Hubei, China

Hubei is a central Chinese province; resembling neighboringHenan as it marks the transition from mountains in the west to low fertile coastal plain in the east. The nameHubei comes from its location north of Dongting Lake. In early days the province was part of the larger湖广 Hú guǎng province before it was split from Hunan in 1664. Hubei was the heart of theChu kingdom during theWarring States period of Chinese history.Qu Yuan, the earliest acclaimed Chinese poet lived in Hubei at that time. It is dominated by theYangzi River (orChang Jiang) that forms many low lying lakes and reservoirs (the largest number in China) as well as the world famousThree Gorges➚ (now harnessed by the hugeSanxia Daba dam➚). Qutang, Wuxia and Xiling are the names of thegorges that are spread out over 120 miles[193 kms] in order west to east (but the first two are in neighboringChongqing province). Some sites along the river have been drowned by the rise in water level associated with the Three Gorges dam. Wuxia gorge is marked by towering mountains on either side of the river making it seem a chasm. The ancient ‘hanging coffins’ of theBo people➚ can still be seen along the river andSu Shi, the great Song poet wrote eloquently about the gorges. The gorges took a heavy toll in people and boats over the centuries; so it is welcome that this big hazard has now been removed.

Wuhan

Wuhan is the largest city in Hubei, it was formed in 1926 by combining three neighboring cities Hankou, Wuchang and Hanyang. Wuhan stands at the confluence with another significant Chinese river the ‘Han’汉水hàn shuǐ, and is also on the main railway line from Beijing to Guangzhou . Wuchang was one time capital of the state ofWu in the Zhou dynasty and stands on the southern bank of the river. Hankouafter the firstOpium War became a major river port on theYangzi when trade opened toforeign powers (including the British, French, German, Russian and Japanese). The Yangzi is so broad and deep that large ocean going ships could sail up the river and dock at the city. Some buildings near Hankou city center show this foreign influence. It used to be known as the ‘Street of a thousand shops’.

The first case of the deadly Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) was reported in Wuhan on the last day of 2019. It spread quickly within the city and the rest of Hubei province . Strict isolation rules however quickly stopped its rapid spread to the rest of the country.

The Wuhan area suffered severe damage in the last century: in 1911 with the fall of theQing and later in 1923 and then 1937 with theJapanese occupation. The Wuchang Uprising of 1911 led bySun Yatsen marked the start of the revolution that created theRepublic of China. In the late 1930s Wuchang was the de facto capital of unoccupied China. In 1955-57 theChangjiang Daqiao➚ bridge was the first over the lower Yangzi and opened up the area to rapid development. A second bridge was completed in 1995 and there is now also a tunnel. It was at Wuhan thatMao Zedong made his famous swim of the Yangzi in 1956 and again in 1966. Since this time the city has become heavily industrialized. The provincial museum at Wuhan is one of the best in China with many exhibits from theWarring States andThree Kingdoms periods. Wuhan’sFengdu Ghost City➚ is a more unusual tourist attraction.

All the tea in China

Tea was the most important export that was weighed in the traditional Chinese unit ofmeasurement called a 'catty'. It is known colloquially as the Chinese pound and is about 1.1pounds. In China it is known as the jin斤 the word catty probably came from the Malay word. The modern weight is aligned to the metric system as exactly 500grams. The container for tea, a 'caddy', is believed to have been named after the measure.

Places to visit in Hubei

Donghu (East Lake) is an attractive park east of the center of Wuhan; it has over 70 pavilions, towers and gardens. On the north east shore is a pavilion dedicated to the memory of the poetQu Yuan. Near the bridge in Wuchang is theHuanghelou➚ Yellow Crane Tower standing on the She Shang hill dating back over 1,700 years. A story relates that an immortal came down and drank wine at a shop and painted a yellow crane with orange peel. The lifelike image attracted many visitors until sometime later the immortal returned to fly off on the crane. The present tower has recently been rebuilt several times on the original site, the last time in 1884. The Buddhist Guiyuansi ‘Temple of Original Purity➚’ has over 54 thousand volumes of ancient sacred texts and hundreds of images of ‘arhats’ -Buddhist saints. The ancient古琴台 Gǔ qín tái 'Guqin Platform' in Hanyang district commemorates the friendship of the musician Yu Boya and Zhong Zhiqi back in theWarring States period. Ferries run upstream on the Yangzi river via the ancient city ofYichang through the gorges toChongqing.

Shengnongjia➚ is a notable National Forest in the mountainous north-west. The reserve has many rareplants, trees and animals (including the Golden Monkey, Golden Pheasant and Giant Salamander). TheWudang➚ mountains are famous forDaoist temples a few dating back as far as theTang dynasty scattered among the mountains and gave rise to theWudangquan➚/Taijiquan (Taichi) martial art tradition. Parts of the epic film ‘Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon➚’ was filmed here. It is set in a botanically rich area.

In the north-east is theDabie Shan range of mountains that form part of the geographical division of northern and southern China. These mountains are famous as the birthplace of the founder of theMing dynasty, Zhu Yuanzhang. It is popular when azaleas are in bloom as the mountains are covered with their bright colored blooms.

Next Festival

Saturday 31^st May 2025
Dragon Boat Festival (Duānwǔjié端午节)

Hubei Geography

Hubei has hot, humid summers and cool, dry winters. Wuhan is one of the ‘three furnaces’ of China in summer with temperatures over 104 ° F[40 ° C] combined with high humidity. Agriculturally it lies on the dividing line of wheat growing in the north torice growing in the south but it also grows a great many other crops includingbamboo, Yichang blacktea, Enshi green tea and sesame seeds. Industry is centered on the Wuhan area. The province produces some oil to add to China’s sources of energy.

Airports

Universities

Hubei Climate

Climate Key

City populations for 2012, Province statistics National Bureau of Statistics 2014