Why did Shanxi people immigrate to Baoding in the early Ming Dynasty?

Immigration between countries is now commonplace. Many people immigrate to developed countries for better development. Poor areas in developed countries also have a desire to immigrate to developed areas.

In ancient my country, there were three major immigrations that were very large in scale and had a profound impact. They are the Yongjia Rebellion, the Anshi Rebellion and the Jingkang Disgrace. These three immigrations not only brought about deeper exchanges and integration between people from the north and the south, but also completely shifted our country's economic center of gravity to the south.

In addition to these three times, there were several large-scale immigrants in the early Ming Dynasty. Many people from Shanxi immigrated to Baoding, Hebei. This immigration has had a great impact. Many people of the older generation in Hebei will talk about it: Ask my ancestors where they know, the big locust tree in Hongdong, Shanxi.

In the 21st year of Hongwu, with the approval of Zhu Yuanzhang, the vigorous immigration activity of Shanxi people in the early Ming Dynasty kicked off.

The immigrants under the big locust tree in Hongdong originally moved directly to Hebei. Shandong, Henan and other places. It is said to be the largest, longest and most extensive in the history of our country. To restore agricultural production. Ministers in the early Ming Dynasty discovered that immigration activities could play an important role in national stability and development. However, the country's stability and development did not last long, and then the "Jingnan War" occurred.

Despite the stubborn resistance of the government and people, Zhu Di, who had strong military power, still won the throne. After Zhu Di's victory, he carried out brutal revenge on the troops and people loyal to Emperor Jianwen. However, wars and massacres caused the population of Baoding area near the capital to drop sharply again. So after Zhu Di came to the throne, he implemented his father's previous wise move and moved a large number of residents from Shanxi.

With so many large-scale migrations, Baoding, Hebei Province is a key area for immigrants from Hongdong County, Shanxi Province. So, what are the special historical reasons for Shanxi’s immigration to Baoding in the early Ming Dynasty.

Baoding has always been a battleground for military strategists. At the end of the Yuan Dynasty, the current situation was chaotic, class struggle and ethnic conflicts became increasingly intensified, and large-scale peasant uprisings broke out across the country.

Wars broke out everywhere, and peasant uprisings broke out frequently. Although the Yuan Dynasty was at the end of its war effort, it still resisted stubbornly and used very tough and even bloody methods. The Yuan government troops mostly "pulled out their land and massacred their cities" against the peasant army, causing a large number of innocent people to suffer.

In the early days of the Ming Dynasty, officials from various places reported to the court that the land was desolate and people's livelihood was difficult. Even in plain areas suitable for farming, no one was cultivating, and the land was becoming increasingly desolate. The massive population reduction and land abandonment resulted in no tax revenue at all, and the Ming Dynasty was on the verge of collapse.

Although the Central Plains is full of hungry people and the land is desolate, Shanxi is completely different.

Shanxi has no natural disasters, wars, or man-made disasters in the Central Plains. Shanxi has a great scene, everyone lives and works in peace and contentment, the society is stable, the economy is prosperous, and there is a lot of trade. However, Shanxi has less land and more people, and competition is fierce. Why not move Shanxi residents to the Central Plains, so that everyone can be balanced. But where should a large number of Shanxi residents move?

At the end of the Yuan Dynasty, due to the dual difficulties of the social and natural environment, Baoding, as a military town, not only suffered from the devastation of war, but also suffered from very serious natural disasters. When the Ming Dynasty was first established, Baoding was devastated, leaving only a group of people withered, the land desolate, and those who survived already had a difficult life. Therefore, it is a very wise and far-sighted consideration to move the extra people in Shanxi Province who have no land to farm to Baoding. Moreover, Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Di at the time also deeply agreed.

The wars at the end of the Yuan Dynasty and the beginning of the Ming Dynasty caused harm to life and the destruction of the natural environment, coupled with the damage caused to the land by floods and droughts, which made the people long for rapid economic construction. The people's desire for survival and the inducement of the rulers made migration activities popular across the country. Today, there are descendants of people who immigrated from Hongdong, Shanxi in the early Ming Dynasty all over the country.

Immigration is not the original intention of Shanxi people at the beginning, and is affected by objective and subjective factors. Mountains, floods, and earthquakes have not allowed the Chinese people who love their homeland to move their families, but wars and government coercion have done it many times. However, this kind of "not what I want" immigration has objectively promoted social progress, economic development, and left a unique cultural origin.

The nature of the migrations led by Zhu Di was different from the large locust tree migration in Hongdong, Shanxi in the early Ming Dynasty. It was basically not for encouragement and guidance, but more for the Ming court to force the migration.

Local residents have no right to choose whether to move or not according to their own wishes. The government directly asks everyone to register their household registration one by one, supervises and forcibly brings people to a strange place like Baoding, Hebei. If these unwilling immigrants If you try to escape or make trouble, the consequences will be much worse than those of immigrants.

In this way, after two generations of immigration, Shanxi people from the early Ming Dynasty and the period of Ming Chengzu Zhu Di settled down in Baoding one after another.

Some were moved here voluntarily and some were forced by the government. These Shanxi people eventually became Baoding’s labor force. They lived and worked in Baoding, settled and multiplied, and soon helped Baoding’s agriculture and commerce to revitalize. The opportunity for birth has also made Baoding's population no longer so sparse.

Moreover, both Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Di consciously gave preferential treatment to immigrants. Therefore, these Shanxi people who are thousands of miles away from home can easily find production and business opportunities in Baoding, and it is easier for them to have an impact on the local area. A sense of belonging.

Many Shanxi people in Baoding now also have deep feelings for Baoding. I also approve of the immigration policy of that year. Every year, people from Baoding return to Hongdong to find their roots.

In terms of time, the immigrants from northern Shanxi were mostly concentrated in Baoding during the Hongwu and Yongle years, and mainly during the Yongle period. In the early Ming Dynasty, various governments focused on revitalizing agriculture and stabilizing society, focusing on immigrants to reclaim wasteland, radiated from Baoding Prefecture to all parts of the country, and achieved very good results.

It not only strengthened the recovery of social production based on the small-scale peasant economy at that time, but also created certain conditions for future handicraft production, and also had certain practical significance for the prosperity of the next generation's economy.

Chinese people are very particular about returning fallen leaves to their roots. There are Chinese Chinatowns all over the world. No matter where I go, I still remember my hometown in my heart. However, there are benefits to immigration. Immigration in China's past generations has not only played a role in social stability, but also played a positive role in the regeneration of social productivity.

For Baoding, there is a large influx of foreigners. You can help them reclaim wasteland. Let the remaining population of Baoding not starve to death. Acceptance of outsiders can profoundly promote friendship and more exchanges between the people of the two places.

For Shanxi people. No longer need to worry about running out of land to farm and no extra land to settle. These have been effectively resolved. Coupled with the attraction of the new environment to the people, there are advantages and disadvantages.

This multi-purpose approach has really benefited the people of both places.