Dazhong Bridge

Dazhong Bridge

Dazhong Bridge is a protected cultural heritage site of Nanjing.

Dazhong Bridge is located to the west of the intersection of Longpan Road, Daguang Road, Jiankang Road, and Baixia Road, inside Tongjimen in Qinhuai District, Nanjing. Known as Baixia Bridge in ancient times, it is an historic bridge in Nanjing and a protected cultural heritage site of the city, boasting a history of over a thousand years. Its piers are original historical structures. After several widenings, Dazhong Bridge has now become a major traffic artery in southern Nanjing.

As early as the Six Dynasties period, the area where Dazhong Bridge now stands was the eastern gate of Baixia City, a garrison town of Jiankang City at that time. When the Yang Wu Kingdom (later the Southern Tang) built its city walls, they dug a moat along the Qingxi River, and a bridge was constructed across the moat just outside the eastern gate. With the Qingxi River flowing in front of the gate and crossing the grand bridge, it came to be called "Baixia Bridge," which was the original name of the bridge.

Huang Daozhou, a renowned anti-Qing loyalist official, died a martyr’s death near Baixia Bridge. The people of Nanjing renamed the bridge to Dazhong (meaning “great loyalty”), but later changed the name to Dazhong (avoiding taboo characters related to the Qing court) to avoid persecution, and the name Dazhong Bridge has been used ever since.

Dazhong Bridge has a history of nearly a thousand years. As early as the Six Dynasties period, the area where Dazhong Bridge now stands was the eastern gate of Baixia City, a garrison town of Jiankang City at that time. When the Yang Wu Kingdom (later the Southern Tang) built its city walls, they dug a moat along the Qingxi River, and a bridge was constructed across the moat just outside the eastern gate. With the Qingxi River flowing in front of the gate and crossing the grand bridge, it came to be called "Baixia Bridge," which was the original name of the bridge.

In the ninth year of the Wude era of Emperor Gaozu of the Tang Dynasty (626), the county seat of Jinling was moved here and renamed Baixia County. The eastern gate of the city thus became known as Baixia Gate, and the bridge over the Qingxi River in front of the gate was named Baixia Bridge. During the Tang Dynasty, there was a post station called "Baixia Pavilion" next to Baixia Bridge, situated across the river from Baixia Gate. With weeping willows reflected in the Qingxi River and lush green grass stretching as far as the eye could see, it was listed among the Eighteen Scenic Spots of Jinling during the Ming Dynasty. Wen Boren, the nephew of the Wu School painter Wen Zhengming, carefully depicted it in his painting album "Eighteen Scenic Spots of Jinling." It gained great fame also because it served as a place for literati and scholars to see off guests and hold farewell banquets. The great Tang poet Li Bai stayed here during his travels in Jinling. In his poem "Farewell at Baixia Pavilion in Jinling," he wrote: "The post pavilion by the three poplar trees stands right before Baixia Gate." After leaving Jinling and heading west, he wrote in the poem "Presented to My Uncle, Magistrate Yang Bing of Dangtu" (his uncle being the famous philologist, calligrapher, and magistrate of Dangtu County, Li Yangbing): "I leave Jinling, coming from Baixia Pavilion." This shows how deeply attached Li Bai was to Baixia Pavilion. The Song Dynasty poet Ren Si’an wrote the playful line "Stepping out of the golden palace barefoot, I head east of Baixia Pavilion for wine," vividly capturing the bold character and free-spirited demeanor of the poetic immortal and wine sage, Li Bai.

During the Song Dynasty, the Jiankang Prefecture continued the old system of the Southern Tang, and both Baixia Bridge and Baixia Pavilion remained. After Wang Anshi was dismissed as prime minister, he lived in Banshan Garden. Whenever he entered the city through the eastern gate, he had to pass by Baixia Bridge and Baixia Pavilion. He once wrote: "In front of the gate, autumn waters ripple — I’m inclined to visit Baixia Pavilion to the west." After inviting Su Dongpo to Jinling to tour Zhongshan Mountain, Wang Anshi saw him off at Baixia Bridge and composed a poem: "To trace the source, one must go to the mouth of the Qingxi; to see off guests, one always passes Baixia Bridge." Wang Anshi also wrote lines such as: "The Baixia Pavilion at the eastern gate, its broken bricks entwined with cold blooms." Next to the pavilion stood Baixia Temple, whose plaque was inscribed by Kou Zhun, a famous statesman of the Song Dynasty.

Wen Tianxiang, the national hero of the Southern Song Dynasty, was captured by Yuan troops and escorted to Dadu (present-day Beijing). When passing through Jiankang, he stayed at a post station near Baixia Bridge.

According to the "Zhizheng Xin Zhi of Jinling" from the Yuan Dynasty: "Baixia Bridge, also called Shangchun Bridge, is located outside the eastern gate of the city, with Baixia Pavilion nearby." By the Yuan Dynasty, Baixia Bridge had been renamed Shangchun Bridge (also known as "Changchun Bridge"). The reason for the name change was that "the name Baixia was inauspicious for scholars," as people at the time avoided the term "Baixia" because it could be mistakenly interpreted as "having no descendants." Thus, it was renamed Shangchun Bridge.

The "Shangyuan County Annals" of the Ming Dynasty’s Wanli era recorded that there were originally two bridges here: a large bridge (now Huaqing Bridge) and a medium bridge (now Sixiang Bridge). In the early Ming Dynasty, the two bridges were merged into one, hence collectively referred to as Dazhong Bridge. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the nearby Baixia Temple was expanded to cover an area of thirty to forty acres, flourishing with incense offerings, but it later disappeared into the vicissitudes of time.

In the first year of the Hongguang era of the Southern Ming (1645), after Nanjing was occupied by Qing troops, Huang Daozhou, a successful imperial examinee of the Tianqi era of the Ming, along with Zheng Zhilong and others, supported the Longwu Emperor in Fujian and was appointed Grand Secretary of the Wuying Hall. He volunteered to go to Jiangxi to recruit troops to resist the Qing army's southern advance. On his way to Wuyuan, he suddenly encountered a large Qing army. Left without reinforcements, he was defeated and captured, and later died a martyr’s death near Baixia Bridge. The Longwu Emperor posthumously awarded him the title of Marquis of Wenyi and the posthumous name Zhonglie (Loyal and Heroic). To commemorate Huang Daozhou, who heroically sacrificed himself in the late Ming and early Qing periods, the people of Nanjing renamed Baixia Bridge to Dazhong (meaning “great loyalty”). Later, to avoid persecution by the Qing court, it reverted to being called Dazhong Bridge. Since then, the bridge has gained widespread fame.

Current Status

Today, after several widenings, the bridge has become a major thoroughfare, connecting the eastern urban trunk road and serving as a primary exit in southern Nanjing. Beneath the bridge, clear river water flows gently, with weeping willows reflecting in the Qingxi River and lush greenery all around. Nearby residents leisurely stroll along the riverside paths, basking in the sunshine.