Home Forums Blogs Articles Photos Videos Contact FAQ

Liaoning - History

Liaoning - History: Encyclopedia II - Liaoning - History

See also: Xianbei, Manchuria Liaoning is the southernmost part of the region historically known as Manchuria. The Qin and Han dynasties were able to establish rule over much of what is Liaoning; later on governments headed by various peoples such as the Xianbei, Goguryeo, Khitan and Jurchen ruled Liaoning. In the 17th century the Manchus had their capital in modern Shenyang, Liaoning, before they conquered the rest of China, setting up the Qing Dynasty in 1644. In the last half of the seventeenth century the imperial government recrui ...

Liaoning: Encyclopedia II - Liaoning - History

Liaoning - History

See also: Xianbei, Manchuria

Liaoning is the southernmost part of the region historically known as Manchuria. The Qin and Han dynasties were able to establish rule over much of what is Liaoning; later on governments headed by various peoples such as the Xianbei, Goguryeo, Khitan and Jurchen ruled Liaoning. In the 17th century the Manchus had their capital in modern Shenyang, Liaoning, before they conquered the rest of China, setting up the Qing Dynasty in 1644. In the last half of the seventeenth century the imperial government recruited migrants from Shandong to settle the relatively sparsely populated area. Many of the current residents of Liaoning trace their ancestry to these seventeenth century settlers. For the rest of the Manchu era, Manchuria was off-limits to Han Chinese, and was ruled by three generals, one of whom, the General of Shengjing, ruled much of modern Liaoning.

In 1860 the Manchu government began to reopen the region to migration, which quickly resulted in Han Chinese becoming the dominant ethnic group in the region. In the 20th century the province of Fengtian was set up in what is Liaoning today. When Japan and Russia fought the Russo-Japanese War in 1904-1905, many key battles took place in Liaoning. During the Warlord Era in the early 20th century Liaoning was under the Fengtian Clique, including Zhang Zuolin and his son Zhang Xueliang; in 1931 Japan invaded and the area came under the rule of the Japanese-controlled puppet state of Manchukuo. The Chinese Civil War that took place following Japanese defeat in 1945 had its first major battles (the Liaoshen Campaign) in and around Liaoning.

At the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, Liaoning did not exist; instead there were two provinces, Liaodong and Liaoxi, as well as five municipalities, Shenyang, Luda, Anshan, Fushun, and Benxi. These were all merged together into "Liaoning" in 1954, and parts of former Rehe province were merged into Liaoning in 1955. During the Cultural Revolution Liaoning also took in a part of Inner Mongolia, though this was reversed later.

Liaoning was one of the first provinces in China to industrialize, first under Japanese occupation, and then even more in the 1950s and 1960s. The city of Anshan, for example, is home to one of the largest iron and steel complexes in China. In recent years this early focus on heavy industry has become a liability, as many of the large state-run enterprises have experienced economic difficulties. Recognizing the special difficulties faced by Liaoning and other provinces in Northeast China because of their heritage of heavy industry, the Chinese central government recently launched a Revitalize the Northeast Campaign.

Partial list of provincial governors: