Yuánmóu

Yuanmou occupies a warm river basin surrounded by mountains in northern Yunnan. The valley opens northward toward Sichuan and has long formed part of the route between the two regions. Under the Dali kingdom the country was known as Huazhu; in 1279 the Yuan established Yuanmou County here, subordinate to Hequ. Local hereditary officers managed the county in the early Ming, until the court appointed a regular magistrate in 1569. The old county seat remained in the basin as a centre for the surrounding villages.