History of Jiangxi Province

Jiangxi was outside the sphere of influence of early Chinese civilization during the Shang Dynasty (C.1600_1046BC). It is likely that peoples collectively known as the Yue inhabited the region. During the Spring and Autumn Period (770BC_476BC), the northern part of modern Jiangxi formed the western frontier of the state of Wu. After Wu was conquered by the state of Yue (a power based in modern northern Zhejiang) in 473 BC, the state of Chu (based in modern Hubei) took over northern Jiangxi and there may have been some Yue influence in the south. Chu subjugated Yue in 333 BC, and was in turn subjugated by the state of Qin in 221 BC. Qin established the Qin Dynasty (221BC_206BC) in that same year, the first unified Chinese state.
 
The unification of China by the Qin Dynasty saw the incorporation of Jiangxi into the Qin empire. The Qin Dynasty established a two-tier administration system in China, with commanderies on top and counties below. Seven counties were established in what is now Jiangxi, all of them administered from Jiujiang commandery, located north of the Yangzi in modern Anhui, not the modern city of Jiujiang in Jiangxi. Qin colonization formed the earliest settlement structure in Jiangxi and which for the most part, has survived to the present day.

Yuzhang commandery was established in northern Jiangxi at the beginning of the Han Dynasty (206BC_220AD), possibly before the death of Xiang Yu in 202 BC. It was named after the Yuzhang River, the original name of Gan River. "Gan" has become the abbreviation of the province. In 201, eight counties were added to the original seven of Qin, and three more were established in later years. Throughout most of the Han Dynasty the commandery's eighteen counties covered most of the modern province of Jiangxi. The county seats of Nanchang, Gan, Yudu, Luling among others were located at the sites of modern major cities. Other counties, however, have been moved or abolished in later centuries.

Under the reign of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, Yuzhang Commandery was assigned to Yangzhou Province, as part of a trend to establish provinces (zhou) all across China. In 291 AD, during the Western Jin Dynasty (265_316), Jiangxi became its own Zhou called Jiangzhou. During the Northern and Southern Dynasties (386_589), Jiangxi was under the control of the southern dynasties, and the number of zhou slowly grew.

During the Sui Dynasty (581_618), there were seven commanderies and twenty-four counties in Jiangxi. During the Tang Dynasty (618_907), another commandery and fourteen counties were added. Commanderies were then abolished, becoming zhou (henceforth translated as "prefectures" rather than "provinces").

Circuits were established during the Tang Dynasty as a new top-level administrative division. At first Jiangxi was part of the Jiangnan Circuit (lit. "Circuit south of the Yangtze"). In 733, this circuit was divided into western and eastern halves. Jiangxi was found in the western half, which was called Jiangnanxi Circuit (lit. "Western circuits south of the Yangtze"). This is the source of the modern name "Jiangxi".

The Tang Dynasty collapsed in 907, heralding the division of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period (907_965). Jiangxi first belonged to Wu, then to Southern Tang. Both states were based in modern-day Nanjing, further down the Yangtze River.

During the Song Dynasty (960_1279), Jiangnanxi Circuit was reestablished with nine prefectures and four army districts (with sixty_eight districts).

During the Yuan Dynasty (1279_1368), the circuit was divided into thirteen different circuits, and Jiangxi Province was established for the first time. This province also included the majority of modern Guangdong. Jiangxi acquired (more or less) its modern borders during the Ming Dynasty (1368_1644) after Guangdong was separated out. There has been little change to the borders of Jiangxi since.

After the fall of the Qing Dynasty (1644_1911), Jiangxi became one of the earliest bases for the Communists and many peasants were recruited to join the growing people's revolution. The Nanchang Uprising took place in Jiangxi on August 1, 1927, during the Chinese Civil War. Later the Communist leadership hid in the mountains of southern and western Jiangxi, hiding from the Kuomindang's attempts to eradicate them. In 1931, the Chinese Soviet Republic's government was established in Ruijin.