When did the boundaries between provinces in China come into being?

Borders are the regional boundaries that divide the land under their respective jurisdiction between countries and localities. For example, the country we are familiar with today, or the geographical boundaries between one province and another. So, how did the boundaries of China's administrative regions form in history? What is the basis for division?

The formation of administrative boundaries in ancient China has experienced a very complicated and long process from scratch. As the main part of administrative divisions, the border began to form in the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. After hundreds of years of brewing, with the unification of the six countries by Qin, the border was truly realized.

Manzhouli Guomen (photo by the author)

The first is the "open space" before the formation of the administrative boundary.

China formed the concept of border very early, and Lu Jia in the Western Han Dynasty put forward the concept of border: "Hou Ji is the border." Mentioned the ancient people's understanding of boundaries and zoning boundaries.

As early as the Western Zhou Dynasty, there were many vassal states. At that time, the population was not too large, so there were many idle wasteland between countries. In 627 BC, Qin sent troops to attack Zheng. When passing through the border of Jin State, it was almost like nobody's business. Not only did the State of Jin not respond, but even the attacked State of Zheng knew nothing about it. It was not until Qin entered the territory of Zheng that Zheng responded.

This war shows that there are still a lot of uncultivated wasteland between countries in the Spring and Autumn Period, and the boundary line between countries is very vague, or even there is no boundary line at all. Ge Zeng counted in the Population History of China that the population of the whole country probably did not exceed 20 million in the Spring and Autumn Period. At that time, the vassal States were more like independent city-States, distributed in dots, and there was no concept of national boundaries between countries. However, with the passage of time and the increasing population, territorial expansion has become a necessary political means for vassal States.

The division of administrative boundaries today

"Book of Rites" once recorded: "The state builds a country of a hundred miles, and the country of three or seven miles is sixty. The famous mountain osawa is not sealed, and the rest are counted as princes' fields. " The "space field" here is an open space between countries without any sovereignty during the Spring and Autumn Period. These open spaces are generally used as a buffer between countries, or subcontracted to later generations as their new land. Therefore, before the Warring States period, it was impossible for a country to have the concept of national boundaries.

Second, the formation and evolution of administrative boundaries.

The concept of border began to take shape during the Warring States Period. The boundaries between political regions and countries gradually formed, and the city-states in the Spring and Autumn Period began to transform into territorial countries.

For example, in the middle and late Warring States period, Su Qin once said that Han Wei was afraid of Qin because both countries were bordered by Qin. There is also Historical Records Biography of Rivers and Channels, which records that the great river (the Yellow River) is the dividing line between Qi and Zhao. All these historical materials show that by the Warring States period, the concepts of national boundaries and boundaries had emerged between countries.

Su Qin in film and television dramas.

In addition to population growth and economic development, the main reason for the border is that after the Warring States period, various vassal States launched a protracted merger war, with the aim of acquiring more land and population. At this time, a large number of open spaces that existed in the Spring and Autumn Period became the targets of crazy plunder by various countries. In order to reduce the friction between countries, we have to draw boundaries between countries to limit each other's activities.

Today, the provinces and counties in China are clearly defined (photo by the author)

During the Warring States period, there were boundaries between countries, and there were also boundaries between counties among vassal States. The early counties were not a higher administrative region under the jurisdiction of counties, but in the border areas of various countries, counties became the border areas of various countries and gradually formed the boundaries of counties. On a smaller scale, the boundaries between counties have also appeared. For example, at the end of the Spring and Autumn Period, the boundary between Chu and Wu was between Beiliang Border Town and Chu Border Town.

In the internal administrative regions of vassal States, due to the development of production and the improvement of farming technology, opening up new land also reduced the open space between administrative regions, and over time, the boundaries of internal administrative regions were formed. For example, Shang Yang's political reform in Qin Xiaogong stipulated that small towns (units under people's jurisdiction) should be incorporated into counties, that is, different numbers of small towns should be incorporated into new counties. The boundaries between these small towns and small towns will become clearer and clearer because of the establishment of counties.

Qin Xiaogong (left) and Shang Yang (right)

During the Qin and Han dynasties, with the unification of the country and the stability of the political situation, the development of various administrative regions also deepened. The boundaries between counties are also clearer. After the boundaries are clear, there will be four and eight. Generally speaking, with the gradual establishment of the county system from the Warring States to the Qin and Han Dynasties, the concept of its administrative boundaries gradually became clear.

Although the concept of border originated in the Warring States period, it was difficult to form a stable border because of the merger war at that time. It was not until Qin Shihuang unified the six countries and set up thirty-six counties (actually more than thirty-six counties) that the formation of stable administrative boundaries became possible.