Hézhōu

Hézhōu stood on the north bank of the Yangtze opposite Cǎishí Rock and the approaches to Nánjīng, with the old county of Lìyáng as its seat. Here, at Wūjiāng, the Western Chǔ hegemon Xiàng Yǔ was said to have ended his life. In 1355 Zhū Yuánzhāng's army crossed the river against Cǎishí and took Tàipíng, opening the way to Nánjīng. The Yùxī River carried water from Cháo Lake into the Yangtze.Hézhōu was absorbed into its seat county early in the Míng, restored as a zhōu in 1369, attached to Fèngyáng in 1374 and then placed directly under the capital. Patrol offices on the river watched its approaches.