The former villa of Chiang Kai-shek, one of the local sons of Fenghua.

Fenghua (奉化; pinyin: Fènghuà) is a county-level city in the north of Zhejiang province, China. It is under the jurisdiction of Ningbo prefecture-level city. Fenghua is dominated by the Tiantai and Siming mountain ranges.

History

Fenghua was established as a county in the Tang dynasty, in the territory of Mingzhou. Its name means "received teaching" and was a tribute to imperial rule. During the Song dynasty, immigration from the north increased exponentially, peaking during the loss of north China to the Jurchen invasions. In 1129, Fenghua was raided by Jurchen cavalry in pursuit of Emperor Gaozong. Local milita at Xiaowangmiao 蕭王廟 fought off the invaders.

In late imperial times, Fenghua established itself as a meeting point for trade between the agrarian communities to the north, in Yinxian 鄞县, and the mountain-based communities in the south. In exchange for grain and cereals, the hill peoples would trade bamboo, timber and other cash crops such as tea and tobacco. In the east of Fenghua, around Xiangshan 象山, there existed also a number of fishing communities.

With the rest of China, the nineteenth century brought about tumultuous changes. The Opiums wars with Britain devastated the economies of the coast. Around this time, many Fenghua men sought opportunity in the rising cities of Harbin, Weihaiwei and Shanghai. They later became famous in the 1920s for their dominance of the tailor profession in downtown Shanghai, known as the "Feng gang" 奉幫. But by far Fenghua's most famous export was Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek, leader of the Nationalist Party of China. Chiang's family were originally salt merchants in the township of Xikou 溪口 (old pronunciation "Qikou"), a town in the west of Fenghua county.

Tourism

Largely as a result of Chiang's fame, Fenghua attracts a large number of tourists, mostly from mainland China and Taiwan. Aside from Chiang's former house and related nostalgia, Fenghua has few relics from the past. The great Xuedou Temple 雪竇寺, once one of the ten great monasteries of Chan Buddhism, was all but destroyed during the Cultural Revolution. Other sites, along with numerous local shrines, clan halls and genealogies, also perished in those chaotic years.

To encourage the growing tourist trade, Fenghua municipality has made efforts to preserve remaining items of cultural interest. In 1988, for example, it rebuilt Xuedou Temple and also retored the Temple of King Xiao at Xiaowangmiao.

Industry

Today, Fenghua is a centre for light manufacturing and small scale farming. It boasts a number of premier garment and textiles factories, including the Luoman brand widely recognised in China. As the port city of Ningbo is further integrated into the burgeoning economic region of Shanghai, Fenghua will attract increased foreign investment and continue to grow.