Wuzhou 梧州市

Setting and landscape

The land is high around the edges and low in the middle, where three levels of river terraces line the Xi River between Cangwu County (苍梧县) and the city. Baiyun Mountain (白云山) rises to 367 metres at the north-east corner of the urban area, the Tropic of Cancer crosses the city, and more than 85 per cent of Guangxi's river water flows past it.

History

The city, ancient Guangxin (广信), dates its founding to 183 BC, when Zhao Tuo (赵佗), self-proclaimed emperor of Nanyue, made Zhao Guang (赵光) King of Cangwu and a royal city was built. Guangxin was the seat of Cangwu Commandery (苍梧郡) from 111 BC to AD 583 and, for 370 years from 106 BC, the capital of Lingnan. In 1469 the Ming court based the supreme command of Guangdong and Guangxi here; the city calls its headquarters, finished in 1470, China's first viceroy's office. In 1927 Wuzhou became Guangxi's first city under provincial administration, according to the city gazetteer. The city government calls old Guangxin the birthplace of Cantonese, still the main local language.

What to see

The Qilou old town (骑楼城), in the Hedong old quarter of Wanxiu District (万秀区), has 22 streets of arcaded buildings, mostly shops below and homes above, begun in the early Republican years. Because the rivers flood the streets, the pillars carry iron rings for mooring boats and second floors have "water doors" for boarding. The Longmu Temple (龙母庙) on the east bank of the Gui, founded in the early Northern Song, honours the Dragon Mother, said to have come from Teng County (藤县). Zhongshan Park (中山公园) took its name when the Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall (中山纪念堂) was completed there in 1930. In the Mengshan County (蒙山县) seat, the Wu Temple (武庙) holds the 1851 Yong'an site of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom (太平天国), a national key cultural relic since 2006.

Food and local products

Liubao tea (六堡茶), a dark tea named after Liubao town (六堡镇) in Cangwu County, was sold as far as Southeast Asia and, the city government says, counted among China's 24 famous teas in the Jiaqing reign for being "red, strong, aged and mellow" with an areca-nut aroma. Guilinggao (龟苓膏), a medicinal jelly the city archives say originated in Wuzhou, is made mainly from eagle-beak turtle (鹰嘴龟) and tu fuling root (土茯苓). Liubao tea making, guilinggao preparation and the Teng County lion dance (藤县狮舞) are on the national intangible-heritage list.

Getting oriented

The Luoyang–Zhanjiang and Nanning–Guangzhou railways pass through Wuzhou, which also has Xijiang Airport (梧州西江机场).

Highlights

• Qilou old town 骑楼城: About a square kilometre of arcaded streets in the Hedong old quarter, with iron mooring rings and second-floor water doors for flood seasons.
• Longmu Temple 龙母庙: Temple to the Dragon Mother on the east bank of the Gui River, founded in the early Northern Song.
• Zhongshan Park 中山公园: Laid out as Beishan Park (北山公园) in 1924 and renamed Zhongshan Park after the Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall was completed there in 1930.
• Taiping Yong'an site 太平天国永安活动旧址: The 1851 Taiping site at the Wu Temple in the Mengshan county town; a national key cultural relic since 2006.
• Liubao tea 六堡茶: Dark tea named after Liubao town in Cangwu County; its making has been on the national intangible-heritage list since 2014.
• Guilinggao 龟苓膏: Traditional medicinal jelly of eagle-beak turtle and tu fuling root, which the city archives say originated in Wuzhou.