On The Rise And Down Of The Key Commercial Towns Along Water Transportation Nets In The Central Plains Area During Ming-qing Dynasties

Henan Province lies in Central Plains, it has ben the important hub of communications from the north to the south since the ancient time.The water transportation of Central Plains has been prosperous from pre—Qin kingdom to Song Dynasty. But it declined after Song Dynasty's retreating to the south. Then in Ming and Qing Dynasty, Sheqi, Beiwudu, Zhoukou, Zhuxianzhen came out, which based on the water transportation of Central Plains. Why did these business towns come out? What about the business at that time? How did the business decline? These problems will be explored in the thesis.In middle and later Ming Dynasty, the self-supply economy broke out following the economic development of the country. The upsurge of inland trade between the south and the north is the outside reason of these business towns'coming out, while these business towns'convenient communications derived from adjoining to river are the inside reason. Sheqi began to prosper in Wanli period of Ming Dynasty and made a rapid progress in Kangxi period of Qing Dynasty, then held its hay day in Qianlong period of Qing Dynasty. In the Xianfeng period of Qing Dynasty, following the Nian Army burning out the Spring and Autumn Mansion, Sheqi held its black day, and decline was seen in Guangxu period. The main trades of Sheqi were tea, cotton, cloth, food, china, and it also had the product of liquor and powder. In its hay day, its business reached 10 million taels silver. On the 13th year of Guangxu period, Sheqi's business was in depression with only more than 100 shops. Wars, the changing of country's market, the changing of the way of communications were responsible for its decline.The prosperity of Zhoukou's outset also began in the period of Qianlong. Its large business scale was in the period of Daoguang, which reached 6 million taels silver, and had about 1000 shops. Its trades majored in grocery, silk and agricultural products. It declined because of war in the period of Xianfeng, Qing Dynasty. We can draw a conclusion that Zhuxianzhen's prosperity was earlier than Sheqi and Zhoukou. In Ming Dynasty it became prosperous because of its adjoining to provincial capital. At that time, it was one of the"country's four famous towns". Zhuxianzhen's trades majored in grocery, food, tobacco, cloth. Because of the influence of Yellow River, Zhuxianzhen experienced several frowning. In the period of Daoguang, it declined at first among these business towns because of river's walling up. Beiwugu's prosperity and decline related to Zhoukou and Sheqi, because it located at the upriver of Zhoukou, and was the communication center to the north from Sheqi. In other words, it was only a transferring pier and its function lied in connecting Jianghuai. So it had small business scale, only food, mountain products and sesame oil were there.Generally speaking, all of these business town became prosperous for their superiority of water transportation, and the forming of water transportation system were responsible for the cargo's transferring and exchanging in Central Plains.The system declined in middle and later Qing Dynasty because of the changing of country's market, war, water source, the surge of railway and highway. In addition, businessmen's monopoly and ocean trade were also responsible for that.