Kaifeng became the capital of the Northern Song dynasty in 960. An imperial place was built here and the city prospered, perhaps with a population reaching over 400,000. During that time the city took the name Dongjing or Bianjing. The city of that time is thought to be depicted on the famous painting Along the River During Qingming Festival. The painting by the artistZhang Zeduan shows a typical Qingming Festival scene. The city of that time is also integral to the famous writing, Dongjing Meng Hua Lu. The Jurchen-led Jin dynasty captured Kaifeng in 1127 and made the city their southern capital sometime between 1157 and 1161. The city under Jin rule was considerably smaller than it had been under the Song. The Jurchens kept their main capital further north until 1214 when they were forced to move the imperial court southwards to Kaifeng in order to flee from the Mongol onslaught. Under Yuan and Ming rule, Kaifeng ceased to an imperial capital, relegated to the level of provincial capital. The Dragon Pavilion or Wanshou Pavilion was one of the buildings of the Song imperial palace. It was destroyed and rebuilt many times throughout its long history. The current design was first built during the reign of the Kangxi Emperor during the Qing dynasty on the foundations of the old Song imperial palace. It was destroyed several times by strong storms and wars. A news magazine article from 1948 describes the Dragon Pavilion as burned during the Chinese Civil War. Heavy rainstorms and a lightning strike cause the pavilion to collapse in 1994. After each disaster, the building has been reconstructed again.
Structure
Most of the old imperial palace structures have gone today. The Dragon Pavilion remains standing within the Longting park. The Pavilion is a grand hall built on a blue brick terrace. Some 72 steps lead up to the entrance. The pavilion building is a wooden structure. It has a southern aspect with the dimensions of from east to west, from south to north, and in height. The Song Capital Street is a restored road made to look like these scene in the Qingming Scroll. It is about 400 metres long and runs southwards from entrance of Longting park. The road is lined with two story wooden buildings with tile roofs made to look like authentic Song dynasty architecture. Archeological excavation below the modern road found the remains of the old Song dynasty imperial way.
