Hua Hill

Hua Hill , also known as Hua Fu Zhu Hill
, is a solitary cone-shaped hill in the lower Yellow River
valley, located at the northeastern edge of the city of Jinan,
Shandong , China. The hill is
known for its cultural and historical significance as well as for its
natural beauty. It has been an inspiration for Chinese artists for
many centuries and was the site of a major battle fought during the
Spring and Autumn Period.

Hill

Hua Hill is one of the solitary "Nine Hills" in the Yellow River
valley within and to the north of Jinan City; the other eight hills
are : Wozhu Hill
, Que Hill , Biao Hill
, Phoenix Hill
, Northern Maan Hill , Li Hill
, Kuang Hill , and Yao Hill .

The hill has an elevation of 197 meters above sea level; its
slopes are covered with large smooth rocks and bushy vegetation
growing in the clefts between them. The foot of the hill is flanked by
small villages on the eastern and western side. To the east and south,
the hill is also surrounded by a crescent-shaped row of ponds. A
flight of stone stairs has been laid up the southern flank of the hill
to the summit.

In the times before the Northern Song Dynasty, Hua Hill was
surrounded by a lake known as the "Magpie Hill Lake" , named for the nearby Magpie Hill. Since Hua Hill appeared
to float on the waters of the lake like the bud of a lotus flower
to contemporary observers, it was given its alternative name "Hua Fu
Zhu Shan" .

Historical significance

In the year 589 BC, during the Spring and Autumn Period, Hua Hill
became the site of the final action in the Battle of An which was
fought between the states of and . During the preparation for the battle, the Qi army used
the Northern Maan Hill
as a staging area. The Jin army had its positions right at Hua
Hill. The Qi army started the battle by attacking the Jin positions on
Hua Hill, but the battle ended in a victory for the State of
Jin. Eventually an alliance was formed between the two states.

During part of the 20th century, a small fortified army base was
located at the hill. Although the base has been abandoned, some
fortifications in the form of bunkers and tunnels at the foot of the
hill remain.

Cultural significance

The natural beauty of Hua Hill has inspired the works of both writers
and painters.

During the the period of the Northern Wei Dynasty, the writer and
geographer Li Daoyuan, described Hua Hill in his ''"Commentary to the River Classic"'' : "Without a mountain range
to support it, the peak alone stands gracefully and loftily. Its
verdant cliff rises into the blue, tinting the moon with its green."
.

The poet Li Bai wrote about Hua
Hill: "Mountains and rivers are delicately beautiful; the
emerald-green hill is fresh like a lotus leaf." .

The best known pictorial depiction of Hua Hill is a painting from
the entitled ''"Autumn Colors at Que
and Hua Hills"'' by the painter and
Zhao Mengfu .

Various rock faces on the mountian slope have been adorned with
calligraphic inscriptions.

Temples

The Huayang Palace is a primarily Taoist temple located at the southern
foot of the hill on gently sloping terrain. Its founding during the
Jin Dynasty is attributed to Chen Zhiyuan, a
disciple of the Quanzhen Taoist Qiu Chuji, who in turn was the
foremost disciple of Wang Chongyang, the founder of Quanzhen
Taoism. The original purpose of the building was to serve as a
Taoist temple dedicated to the "Five Color Gods" representing east , west
, north ,
south , and center . Over time, the temple has also come to include sites of
worship for Buddhism and Confucianism.

In 1532, during the Ming Dynasty, the palace complex was renamed
into Chong Zheng Temple . The central hall of the
complex was dedicated to two persons worshipped at the time, Feng Chou
Fu and Min Zi Qian. The two side halls were dedicated to groups of 19
and 22 people famous in the period, respectively.

Later in the Ming Dynasty, the name of the complex was changed back to
Huayang Palace and dedicated to the God of the Four Seasons
.

During the and Dynasties,
temples dedicated to the god Bi Xia and the three gods of heaven, earth, and water
were added. Part of the Huayang Palace is
the Taishan Resting Palace , it was
used by the emperor as a resting place on his way to Mount Tai.
The grounds of Huayang Palace cover a rectangular area of
approximately 3 hectares, which is completely enclosed by a
stone-and-brick wall. Between the temple buildings stand old pine
trees as well as stone stelas.


In the 20th century, the Huayang Palace was used as a military storage
facility for about 50 years. It was reopened to the public in
1990. The books kept in the palace were destroyed during the
Cultural Revolution. Some wall paintings in the temple buildings
were also plastered over and covered with slogans of the Cultural
Revolution during this time.

The present-day entrance to the complex is the gate to the inner
courtyard of the palace; the outer courtyard has not been
preserved. The gate currently standing dates back to the Ming and Qing
Dynasties; there is no record about the previous gates which are
likely to have previously occupied its place. The gate building houses
the statues of the "Four Zhi Gong Cao" , four minor deities that are thought to be positioned on the border between heaven
and earth in order to fulfill book- and gate keeping duties.

Further up on the slope of the mountain lies the smaller
Lü Dongbin Temple ,
dedicated to Lü Dongbin, one of the Eight Immortals.

Hua Spring

A spring, the Hua Spring , is located at the
southern foot of the hill in front of the entrance to the Huayang
Palace. The Hua Spring mentioned in the traditions about the
events at the Battle of An: The King of Qi is said to have used the
pretense of fetching water from the Hua Spring as an excuse for
fleeing the battle field in the face of imminent defeat. Over time,
the spring has fallen dry various times. Its most recent revival was
undertaken during a renovation in the year 2000. During this work, a
pool with an area of 17.6 meters times 10 meters and depth
of 3.5 meters was excavated, bringing the outflow from the spring
up to a maximum of 40 cubic meters per hour .

Protection and development

Huayang Palace became a Jinan City Heritage site on September 3rd,
1979. The Huashan landscape area intended to protect its surroundings
was opened on October 1st, 2000.