Site of the Former Liao Huanglong Prefecture

Site of the Former Liao Huanglong Prefecture

The Site of the Former Liao Huanglong Prefecture is a cultural tourism attraction.

Nong’an Town boasts a history of over two thousand years as an established settlement. By the end of the 2nd century BC, the Fuyu people established their capital here and founded the Fuyu Kingdom. As a vassal state of the Han Dynasty, it was one of the cradles of civilization in China’s northeast.

At the intersection of Huanglong Road and Pagoda Street in Nong’an Town, a Liao–Jin dynasty pagoda embeds a deep sense of history within the bustling urban landscape. The pagoda stands near the ancient city site, and legend has it that it was built within a temple. The temple was Huanglong Temple, and the city was Huanglong Prefecture.

In 1127 AD, Jin forces captured Bianliang, taking Emperor Huizong and Emperor Qinzong prisoner, and briefly imprisoning both in Huanglong Prefecture. Yue Fei’s forces vowed to “march straight to Huanglong” and reclaim their lost lands to avenge the humiliation of the Jingkang Incident—this meant advancing directly on the Jin stronghold, Huanglong Prefecture. According to the *History of Liao*: “Longzhou Huanglong Prefecture was originally the Bohai Fuyu Prefecture. After Emperor Taizu of Liao conquered the Bohai Kingdom, he passed away here after seeing a yellow dragon, prompting the renaming.” The Huanglong Prefecture referred to by Yue Fei is today’s Nong’an City.

To this day, the people of Nong’an still delight in recounting the story of Yue Fei’s vow: “When we reach Huanglong Prefecture, let us all drink heartily together!”—undoubtedly, this tale adds the perfect finishing touch to the city’s legendary reputation.

Yet, Huanglong Prefecture has endured millennia of history, and its significance extends far beyond the “Humiliation of Jingkang.” As for the lines by Mr. Li Dazhao: “When shall we drink heartily at Huanglong Prefecture, and raise high the Pavilion of Wind and Rain over our land?”—they, too, likely evoke visions of this city in its prime: a formidable stronghold, heavily guarded, strategically impregnable, and commanding awe across the land.

The ancient city of Nong’an is situated at the convergence of the western grasslands and eastern hills, overlooking both banks of the Songhua River and controlling north–south transportation routes—thus becoming a vital military and transport hub. Since its establishment, various peoples—including the Donghu, Xianbei, Huimo, Sushen, Khitan, Jurchen, and Mongols—have sought to capture the city and seize the initiative for unifying the realm. The abundance of Liao–Jin relics unearthed within the region, along with the 23 surrounding Liao–Jin ancient city ruins, attest to Nong’an’s historical importance and former prosperity.

This place has witnessed the rise and fall of dynasties such as Fuyu, Bohai, Liao, and Jin. By the early Liao period, Huanglong Prefecture governed five commanderies and three counties. With the development of politics, economy, and transportation, not only did the population surge, but it also became a melting pot of ethnic groups living and interacting closely. According to the *Compilation of the Three Dynasties’ Northern Treaties*, at Huanglong Prefecture, “when people of different nations gathered and could not understand each other’s languages, they would use Chinese to mediate and clarify.” The Liao aristocracy held Buddhism in high esteem, and as one of the Six Prefectures of Liao, Huanglong Prefecture also flourished in Buddhist activities. The 44-meter-tall, octagonal-eaved Liao–Jin pagoda in Nong’an County was constructed in the third year of the Taiping era (1023 AD) during the reign of Emperor Shengzong of Liao, and has withstood a thousand years of wind and frost without collapsing.

With the change of regimes, Huanglong Prefecture underwent several name changes. During the Jin Dynasty, it was called Jizhou, Longzhou, and Long’an Prefecture; during the Yuan Dynasty, it briefly served as the administrative seat of Kai’an Route; by the Ming Dynasty, it had become grazing land for Mongolian tribes, with a station named “Long’an” established on the old site; by the Qing Dynasty, Huanglong Prefecture was officially designated as a county under the name “Nong’an,” a name that has continued to the present day.

Though those times have long vanished, and emperors, generals, and ministers alike have been buried in the pages of history, Huanglong Prefecture—as one of the birthplaces of Liao–Jin culture and northern Chinese civilization—has left the world more than just Liao–Jin-style architectural complexes and ancient city ruins, or the reed-filled Bolo Lake. It has also imprinted a spirit of grandeur and heroic ambition into the very bloodline of generations who have lived and thrived here.

The ancient city of Huanglong has journeyed from wilderness to civilization, from hunting to farming, through ages of upheaval. Today, Nong’an County has launched the “Promote Huanglong Culture, Build a Historic Cultural City in Northeast China” project, aiming to complete the protection of Huanglong Prefecture’s cultural heritage and develop related cultural initiatives over a span of three to five years. The first phase involves selecting a site within the Huanglong Prefecture ancient city ruins to plan and construct the Huanglong Prefecture Cultural Park. This includes restoring and rebuilding the traveling palace of Emperor Taizu of Liao, the detention site of Emperors Huizong and Qinzong, and the Yuan Dynasty courier station, forming a cluster of Liao–Jin style architecture. The second phase centers around the Liao Pagoda, planning to restore the thousand-year-old Huanglong Temple and establish the Huanglong Prefecture Historical Museum, comprehensively collecting, preserving, and exhibiting the multi-faceted historical and cultural relics of Huanglong Prefecture.