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 Kashgar
Prefecture, 141,600
kilometers in total
area, lies between
latitude 35°0’ to 40°8’
north and longitude
73°0’ to 79°7’ east in
the southern part of
Xinjiang. The city of
Kashgar, a place of
strategic importance in
south Xinjiang, has an
area of 15 square
kilometers with an
average elevation of
1289.5 meters. The city
is located between
latitude 39°5’ to 29°5’
north and longitude
75°6’ to 76°4’ east and
lies 1,473 kilometers
from the city of Urumqi.
Located in the plain
climate zone with the
clear four seasons,
Kashgar has a long
summer and a short
winter. The annual mean
temperature in Kashgar
is 11.7 ºC, with the
lowest temperature of
-24.4 ºC in January and
the hottest 40.1ºC in
July. The frost-free
period averages 215
days.
Kashgar was called Shule
in ancient times and has
a history of more than
two thousand years.
According to the record
of the Persian Epic,
Afulabuseyav, an ancient
Tulan hero, established
the capital of his
kingdom here. In the
beginning of the Han
Dynasty, it belonged to
the Zhuangpu Prefecture
General’s Office of the
Hun. In the latter half
of the second century
B.C., after the Han
Dynasty Emperor Wudi
sent Zhang Qian as his
special envoy to the
Western Region, Kashgar
submitted to the
authorities of the
Western Han Dynasty.
During the first
century, Kashgar was the
supreme headquarters of
Ban Chao, an imperial
general who administered
the Western Region. But
at the end of the Sui
Dynasty and at the
beginning of the Tang
Dynasty, Kashgar had to
pay taxes and levies
frequently to the
Western Turkish Khanate.
During the reign of the
Tang Dynasty Emperor
Taizong and afterwards,
it was an important
military stronghold of
the Tang government.
Kashgar was one of the
four important towns in
Anxi at the time; thus
it was made the seat of
the Shule
Superintendent’s Office.
The Karakhanid Dynasty
also established its
capital in Kashgar.
Before Genghis Khan went
on his western
expedition, Kashgar was
the south capital of the
Western Liao Regime
established by Khitans.
After Khan’s western
expedition was over,
Kashgar became the fief
of the crown prince of
Chagatai. During the
reign of the Qing
Dynasty Emperor Qianlong,
Kashgar became the seat
of government of the
Kashgar Councilor of the
Qing government. |
