Shímén

Shimen lies on the middle Li River in northwestern Hunan. The county was established under the Sui in 589 and was associated with Lizhou. In later centuries its mountain districts included territories governed by hereditary local chieftains, among them the Tan family of Tianping.

During the Qing, reforms of native chieftain jurisdictions brought changes to administration in the region. In 1730 Lizhou was raised to a directly administered prefecture under Hunan, with Shimen among its counties. The county's Confucian temple, originally founded in the Song, was moved to a new site in 1504 and repaired or rebuilt during the Qing.