Hou Renzhi on Beijing

Author: Hou Renzhi
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-01-01
Features: "Hou Renzhi on Beijing" by Hou Renzhi (1911—), a historical geographer and member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Born on December 6, 1911, in En County, Shandong (now Wucheng County). Graduated from Yenching University in 1936 and studied abroad in the UK, earning a Ph.D. in philosophy from the University of Liverpool. In 1984, the university also awarded him an honorary doctorate in science. He served as a professor at Yenching University and a concurrent professor at Tsinghua University. After 1952, he held various positions, including Deputy Vice President of Academic Affairs at Peking University, Director of the Department of Geography and the Department of Geology, Professor at the Department of Urban and Environmental Sciences at Peking University, Doctoral Supervisor at the Center for Historical Geography, Advisor to the Capital Development Strategy Advisory Group of the Beijing Municipal People's Government, Member of the Steering Committee of the Chinese Local Gazetteers, Committee Member of the Editorial Committee of the National Atlas of China, Deputy Director of the Historical Atlas Editorial Committee, Advisor to the Chinese Urban Science Research Association, Vice President of the Chinese Geographical Society, and Deputy Director of the Urban Planning Academic Committee of the Chinese Institute of Architects. In the theoretical exploration of historical geography, the investigation of desert historical geography, and the study of urban historical geography, he pioneered new approaches and fields, elucidating the important significance and role of historical geography as a part of modern geography. He also provided foundational knowledge for desert governance and urban planning and construction, especially for the origins, development, and historical water sources of Beijing, as well as the characteristics of its urban planning, offering systematic and scientific explanations with significant practical implications. This book offers great benefits for understanding Beijing. In this book, Hou Renzhi tells you about: the historical Beijing city, the story of Ji, the story of Yan, the Lugou Bridge and Beijing City, from Lianhuachi to Houmenqiao, the traces of Gaoliang River, the historical significance of building a "riverside park," Shichahai and the evolution of Beijing's urban site, the Yuan Dynasty capital city ruins park, the renovation of the Baifushui Ruins, who originally built the current Beijing city, the Forbidden City—retrospection and prospects, the past and present of Tiananmen Square, the rise and fall of Haidian gardens, Beijing's earliest reservoir—Kunming Lake, a casual talk about the campus of Peking University, the preface to "The Walls and Gates of Beijing," the repair of the Ming Dynasty Beijing city walls, the preface to "The Protection and Development of Beijing's Historical and Cultural City," and the three milestones in Beijing's urban planning and construction.