Datong
Datong (Chinese: 大同; pinyin: Dàtóng; Wade–Giles: Ta-t'ung) is a prefecture-level city in northern Shanxi province, People's Republic of China, located in a basin at an elevation of 1,040 metres (3,410 ft) and bordering Inner Mongolia to the north and west and Hebei to the east. It had a population of 3,318,057 at the 2010 census of whom 1,629,035 lived in the built up area made of 3 out of 4 urban districts, namely Chengqu, Kuangqu and Nanjiao District.
History
Datong was close to the Beidi kingdom of Tai, which was conquered by the Zhou dynasty in 457 BC. It bordered on the Hu nomads and traded in horses. Tai was later a commandery or county.
The town was founded as Píngchéng (平城) in 200 BC during the Han dynasty, after the Battle of Baideng between the Han and the Xiongnu. Located near the Great Wall Pass to Inner Mongolia, it blossomed during the following period and became a stop-off point for camel caravans moving from China into Mongolia and beyond. It was sacked at the end of the Eastern Han dynasty. Pingcheng became the capital of Northern Wei from 398 AD until 494 AD. The well-known Yungang Grottoes were constructed during the later part of this period (460–494 AD).
