Zhúshān

The Du River threads its way through the mountains of Zhushan before joining the Han. Steep slopes and wooded ravines surround the county town, whose position beside the river makes boats and ferries important to journeys through this broken country. The hills also hold turquoise, blue and green stone prized for ornament. Zhushan belongs to the old country of Shangyong, where the uplands of northwestern Hubei approach the mountains towards Shaanxi.

The county took the name Zhushan in 552 and later absorbed neighbouring Shangyong. Under the Yuan, it lay within the administrative sphere of Fangzhou and Xiangyang. The Ming briefly merged it into Fang County before restoring its separate administration. In 1476, the western lands around Yindian were divided off as Zhuxi, while Zhushan came under Yunyang Prefecture. The mountain river thus ran through a landscape of old settlements whose jurisdictions changed as the court reorganised this inland frontier.