The Strategic Birth of a Northern Capital

In the mid-12th century, the Jin Dynasty faced a pivotal decision about its imperial seat. The original capital at Shangjing (modern Harbin) in Manchuria had become increasingly impractical for governing conquered Han Chinese territories. In 1151, the ambitious Emperor Hailingwang made a bold move—he ordered the relocation of the capital to the former Liao Southern Capital (Yanjing), situated on a small plain in northern China, nestled between the Jundu Mountains and Western Hills.

This was no simple administrative shift. Hailingwang dispatched artists to meticulously study the layout of Kaifeng, the fallen Northern Song capital, then demanded his new capital surpass its splendor. Historical records describe a gargantuan project: “More magnificent than Bianjing [Kaifeng],” employing 800,000 civilian laborers and 400,000 soldiers over several years, with countless deaths during construction. When completed in 1153 and renamed Zhongdu (“Central Capital”), it stood as a monument to Jin power—and to its ruler’s hubris.

Architectural Marvel of the North

Zhongdu’s design followed the classic triple-walled Chinese capital model:

1. The Outer City – A massive 75-li (about 25 mile) circumference with 13 gates, each protected by barbicans and stone bridges crossing moats. Southern Song envoy Lou Yue’s 1169 account describes the magnificent Fengyi Gate with its seven-room gatehouse and six passageways, guarded by elite troops.

2. The Imperial City – A 9-li perimeter with four gates, housing administrative centers.

3. The Palace City – The innermost sanctum with 36 palaces across nine courtyards. The grandest were the Da’an Hall and Renzheng Hall, where Southern Song ambassador Fan Chengda in 1170 marveled at golden and jade-glazed roofs shimmering under sunlight, declaring it the epitome of “extravagance leaving no craft untried.”

Fan’s poetic condemnation—comparing Zhongdu’s palaces to the doomed Qin Dynasty’s Afang Palace—proved eerily prophetic. His verses mocked the Jurchen rulers for forgetting their nomadic roots while exploiting Han wealth, warning that like Afang, these palaces would burn.

The Gathering Storm

For six decades, Zhongdu thrived as the political heart of the Jin Empire. Then in 1211, disaster struck from the steppes. After the catastrophic Jin defeat at Wild Fox Ridge, Mongol vanguard units appeared before Zhongdu’s gates by late August. The panic-stricken Emperor Weishaowang reportedly wept privately while issuing desperate orders:

– All men forbidden from leaving the city (to preserve defenders)
– Strict curfews imposed
– Emergency fortifications prepared

Contemporary Southern Song accounts, though likely embellished, describe terrifying scenes: officials urging civilians to flee while the city descended into chaos, with “the old and weak wailing as they ran” and corpses piling up outside the walls from hunger and exposure.

The Mongol Siege: Fact and Legend

The actual 1211 siege remains shrouded in legend due to scarce Jin records. Southern Song chroniclers created a dramatic narrative:

1. The Four Sub-Cities – Allegedly designed a century earlier by Jin founding general Zhanhan as fail-safes, these walled compounds within the city housed elites (east for wealthy, south for officials, west for royals, north for imperial relatives), each with 20,000 troops. Commoners were left defenseless.

2. The Trap at South Gate – Jin generals allowed Mongol cavalry to charge through an apparently undefended gate, only to ambush them in a firestorm of arrows, explosives, and flaming barriers along narrow Nanliu Street. Initial success cost the life of Jin commander Wanyan Tianji.

3. The Month-Long Struggle – Mongol forces attacked the sub-cities relentlessly, building siege towers that Jin artillery destroyed “only for new ones to rise.” A final assault on the 29th day saw Mongols breaching the West Gate before being repelled by fire attacks and night raids.

By October, Jin reinforcements arrived—20,000 troops from Shangjing and 3,000 elite cavalry—forcing the Mongols to withdraw by November. Yet vast territories from Liaodong to Shanxi had been ravaged, marking the beginning of the end.

Legacy of a Doomed Capital

Zhongdu’s fate was sealed within decades. In 1215, the Mongols returned to sack the city thoroughly. Later, Kublai Khan would build Dadu (modern Beijing) nearby using some of Zhongdu’s foundations. Today, remnants survive in Beijing’s Xicheng District—a few stone pillars near Lianhua Pool mark where the Da’an Hall once stood.

The story of Zhongdu encapsulates the Jin Dynasty’s trajectory: its rapid sinification, overextension, and eventual collapse before Mongol might. Fan Chengda’s poetic curse came true—not by Southern Song hands, but by the very forces the Jin had once underestimated. The capital built to showcase imperial grandeur became a cautionary tale about the fragility of power.

For modern visitors to Beijing, the memory of Zhongdu lingers beneath the city’s layers—a reminder that even the mightiest capitals can become footnotes in history’s relentless march.