The Ancient City of the Dangchang Kingdom

　　I’ve lived on Old City Street in Dangchang for many years, having walked past the overgrown ruins of the ancient city walls countless times. Yet I never knew that I was living within what was once the seat of a kingdom, treading paths that were once its waterways—this very land was once the capital of a state, the site of the Dangchang Kingdom that endured for 142 years. It truly makes one reflect: “When will the spring flowers and autumn moon cease? How much of the past is known?”

　　Approaching the ruins of the ancient Dangchang Kingdom and standing before the crumbling remnants of history, the annual cycle of withering and flourishing weeds, the ceaseless flow of the Min River (a tributary of the Min and Bailong rivers) to the east, seem to narrate the rise and fall of dynasties and the shifting tides of time. According to the *Dangchang County Annals*, the ancient city of Dangchang was rectangular, approximately 120 meters long and 60 meters wide, with walls about 5–1.5 meters thick, reaching a maximum height of 10 meters and a minimum of 4 meters. It had gates to the north and south. The lower part of the walls was constructed with timber bracing, reflecting a pre-Han Dynasty architectural style, while the upper sections were built using rammed earth, reinforced through successive dynastic repairs. Inside the city stood the “City God Temple,” and numerous ancient pottery fragments have been discovered, identified by experts as remnants of a fortified settlement. The *Book of Wei · Biography of the Dangchang Kingdom* also records: “The Dangchang Kingdom lies southeast of Henan, northwest of Yizhou, and west of Longxi. Its people are of the Qiang ethnicity. Its territory extended west from Qiuchi (now west of Xihe County), spanning a thousand li east to west, and south of the Ji River (present-day Jishui, south of Gangu), covering eight hundred li north to south, with mountainous terrain.” Its capital, according to the *Map of Chinese Historical Territories* from the sixth year of the Datong era of the Wei Dynasty (540 AD), was located northwest of the Bailong River, along the Min River—precisely in present-day Jiucheng Village, Dangchang Town. Li Daoyuan’s *Commentary on the Water Classic* mentions: “The Qiang River (the Min River in present-day Dangchang) flows southeast, passing east of the Dangchang city.” These sources confirm that the Dangchang Kingdom did indeed exist historically, with its capital situated in present-day Jiucheng Village, Dangchang Town—right here, amid these weed-covered ruins.

　　“The great river flows eastward, washing away all traces of heroic figures.” In 307 AD, the Qiang chieftain Liang Le of Dangchang declared himself king, founding the Dangchang Kingdom. In 424 AD, Liang Mihu, the hereditary king of Dangchang, sent his son Liang Mihuang to the Northern Wei Dynasty to seek recognition of his kingship and establish a tributary relationship with Emperor Taiwu Tuoba Tao. To maintain border stability, the emperor granted recognition, dispatched envoys to crown Liang Mihu as the King of Dangchang, and appointed his son as the Marquis of Gansong. The Dangchang Kingdom was thus officially acknowledged by the Northern Dynasties regime. Its territory roughly encompassed areas south of Lintan and Min County today, bordering the northern fringes of Tianshui and the southern edges of Wudu, with an estimated population of over 20,000 households and 100,000 people. The inhabitants were primarily descendants of the Qiang and Sanmiao tribes, who named their clans after their surnames. Each clan controlled its own territory without interference, sharing similar customs with local residents—dwelling in houses roofed with felt woven from yak wool, wearing garments made of leather or coarse cloth, and subsisting on herded sheep, cattle, and pigs. Their customs were simple: upon the death of fathers, uncles, or brothers, they would take stepmothers, aunts, sisters-in-law, or daughters-in-law as wives. With no formal laws or taxes, resources were pooled only during wartime, while daily life proceeded independently. Lacking a written script, they tracked years by observing the growth cycles of plants. Families and kin gathered every three years to offer sacrifices to heaven by slaughtering cattle and sheep.

　　During the Dangchang Kingdom’s existence, to sustain its survival as a small and vulnerable state, its kings leveraged the region’s abundant production of precious medicinal herbs to pursue an active diplomatic policy, maintaining amicable relations with the Northern and Southern Dynasties, as well as the Tuyuhun and Chouchi Kingdoms. During the reign of Emperor Xiaowen of the Northern Wei, when the Tuyuhun king launched an attack on Dangchang, Emperor Xiaowen openly intervened, presenting the Tuyuhun with 120 bolts of silk and ordering the return of looted Dangchang people and livestock. This illustrates the close ties between the Dangchang Kingdom and the Northern Dynasties. In the era of Emperor Gaozu of Wei, the Dangchang Kingdom presented tributes of 100 catties each of cinnabar, realgar, and white stone gall. In recognition, Emperor Gaozu bestowed the title of Grand General Who Conquers the South, Western Colonel, Governor of Liangyi (Hanzhong and Sichuan), Duke of Henan (south of the Yellow River), and King of Dangchang upon King Liang Miji. Over the 142 years from 424 to 566 AD, the Dangchang Kingdom engaged in 45 exchanges with the Northern Wei, including 14 solo tributes and three personal visits by the king and his son to the Wei court. Beyond courting the Northern Wei, the kingdom also offered gifts to and received titles from the Southern Dynasties. In 505 AD, King Liang Mibo of Dangchang presented licorice and angelica, earning him the appointment as Military Governor of He-Liang (Lanzhou and Hexi), General Who Pacifies the West, Colonel of Eastern Qiang, Governor of He-Liang, Duke of Longxi, and King of Dangchang, adorned with a golden seal. He was also gifted books such as *Collected Commentaries on the Classic of the King* and *The Analects*, spreading Chinese civilization. Regarding relations with the Tuyuhun and Chouchi Kingdoms, the Dangchang Kingdom adopted a pragmatic approach: submitting and aligning during their strength, and resisting or attacking during their decline, coexisting with them for the long term.

　　Though a sovereign state within its domain, the Qiang people of Dangchang lacked a written script, and their kings, often crude and unfamiliar with courtly etiquette during tributary missions, left a poor impression. Upon witnessing this, Emperor Gaozu remarked: “Though the King of Dangchang rules a borderland, he is not even the equal of a minor official in China (referring to the Northern Wei).” Consequently, the king’s titles and honors were significantly downgraded, limited to gifts such as carriages, horses, and silk. In 541 AD, King Liang Xianding of Dangchang was assassinated by internal Qiang factions, plunging the kingdom into severe turmoil. Though his brother succeeded him and restored order, the kingdom’s fortunes continued to decline. In 566 AD, during the reign of Emperor Wu of the Northern Dynasties, amid Tuyuhun incursions along the border, the emperor dispatched General Tian Hong to attack Dangchang. The campaign captured the Dangchang Qiang king, seized 76 strongholds, and eradicated the Dangchang Kingdom, which was then reorganized as the Dangzhou Commandery with the establishment of the Dangchang Prefecture. The kingdom’s demise and the subsequent administrative restructuring marked the end of the primitive and backward era for the Dangchang Qiang people, propelling them toward ethnic integration and a unified civilized society. From their establishment of ties with the Northern Wei in 424 AD until their downfall, the Dangchang Qiang regime endured through twelve generations of kings over 142 years. Thereafter, the Dangchang Qiang were unable to re-establish a polity, and the Liang clan of Dangchang vanished from historical records, leaving no trace today. Only shadows of the ancient Dangchang Qiang remain among the Tibetan communities of Xinchengzi Tibetan Township and Guan’egou Tibetan Village in Dangchang’s Chengguan Town, though they now belong to the integrated Qiang-Tibetan lineage. Zhou Weizhou’s *History of the Tuyuhun* suggests that Empress Dowager Liang of the Western Xia regime was a descendant of the Dangchang Qiang. Guan Fuqi’s *Draft History of the Western Xia* argues that Empress Dowager Liang and the Northern Xia chancellor Liang Yimai held significant power for an extended period, exerting considerable influence over the Western Xia. Truly, “The ancient city’s crumbling walls remain, yet their former splendor has faded.” Zhang Zijing, a cultural scholar of Dangchang, wrote in his poem *Reminiscences of Dangchang*: (1) The Liang clan’s Miji and Mihuang, strong for over two hundred years. Even now, along the paths below the ancient city, travelers still speak of King Liang. (2) The Dangchang dominion long lies silent, the king’s palaces overgrown and desolate. Two hundred years—what became of them? Mourning these relics stirs sorrow.

　　As I came to understand the Dangchang Kingdom—its history, glory, weight, and the sense of vicissitude—all of it seemed to overwhelm me. I couldn’t believe it was all real, yet I stood unequivocally before the ancient city of the Dangchang Kingdom. Yes, this small frontier kingdom that rose to prominence over a century was a product of specific historical circumstances, but under the broader trends of unification and integration within the Chinese nation, its fall was inevitable. Yet its establishment also played a crucial role in stabilizing the borders of the Central Plains empires and repelling external invasions. Most notably, through its continuous tributes to the Central Plains powers, it showcased local specialties to the outside world, introducing Dangchang’s licorice and angelica to distant lands early on, earning the region the title “Millennial Land of Medicine.” Amid the Central Plains’ repeated bestowals of honors, it also transmitted Chinese civilization (such as *Collected Commentaries on the Classic of the King* and *The Analects*) to remote ethnic minority regions, actively promoting ethnic integration and social progress, securing its significant place in the history of Longnan and even Gansu.

　　Approaching the ancient city of the Dangchang Kingdom feels like stepping into a history book, facing a page heavy with the weight of time…