Fēngqiū

Fengqiu lies on the northern side of the Yellow River plain, where the river’s changing course repeatedly threatened the county. Floods forced its seat to move in the Jin and Yuan periods before it returned to the old site. The low, fertile country brought the benefits and dangers of the great river close together, as channels and embankments shifted across the landscape.

The problem continued under the Ming and Qing. In 1378 floodwaters damaged crops in Fengqiu, and later breaches at Jinglongkou repeatedly endangered the area. In 1587 a sudden flood reached the city walls and devastated houses and fields. Officials and local people raised embankments and laboured to close breaches, but the river continued to move across the plain and reshape the countryside.