Why did the Western Han Dynasty move its capital to Chang 'an?

There are many cities in the history of China, which were chosen as capitals by many dynasties. Every dynasty has its own advantages and disadvantages. In the face of different situations, each dynasty would choose different capitals, but always based on these cities, including Luoyang and Chang 'an. During the Western Han Dynasty, there were two cities that were once the capitals of the Western Han Dynasty, namely Luoyang and Chang 'an. Luoyang was the most favored city in the early Western Han Dynasty, but Liu Bang decided to move the capital to Chang 'an after a period of time. Emperor Gaozu built Changle Palace on the basis of Xingle Palace in five years (the first 202 years), Weiyang Palace in two years, and officially moved to Chang 'an.

When the Western Han Dynasty was just founded, the choice of capital hovered between Chang 'an and Luoyang. Compared with Chang 'an, Luoyang is more cordial to Liu Bang, because Liu Shengbang was in Kanto and made his fortune in Hanzhong. Luoyang was the real center of the world at that time. Because of the opening up, many famous writers write books and spread ideas here, and various ideas collide and blend here, making Luoyang gradually have a strong cultural atmosphere and become a real center of Chinese civilization. Commercially, Luoyang is also highly open. At that time, all merchants had to pass through Luoyang. After a long period of wealth accumulation, Luoyang has gradually become the most important commercial city in China. After Qin destroyed the Six Kingdoms, Luoyang was more likely to be regarded as the old capital than Chang 'an. Emotionally speaking, people who miss the original six countries are more likely to accept Luoyang as the new capital. Historical Records of Emperor Gaozu:? The world is big, the emperor Luoyang, and the princes are all ministers. ?

But before long, Liu Bang changed his mind and made Chang 'an his capital and Luoyang his capital. The first suggestion to move the capital was Lou Jing, the defender of Qi State. He was sent to Longxi, and when he passed Luoyang, he asked to meet his great-grandfather Liu Bang. At first, I couldn't meet the emperor because of my humble status. But he finally got Liu Bang's sympathy, and because he was in rags, he appreciated the hard life of the other party in his early years, so that Liu Bang sat down and listened carefully to what he had to say. So Lou Jing put forward the suggestion of moving the capital to Chang 'an and expounded its advantages and disadvantages.

His proposal was attractive and reasonable. Liu Bang also had the idea of moving the capital, but it was unanimously opposed by the DPRK ministers. Because ministers are mostly orientals, they have a stronger affinity for Luoyang, and family forces are mostly entrenched around Luoyang. If they move their capital, they will be far away from their homeland, and many places will start from scratch, so most courtiers who have been following Liu Bang oppose moving their capital to Chang 'an. But Sean, a famous minister, agreed with this suggestion very much, and recorded Sean's original words in Historical Records: Among them, although small, it is hundreds of miles, with thin fields and surrounded by enemies. Is this a country that must use force? ; Changan? Thousands of miles away in Jincheng, a land of abundance? . It shows that Luoyang is too small to become the capital of the whole country, and at this time, the whole country has just been unified and many places are not very stable. It needs a strong political center to maintain stability everywhere. Choosing Chang 'an, which is not far from Xianyang, the old capital of Qin, also has this meaning. However, because of his birth, Liu Bang had a unique preference for Luoyang. When enfranchising children of his own family and kings with different surnames, he avoided Luoyang and did not enfranchise them to anyone.

In these two choices, Liu Bang hesitated for a long time, and reason and sensibility have been arguing. However, as Liu Bang's most dependent counselor, Sean's opinion was very important, which greatly influenced Liu Bang's choice. So Gaozu finally listened to Sean's advice and decided to move the capital to Chang 'an, with Luoyang as its capital.