1．荣辱兴衰汴梁城
开封位于河南省东部，黄河南岸的豫东平原上，是中国著名的历史文化名城。开封在古代称为大梁，又称做汴梁。开封城历史悠久，是中国最早开发的地域之一，早在5000多年前，在现在的开封城附近就出现了原始的聚落。
开封地区地势平坦，气候温和，地理位置十分优越，并且河流湖泊众多，水运发达，这些条件都十分有利于城市的形成和发展，也是古代统治者选择在开封建都的重要原因。在中国历史上共有7个朝代在开封建都，它们分别是战国时期的魏国，五代时期的后梁、后晋、后汉、后周，以及北宋和金，因此，开封又有“七朝古都”之称。另外，西汉时期的梁孝王也曾经把开封作为自己的封国--梁国的都城。元末农民起义时，农民军政权也曾在开封建立都城。明朝初年，皇帝朱元璋曾一度把开封定为北方的都城。
公元前4世纪，魏国进行了社会改革，成为当时最强大的国家。公元前361年，魏国都城从山西迁移到了开封，并在这里建立大梁城。政治地位的提高，加上开封优越的自然条件，开封成为一座繁华的大城市，人口最多时达到50万，约占当时魏国总人口的1/4。
大梁作为魏国的国都长达130多年。到公元前225年，秦国攻打魏国的大梁城，由于城墙坚固，秦国便引水灌城，这是开封历史上第一次遭受毁灭性的打击，大梁城也变成了一座废墟。从此以后的五六百年中，开封一直处于一蹶不振的状态。
秦朝建立以后，开封变成了一个普通的郡县。秦朝在这里设置了浚仪县，同时还在开封故城的附近设置了开封县。汉朝时将浚仪县归属到陈留郡。这里还是楚汉之争的要地，地理位置十分的重要，据历史记载，汉高祖的谋臣就曾对他指出开封地区的重要军事地位。
605年，隋朝修建了著名的大运河，其中从黄河到淮河之间的一段称为汴河。水路的畅通使开封成为一个重要的交通枢纽，为开封的再次繁荣打下了良好的基础。唐朝的时候，开封因为其重要的水运地位，经济开始迅速发展，地位也有了极大的提高。
五代时期，后梁、后汉、后晋、后周都在这里建都。后梁在这里设置了开封府，称为东都，成为国家的首都，后晋、后汉、后周都将开封称做东京。但因为当时连年战争，开封的发展再次受到影响，自后梁以后开封只有国都的虚名，情况基本保持了原来的样子，市容萧条，经济落没。这种情况直到后周才有了转机。后周第二个皇帝柴荣励精图治，发展经济，在开封城市建设和发展上也作出了巨大的贡献，如修筑道路、建立仓库、修复水道等，这一系列的措施为开封在北宋时期成为全国性的大都会打下了基础。
960年，赵匡胤建立宋朝，定都汴京（今开封），又称东京。北宋王朝共经历了167年，是在开封建都时间最长的王朝。这一时期是开封历史上发展的鼎盛时期。当时，汴河、惠民河、五丈河和金水河四条水道贯穿开封全城，形成了一个庞大的水运交通网。陆路方面，当时开封有几条干线向四方辐射，通往全国各地。交通的发达使开封逐渐发展成为一个商业繁荣的大都市。东京城的规模也在不断扩大，成为当时世界上最壮丽的城市之一，也是当时世界上人口最多的城市之一。
北宋时期是开封发展历史上一个重要的时期，经济高度发达，手工业成为当时经济的主体，商业和农业也很发达，贸易交往频繁，市场繁荣。开封不仅是全国的政治中心，也是全国官方贸易中心。那时手工业的发展程度相当的高，已经有了手工作坊和工场，手工业分为官营和私营两种，其中官营的规模最大，据说各种工匠达到8万人以上。而且手工业的门类越来越多，分工越来越细，规模也十分的庞大，主要有军器、纺织、陶瓷、酿酒等。随着手工业的发展，商品生产大大增加，商品买卖也相应发展起来，当时从事商业的达到两万多户。商业的发展又促进了市场的繁荣，大街小巷，店铺林立，一片繁荣的景象。另外开封作为全国的官方贸易中心，成为中国境内各个民族和王朝同宋朝，亚非各国同宋朝进行商业和贸易交流的中心城市，对宋朝政治的安定和经济的发展有重要的影响。开封当时还是全国印刷业的四大中心之一，印刷业的繁荣，使文化传播变得更加迅速。经济的发展极大地促进了建筑业的发展，当时著名的建筑有大庆殿、宣德楼等。
1127年，北宋被金灭亡，开封继续被金定为都城，这时的开封已经遭到严重的破坏，经济也开始衰落了。
到了明朝和清朝时期，开封仍然是地方行政中心，经济情况比金、元两个朝代有了好转。明朝统治者一方面恢复农业，兴修水利工程，另一方面对城市进行改建，开封一度恢复生机。清朝统治者重建开封城，尽管如此，开封城市的发展已经远远不如从前了。
在历史上，开封经历了无数次的黄河水灾。历史上最大的一次发生在明朝末年，这次水灾使开封城内原有的37万人口只剩下3万人，整个开封遭受了空前的毁坏。黄河的多次泛滥，严重破坏了自然环境，是开封经济落后的一个重要原因。
开封作为一座拥有2000多年历史的古城，经历了多次的兴盛与衰落，成为历史的见证者。
1. History
East of Henan province and on a plain on the south bank of the Yellow River, there lies a city of time-honored history and civilization. Named as Daliang and Bianliang successively in history, the city known as Kaifeng is one of the first cultivated lands in China. As early as 5,000 years ago, primitive tribes left their footprint on this land.
Flat land, mild climate, favorable geographical location and numerous lakes and rivers make Kaifeng an ideal place for urban development and for the development of a capital city. In the Chinese history, seven dynasties built their capitals in Kaifeng. They are the state of Wei in the Warring States Period, Later Liang, Later Jin, Later Han, Later Zhou of the Five Dynasties, the Northern Song dynasty as well as the Jin dynasty (1115-1234). Therefore, Kaifeng is also known as "an ancient capital of seven dynasties". In the Western Han dynasty, Kaifeng was chosen by Duke Liangxiao as the capital of his fief "Liang" (a state under the control of the Han dynasty court). In the late years of the Yuan dynasty, farmer insurgents established their capital in Kaifeng. And in the early years of the Ming dynasty, Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang once appointed Kaifeng the capital of the north.
In the 4th century BC, through reform, Wei became the most powerful state. In 361 BC, Wei moved the capital from Shanxi to today's Kaifeng and built the city of Daliang in this area. With enhanced political status and favorable natural conditions, Daliang soon became a prosperous city. Population of the city at its prime time reached 500,000, accounting for a quarter of the total population of Wei.
Daliang remained Wei's capital for more than 130 years until 225 BC when it came under heavy attack from Qin. Unable to conquer the firm city wall, soldiers of Qin channeled water to flood the city which was finally reduced to ruins. This is the first time in history that Kaifeng suffered a deadly hit. In the following five or six hundred years, the city never regained the prosperity that it once enjoyed.
In the Qin dynasty, on the land of today's Kaifeng there were two small counties: Yunyi county and Kaifeng county. Later in the Han dynasty, the former was incorporated into Chenliu prefecture. The modern Kaifeng is where the famous battle between Xiang Yu and Liu Bang occurred. So it was a place of strategic importance in history. Historical records say Liu Bang's advisors once pointed out the military significance of Kaifeng to him.
In the Sui dynasty, the Grand Canal built in 605 made Kaifeng a water transportation hub, underpinning the revival of the city. Then after years of rapid economic development in the Tang dynasty, the city regained its status of importance.
In the period of Five Dynasties, though Kaifeng was the capital for four dynasties, the city was not as prosperous as a capital should be due to the ravages of warfare. It was not until in Later Zhou that it showed some signs of revival. Chai Rong, the second emperor of Later Zhou spared no effort to make the city better. Under his rule, roads were built, warehouses constructed and waterways repaired. All these paved the way for Kaifeng's evolution into a national metropolis later in the Song dynasty.
In 960, Zhao Kuangyin announced the beginning of the Song dynasty with Bianjing or Dongjing (present Kaifeng) as its capital. Since then, Northern Song ruled for more than 167 years, the longest reign with Kaifeng as the capital. During those years, Kaifeng developed to its peak mainly due to the convenient transportation networks the city had: the Bianhe River, the Huimin River, the Wuzhang River and the Golden Water River that flowed through the city formed a huge water transportation network while several trunk roads radiated out in all directions and led to places all over the ancient China. As a result, Kaifeng gradually developed into a busy commercial metropolis and one of the world's magnificent cities with large populations.
Kaifeng in the Northern Song dynasty was a highly developed economy. On top of agriculture, handicraft industry became a major part of the economy, thus creating conditions for frequent trade exchanges. Handicraft industry was so developed that there were 80,000 artisans of different types working in workshops and plants. Handicraft production, both official and private, was carried out on a large scale and with a more careful division of labor. Specialized artisans made different products such as weapons, textiles, pottery and wine-making, etc. The development of handicraft industry stimulated sales of commodities, which in turn created a thriving market. At that time, more than 20,000 households were engaged in commerce and streets were lined with different kinds of shops. Kaifeng became an official national trade center and was open to merchants from various ethnic groups, from other dynasties as well as from Asian and African countries. They came to the city and exchanged goods with each other, making Northern Song a politically stable and economically thriving dynasty. Kaifeng was also among the four national printing centers. Development of the printing industry accelerated cultural spread across the country. Thanks to the economic development, a lot of buildings sprouted up. Among the famous are the Daqing Palace and the Xuande pavilion.
In 1127, Northern Song was overthrown by the Jin dynasty and Kaifeng continued to be Jin's capital; but greatly destroyed in the wars, the city began to fall.
In Ming and Qing dynasties, Kaifeng was a local administrative center and rulers of both dynasties did a lot to boost the economic development. Though much better than in Jin and Yuan dynasties, Kaifeng was no longer what it used to be.
In history, Kaifeng was flooded by the Yellow River frequently. The worst one was in the late years of the Ming dynasty. After that flooding, the population of the city dropped from 370,000 to only 30,000. The frequent flooding of the Yellow River was a great havoc to the natural environment and may well be blamed for the city's lagging economy.
A city whose development dates back to two thousand years ago, a city that experienced rises and falls, Kaifeng is definitely a witness of history.
