Was Shanghai's geographical location important in ancient China?

Speaking of Shanghai, most friends must be very familiar with it. It is the economic center of our country and the largest foreign trade port city in our country.

But if you want to ask about the importance of Shanghai's geographical location in ancient times, it is closely related to the foreign policy and domestic national policy of China's feudal society.

First of all, let’s look at the geography knowledge I have learned.

?Shanghai? is located at the mouth of the Yangtze River. As the sediment carried by the Yangtze River is deposited here, a piece of land has been formed over the years. In other words, the area of ???Shanghai?

The importance of location also varied throughout the dynasties.

The history of Shanghai can be traced back to the Spring and Autumn Period, when Shanghai was under the jurisdiction of the State of Wu.

During the Qin and Han Dynasties, Shanghai was administered by Kuaiji County and Wu County.

In the Tang Dynasty, Shanghai's geographical location made a breakthrough in its administrative status. The court at that time divided Shanghai into independent administrative regions and established it as: Huating County.

In other words, from the origin period of Shanghai: the Spring and Autumn Period, to the Tang Dynasty, Shanghai only changed in the division of administrative regions. The importance of its geographical location was not high during that period. This was mainly due to the fact that during that period

China mainly develops its agricultural economy, and its navigation technology is not developed. Neighboring countries such as North Korea and East Asian countries are either vassal states of China, or their countries are still in the development stage and are unable to develop foreign economies, such as Japan.

.

In this way, even though Shanghai is close to the East China Sea, its geographical location for developing foreign trade is very advantageous.

However, due to these factors, its geographical location was not utilized and developed, and it did not receive the attention of the court at that time. It was just a small town near the ocean.

By the Song and Ming dynasties, the traditional small-scale peasant economy had reached its peak.

The traditional small-scale peasant economy is no longer enough to meet the government's financial needs. Since then, the emerging "commodity economy" has entered the stage of history and developed very rapidly during this period.

For example, Qinglong Town, which was part of Shanghai at that time, was a famous port and commercial center.

For example, Song Dynasty poet Mei Yaochen described Qinglong Town in "Qinglong Magazine": "Three pavilions, seven pagodas, thirteen temples, and thousands of houses with fireworks."

?It can be seen how prosperous the economy of Huating County was at that time.

At the same time, the government established the "Municipal Shipping Office" in Huating County to manage maritime entry and exit affairs.

During the Southern Song Dynasty, due to the continuous invasion of Jin soldiers, land transportation was blocked, which objectively promoted the development of navigation technology in the Song Dynasty. Port cities including Shanghai received more and more attention from the government, and the trade economy became more developed.

By the Ming Dynasty, Shanghai had become the textile and handicraft industry center at that time.

In the early Qing Dynasty (1685), Shanghai was established as the "Shanghai Customs", and Shanghai became a famous large commercial port in the country.

During the late Qing Dynasty, in order to develop overseas markets, the then-sunset empire (the British Empire) used strong ships and cannons to open the door to China. Shanghai, a port city with a unique geographical advantage, was coveted by the British Empire, and it was also

In this way, "Shanghai" became one of the five customs that must be opened in the "Treaty of Nanjing" and gradually became a colony.

As the saying goes, "Misfortune lies on the back of good fortune, and good fortune lies on the back of misfortune." When Shanghai was forcibly established as a treaty port, Britain's advanced capitalist economy, management experience, and transportation tools also poured in, which objectively promoted

With the economic and cultural development of the Shanghai area, Shanghai has gradually become a modern international business center.

It has also become the epitome of China's modern economic development.