Hangzhou

Hangzhou has enjoyed a history of over 2,200 years since the county administration was established in Qin Dynasty. It is one of the cradles of Huaxia (China) Civilization. The Kuahuqiao Ruins showed that there were human beings multiplying and living in Hangzhou area early 8,000 years ago. Liangzhu Culture, as early as over 5,000 years ago, was known as "the Dawn of Civilization". Hangzhou, one of the seven ancient capitals of China, was the capital of Wuyue State of the Five-Dynasties

and also the capital of the Southern Song Dynasty. In the 13th century, the Italian traveler Marco Polo admired Hangzhou as "the Most Splendid and Luxurious City in the World". Hangzhou was called Qiantang in ancient time. In the ninth year of Kaihuang of Sui Dynasty (589), Hangzhou was founded to replace the original Qiantang County and the name of Hangzhou was recorded for the first time in history. In the first year of the Republic of China (1912), the original Qiantang County and Renhe County were merged into Hangzhou County. In the 16th year of the Republic of China (1927), Hangzhou County was dismantled and Hangzhou was founded as a city. It was on May 3, 1949 when Hangzhou was liberated that Hangzhou began to write its new chapter of development in history.
The construction of "Safe Hangzhou" achieved a marked effect. In 2009, the accident number of all kinds, the death toll, the injuring toll and the direct economic loss, decreased 16.7%, 8.7%, 17.4% and 16.1% compared with the previous year respectively. The number of deaths of production safety accidents per 100 million GDP was 0.18, down 14.3% over the previous year.
Hangzhou fostered a galaxy of culturally significant celebrities including philosophers such as Gong Zizhen and Zhang Taiyan; litterateurs such as Bai Juyi, Lin Hejing, Fan Zhongyan, Chen Ruisheng, Luo Guanzhong, Shi Naian, Yu Dafu, Feng Zikai, Xiayan; Dramatists such as Li Yu and Hong Sheng; Artists suh as Li Tang, Liu Songnian, Ma Yuan, Xia Qi, Li Song, Wu Changshuo, Huang Binhong, Pan Tianshou, Huang Gongwang, Lin Fengmian, Gai Jiaotian; Scholars of Chinese such as Yu Quyuan and Ma Yifu; Scientists such as Shen Kuo, Bi Sheng, Li Zhizao, Zhu Kezhen, Mao Yisheng, Qian Xueseng; Education experts such as Lin Qi, Tao Xingzhi, Li Shutong; Scholars of medicine such as Wu Shangxian, Zhu Danxi, Wang Mengying; Great patriots such as Yue Fei, Yu Qian, and Zhang Cangshui. 
 

Hangzhou has numerous special local products. As the "Capital of Silk", its history of silk producing could be dated back to 4,700 years ago testified by the silk cloth unearthed from Liangzhu ruins. Later in the Tang Dynasty, the silk production had reached a distinctively high level, which was described in the poem of the great poet Bai Juyi as "Red sleeves are decorated by flower textures which could be well compared to the real blossom. When pears flowers are bloom, it is the time to drink the light heart under the blue flags of the bar." Presently, the silk is differentiated into fourteen categories of Chou, Duan, Jin, Fang, Zou, Ling etc. Those categories are fractionized into more than 200 subclasses, over 2,000 designs and colors with vivid pictures printed, flowers and figures alike. The silk of Hangzhou has won immense national and international awards and was marketed into more than 100 countries and regions. Hangzhou is also renowned for the dragon-well tea which is listed as one of the top ten tea in China, the Dongpo Pork which is ruby in color and softly tender in taste, the fan of Wangxingji, the scissors of Zhangxiaoquan, the lace from Xiaoshan, the Jingshan tea from Yuhang, the honey products from Tonglu, the organic fish-head from the Thousand- Island Lake, the mountain walnuts from Lin'an, the Yellow wine typed Wujiapi of the brand Zhizhonghe, the Tofu peel from Fuyang. Numerable local specialties give out a rich flavor of Hangzhou local taste.