A Preliminary Study Of Urban Disasters In Fujian During The Ming And Qing Dynasties

Disasters are closely related to human survival and social development,and the cities are important disaster-bearing bodies.This man-land relationship determines the importance and complexity of urban disaster research.The period of Ming and Qing Dynasties was one of the most frequent natural disasters in Chinese history,and it was also an important period for the transition from traditional society to modern times in Fujian.The administrative capital cities at all levels are not only the social unity of local politics,economy,culture and other factors,but also the intersection of various natural disasters and man-made disasters at that time.Therefore,this paper takes the disaster events that occurred in administrative and regional cities at or above the county level in Fujian Province during the Ming and Qing dynasties as the research object.Through analyzing the features,causes,and impacts of the urban disasters in Fujian during the Ming and Qing dynasties,paying attention to its close relationship with the social development,and providing the corresponding historical reference for disaster prevention and mitigation in modern city.Urban disasters have the dual attributes of nature and society,although there are differences in the interpretation of the concepts of urban disasters in different disciplines,in terms of historical periods,urban disasters can be considered as various types of events that cause significant harm to human survival and sustainable development of the urban environment and human social ontology under the natural factor,human factors or both interaction.Dividing urban disaster types is a process of collating,analyzing and defining disaster historical data.When classifying the urban disasters in historical period,the main causes of urban disasters and their internal manifestations are taken as the basis for the classification,and attention is paid to its universality and particularity.In the specific time and space conditions,the development process and spatial distribution of urban disasters in Fujian showed different characteristics during the Ming and Qing Dynasties.After determining the standard of urban disaster statistics principle and hierarchy,relevant statistical methods are used to quantify the disaster degree of historical data.The characteristics of urban disasters in Fujian during the Ming and Qing Dynasties were analyzed from the aspects of urban disaster frequency changes,intensity changes and seasonal changes,as well as the geographical features and shifts in the focus of urban disasters,and most of them present certain periodic trends and regional differences.The frequency and severity of urban disasters in Fujian during the Ming and Qing Dynasties are not only closely related to the special physical and geographical environment of cities,social activities of urban human ontology,urban social and political and economic environment,urban social customs and disaster prevention awareness,but also affect urban development and social stability,such as causing urban infrastructure dysfunction,urban casualties,urban economic slowdown,social unrest,and causing changes in urban ecological environment and urban landscape.In the process of urban disasters,local communities in Fujian have also taken corresponding pre-disaster defense and disaster response measures.The former include dredging city ditch and river channel,building city firewall and cold shop,and building city storage against famine,etc.The latter include giving relief and millet,comforting,rescuing and other emergency measures,and some remedial measures such as reducing taxation,repairing and reconstructing.Based on the analysis of different relief subjects and methods before and after urban disasters,discussing the effectiveness of urban disaster relief in Fujian during the Ming and Qing Dynasties.