How Did This Top-Tier Chinese City Become the "Chosen One"?

The GDP rankings of Chinese mainland cities for the first half of 2023 have been released. Suzhou secured the sixth position, trailing only Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Chongqing. It stands as the sole prefecture-level city in the top ten that is neither a municipality directly under the central government nor a provincial capital. Outperforming numerous provincial capitals, Suzhou is undeniably the "strongest prefecture-level city," boasting remarkable economic prowess.

Whenever Suzhou and the Jiangnan region it belongs to are mentioned, prosperity is an enduring label. However, this "overwhelming wealth" was not inherent since ancient times. It may seem unbelievable, but the development history of Jiangnan, represented by Suzhou, is essentially a tale of wealth creation emerging from what was once a "barren land."

The "Gate of the East" in Suzhou under twilight.

After the transformation from marshlands to a water town, the concept of "Jiangnan" gradually crystallized in history. The polder field construction during the Tang and Song dynasties unleashed the land's productivity, while the Grand Canal brought flourishing commerce... Suzhou, situated at the focal point of this landscape, continuously absorbed nutrients from within and beyond. Ultimately, it underwent a metamorphosis during the Ming and Qing dynasties, epitomizing the pinnacle of Jiangnan in multiple dimensions.

A land of fish and rice, a silk-weaving hub, the "Oriental Water City," Suzhou-style aesthetics... Suzhou has not only left behind legends of unparalleled wealth but also sketched an extraordinarily unique aesthetic space, becoming a shared aspiration in people's hearts.

"Suzhou-style aesthetics" is hidden in every corner of its gardens.

The Jiangnan referred to today, to some extent, is the narrow sense that gradually took shape during the Ming and Qing dynasties. It points to the watery plains of southern Jiangsu and northern Zhejiang, specifically the prefectural regions centered around Suzhou.

Lake Tai is the hydrological foundation of the Jiangnan region. It was once a tidal bay that later turned into a lake due to land formation. This transition from sea to farmland occurred not too long ago. During the Tang dynasty, as human activities intensified along the middle and upper reaches of the Yangtze River, soil erosion worsened, and sediment gradually silted up, blocking the river's outlets. Rising water levels upstream and downstream caused rampant flooding, with excess water accumulating in low-lying areas, forming an entirely new geographical feature—a water town crisscrossed by lakes, marshes, and rivers.

The Lake Tai area is a chronicle of Jiangnan's development, from marshland to water town.

This primitive, muddy, and amphibious marshland was far from an ideal homeland, let alone suitable for agriculture. Looking back today, the site selection of Suzhou remains ingenious. A glance at the map reveals an extremely rugged shoreline at the northeastern corner of Lake Tai, where hills are densely clustered. The two tallest among them—Dongting East Hill and Dongting West Hill—even extend deep into the lake, surrounded by water as islands.

Compared to the low-lying, dish-shaped depressions to the east, Suzhou's terrain is elevated, free from mud, and neither too close to the hills nor too far to lose the advantages of flat land and waterfront convenience. Its location is just perfect. The city has never relocated in 2,500 years, a fact still regarded as a miracle today.

Tiger Hill Mountain towering over the western suburbs of Gusu (ancient Suzhou).

Large-scale polder field construction in the Lake Tai Plain began in the Tang dynasty. During the prosperous early Tang period, agricultural production in the north could no longer fully sustain the political center's upper echelons. The subsequent An Lushan Rebellion further shifted the national economic center to the Jiangnan region. The Tang people extensively dug ponds, built polder dikes, and installed sluices across the Lake Tai Plain, expanding reclaimed land to nearly all unused areas from the lakeshore to the coast. Simultaneously, large-scale lake embankments and seawalls were constructed to protect the newly developed polder fields from lake floods and tidal surges.

Between the Tang and Song dynasties, while the north was embroiled in chaotic warfare and agricultural decline, the southern states enjoyed relative peace and stability. The Qian family of Wuyue, which controlled the Jiangnan region at the time, prioritized recuperation, bringing polder field construction and maintenance in the Lake Tai Plain to its zenith.

The "Director of Water Conservancy and Land Reclamation," responsible for managing polder field development, was a highly powerful official directly accountable to the supreme ruler. Meanwhile, with little warfare, the Wuyue Kingdom allocated a significant portion of its military to waterworks and maintenance, including a unique unit called the "Dredging Army." This force of over 10,000 specialized in dredging ponds and rivers, repairing dikes and sluices, building bridges, planting trees, and maintaining embankments, while also engaging in self-sufficient farming.

The artificially transformed pond-polder field system during the Tang and Song dynasties.

During this period, the Lake Tai Plain, through relentless human transformation, finally evolved from marshland to water town, harmonizing the relationship between people and water and fully unleashing the land's productivity. With surplus land, crops beyond staple grains gradually appeared in Jiangnan's polder fields.

Yet, the perfection of the polder field system was only the first step in Jiangnan's "founding history." The following centuries marked the critical era when this land transitioned from "abundance" to "wealth."

The interwoven natural and artificial waterways endowed Jiangnan with unparalleled water transport advantages unmatched by other regions. However, the natural connection between rivers and lakes was not strong, necessitating a stable, human-controlled transitional zone—the Jiangnan Canal, an artificial masterpiece serving as a regulator and connector.

The Ditang River passing through Zhenze Town connects to the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal.

It brought tremendous vitality to this silk market center.

Suzhou did not actively choose the canal; on the contrary, it could be said that the canal chose Suzhou. To ensure stable and smooth water flow, the elevation difference between different sections of the canal could not be too great. When the Jiangnan Canal passed along the eastern shore of Lake Tai, it could not cut directly through the bottom of the saucer-shaped depression. Instead, it had to carefully select a narrow strip of land with a reasonable elevation between the center of the depression and the several-meter-high drop to the lake shore. Suzhou, already established, stood firmly at the throat of this narrow passage. Could the canal bypass it? There was no choice but to embrace Suzhou.

Water carries boats, and boats carry goods. As the shipping hub of Jiangnan at the time, Suzhou could transport vast quantities of silk, cotton products, and other goods at low cost with just one boat. The flow of people and goods was like nutrients in the bloodstream, converging from capillaries into the aorta and then spreading throughout the entire land.

As the sun rises, boatmen on the canal are about to embark on a new journey.

Through Jiangnan’s dense and intricate water network, the cost advantage of water transport spread to every acre of land and every village in the region. In this process, some grain markets located at key transportation nodes grew into prosperous towns.

The Jiangnan Canal was just one segment of the imperial transport artery, the Grand Canal. North of the Yangtze River, the canal continued northward, traversing the Yellow and Huai River basins until it reached the North China Plain. This meant that the robust productivity of the Lake Tai Plain, centered on Suzhou, could be delivered to the distant north, while Jiangnan also drew resources and wealth from the vast region.

Fish farmers travel by boat between their fish ponds and homes.

Being "passively" turned into a transportation hub was not the only reason Suzhou dominated Jiangnan. After centuries of steady growth, Suzhou’s wealth accumulation reached its peak during the Ming and Qing dynasties. By then, Suzhou’s development had reached such an advanced level that its internal potential could hardly support further significant improvement, making external support particularly crucial.

In the first year of the Longqing era (1567), the Ming Dynasty began to relax its once-strict maritime ban. Waves of foreign visitors brought vast quantities of silver extracted from Peru, Mexico, and Japan’s Kyushu to purchase Chinese goods. The reforms initiated by Zhang Juzheng in the early Wanli era further officially recognized and reinforced this monetary transformation.

Products and labor continuously gathered, and more wealth flowed in and out. As a key distribution center, Jiangnan possessed both strong consumer demand and purchasing power, creating a thriving supply-and-demand cycle.

Advanced canal shipping, a convenient monetary circulation system... Under favorable conditions, Suzhou completed the accumulation of private wealth. While its people lived in peace and prosperity, they also cultivated a romantic and poetic cultural space on this land. Suzhou’s character was multifaceted: bustling shipping and rows of silk shops represented its urban prosperity, while its gardens, landscapes, and literati elegance embodied its refined and transcendent spirit.

The Changmen Gate witnessed the city’s comings and goings.

From gardens to Kunqu opera, from exquisite artifacts to romantic tales, Suzhou’s literati left an extraordinarily rich cultural legacy for posterity. Here, one could not only enjoy the finest conveniences of secular life but also attain spiritual fulfillment.

"The gardens of Jiangnan are the finest under heaven, and the gardens of Suzhou are the finest in Jiangnan." Over time, Suzhou has become synonymous with Chinese gardens, especially private ones. In the Ming Dynasty, Suzhou officially became the foremost representative of Chinese private gardens, a position it has never relinquished. Zhong Xing, leader of the Jingling School in the Ming Dynasty, said, "I traveled through the Three Wu regions, and not a day passed without walking in a garden." The Qing Dynasty writer Shen Chaochu praised, "Suzhou is splendid, with half the city filled with gardens." The Humble Administrator’s Garden, Lingering Garden, Master-of-Nets Garden, Mountain Villa with Embracing Beauty, and others we know today are masterpieces from the Ming and Qing periods. In this ancient city, half the space is gardens. Strolling through them, the complex cultural history of bygone pavilions comes vividly to life.

The "Four Seasons of Elegance" moon gate at Suzhou’s Ke Garden.

At the same time, Suzhou in the Ming and Qing dynasties was also at the heart of the Kunqu opera industry. The people of Suzhou were passionate about theater, while cultural elites influenced Kunqu aesthetics through private performances, family troupes, and opera societies, promoting its refinement. The area around Changmen and Xumen in western Suzhou was known for its handicrafts, including musical instrument production. Suzhou’s cotton textiles, silk weaving, and embroidery were renowned nationwide, "clothing the world," and even theatrical costumes and props became industries.

Photo by Gareth Cartmale.

Suzhou was also the city with the most illustrious achievements in China’s imperial examination history. Fan Zhongyan pioneered the Suzhou Prefectural School here, and the integration of temple and school set a precedent for Confucian temples nationwide, ushering in a golden age of literary culture. Historically, 54 top scholars (zhuangyuan) and about 4,000 jinshi (metropolitan graduates) formed the pinnacle of Suzhou’s literati pyramid. Amid the bustling markets and worldly affairs, Suzhou’s "scholarly aura" ultimately became the epitome of Chinese literati culture.

The fortunate preservation of Suzhou’s ancient city has safeguarded a "palace of memory" for all Chinese. Along Guanqian Street and outside Changmen, Suzhou’s markets are so lively that they rank among the "four great gatherings of the world." Yet just a street away, in gardens like the Couple’s Retreat and Master-of-Nets Garden, scholars and officials could briefly leave the noisy streets and step into a paradise of wood, stone, forests, and springs—perhaps this is why people forever yearn for Suzhou.

Suzhou, nurturing vitality between the old and the new.

How about trying one of the "Eight Aquatic Delicacies" – Gorgon fruit?

Carefully selected fresh Gorgon fruit from Suzhou

8mm large grains, each plump and full

Text | "Authentic Local · Suzhou"

Image Editors | Zhang Lütang, Chen Jinyu

This article is compiled from "Heaven-Chosen Suzhou: How It Became the Wealthiest Under Heaven", "Suzhou: The Ideal City of the Chinese", "Kunqu Opera: Suzhou's Golden Age Melodies", "Why Suzhou Boasts the Finest Gardens Under Heaven", "From Top Scholars to Eccentrics: The Spiritual Spectrum of Suzhou's Literati", originally written by Xu Junda, Lou Xue, Yu Jia, Huo Liangzi, Liu Shanshan, Huang Xiao, and Qian Chaoshu.

Edited and reorganized with a title added by the editors.

Originally published in the "Authentic Local · Suzhou" mook

This article is original content from 【Authentic Local】