Research on the morphological evolution of Zhengding

Keywords

Urban morphology; Historical evolution; Small historic city; City walls; Zhengding

Introduction

Zhengding (正定) is a small historic city in Hebei Province in North China. This research provides a historical overview of the evolution of Zhengding and its public spaces, examined from morphological and typological perspectives. The research covers the period from the 7th century, when the city was first established on its current site, to the end of the 20th century.

This research addresses the challenge of limited documentation. Historical urban archives in China typically do not include many graphical records, unlike the cadastre in Europe. Therefore, this research extracts traces of morphological features from written accounts of the city’s history.

There are two critical factors that help mapping the texts into real geographical space. First, that the city’s structure, compromising the city walls, urban axes, and major street network, remained roughly unchanged throughout the historic evolution, which is evidenced in many other well-preserved Chinese ancient cities. Second, the preserved built heritages in the city, including the major temples, pagodas, monuments, and gate towers, remained where they were over centuries, like anchors fixed on the city’s structure. These two factors link the current urban form to the one in history.

Furthermore, existing archaeological studies have provided physical evidence to infer the city’s urban form throughout history. Excavated ruins of old city walls, streets, and buildings offer clues about the city’s extent and its architectural types. Moreover, military survey records from the early 20th century and subsequent satellite images provide valuable information on the city’s more recent evolution.

Based on the materials and methods mentioned above, this research initially determined that the city originated as a military fortress, strategically located for defence purposes and according to Fengshui principles in the 7th century. Subsequently, the study identified two expansions of the city, in the 8th and 15th centuries, undertaken to enhance its defensive capabilities. Additionally, the city’s decline in military and economic importance in the early 20th century and the subsequent shrinkage of its built-up areas were closely mapped. Finally, the research documented the rapid urban sprawl that has occurred since China’s economic reform in 1978.

My role

Qian Liu carried out this research project independently under the supervision of Prof. Laura Pezzetti.