynasty (206 BC-AD 9), Jiangyang county was set up in what is the current Jiangyang district, at the confluence of the Tuo River and Yangtze River. The county was further expanded during the reign of Emperor Wu of Han. As a result, Luzhou became the portal of the Tuojing River leading to western Sichuan, which brought great prosperity to salt-refinery and agriculture in the area.

The Song dynasty was an important period in Luzhou's history. It was known as the natural granary of southern Sichuan as the liquor-distilling and salt-refining industries expanded. The method to decoct salt with natural gas was discovered at that time, according to ancient literature. In addition, trade and business between Luzhou residents and ethnic groups was brisk and a protective wall as well as forts were constructed by the local government.

In the Yuan dynasty, Luzhou remained an important place for trade, especially the liquor-distillation, salt-refinery and tea-making industries. A large number of wooden ships were constructed to further the shipping industry.

During the Qing dynasty (1644–1911), waves of immigrants from other parts of China brought rapid growth in economy and culture. Luzhou served as a political, economic, military and cultural center for the provinces of Sichuan, Guizhou and Yunnan.

On December 6, 1949, two months after the founding of the People's Republic of China, the People's Liberation Army took control of Luzhou from the Kuomintang government. Before its abolition on August 7, 1952, the Chuannan Administrative District governed one prefecture-level city, four prefectures, totaling five prefecture-level administrative divisions, as well as five urban districts, four county-level cities, and 33 counties, amounting to 42 county-level administrative divisions. Luzhou was the seat of both the Administrative Inspector's Office of Luzhou and Luxian District (at the prefecture level), as well as the Commissioner's Office of the Luzhou Prefecture (also at the prefecture level). It also served as the location of the Chuannan Administrative Office and was under both the jurisdiction of the Chuannan Administrative Region and the prefecture-level administration. In 1960, Luzhou prefecture was created with five counties that had been part of Yibin prefecture. During the Cultural Revolution (1966–1976), Luzhou experienced a series of armed factional conflicts that lasted nearly four years (1967–1970). In just three major battles, more than 2,000 people were killed and over 16,000 injured—over 8,000 of them left permanently disabled. Additionally, more than 300 million yuan of state funds were misappropriated, over 68.4 million jin (approximately 34,200 tons) of grain were consumed or lost, more than 1,000 vehicles were destroyed, and a large quantity of materials was damaged or looted.

The prefecture was upgraded to the prefecture-level city of Luzhou in 1983. Nowadays, Luzhou is considered a center of the chemical, machinery, and liquor-distilling industries.

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