:Hengyang

{{More citations needed section|date=November 2019}}

The former name of the city was Hengzhou (Hengchow) ({{zh|labels=no|c={{linktext|衡州}} |p=Héngzhōu}}[http://www.larousse.fr/encyclopedie/ville/Hengyang/123568 Larousse Encyclopedie: HENGYANG]). This was the capital of a prefecture in the Tang dynasty's Jiangnan and West Jiangnan circuits. Li Jingxuan was banished to superintendence of Hengzhou after feigning an illness and attempting to usurp control of the legislative bureau at Chang'an against the Gaozong Emperor's wishes in AD 680. Following the AD 705 coup that removed the Empress Wu Zetian from power, her ally Li Jiongxiu was also briefly demoted to superintendence of this province. During the reign of Emperor Muzong, the chancellor Linghu Chu was also demoted to this province for his underlings' alleged corruption.

In the 750s, the superintendent of Hengzhou Chen Xi'ang not only ruled his own region but also used his private army to dominate his nominal superior, the military governor Zhang Weiyi headquartered in Jing Prefecture (modern Jingzhou). Upon Zhang's replacement by the former chancellor Lü Yin in 760, however, Chen was placated and then killed in a surprise attack.

During the reign of the Tang emperor Xizong, Zhou Yue overthrew first the prefect of Hengzhou Xu Hao in 881 and then the agent of the rebel Qin Zongquan in the capital of the Qinhua Circuit at Tan Prefecture (modern Changsha) in 886. Xizong confirmed Zhou Yue in all his posts, renaming his circuit Wu'an. Xizong's brother then gave him additional authority over West Lingnan Circuit (modern Guangxi). Shortly after, in 893, Deng Chune and Lei Man attacked and killed him.

Other superintendents included Qi Ying and Xiao Ye.

After initially falling to agrarian rebels under Yang Shiyuan, Hengzhou was recovered by the lord of Wu'an Ma Yin and formed part of his power base during the collapse of the Tang. He initially supported the Later Liang, then declared himself king (Ma Chu) in his own right during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period.

During the Revolt of the Three Feudatories, Wu Sangui declared himself Emperor of the Great Zhou and established an imperial court at Hengzhou in 1678 before dying of illness later that year. His grandson Wu Shifan then retreated to Yunnan, and the Qing recovered Hengzhou the next year.

The Battle of Hengyang was the longest defense of a single city during the Second Sino-Japanese War. When Changsha fell to the Imperial Japanese Army on June 19, 1944, Hengyang became their next target. The reorganized 11th Army, consisting of 10 divisions, four brigades, and over 110,000 men, assumed the task of attacking Hengyang. It was part of the Japanese Ichi-Go offensive.

A Roman Catholic diocese of Hengzhou was established, although periodically suppressed. This was suffragan to the Archbishop of Changsha following its elevation in 1946.

In 2013 Hengyang was the center of a major vote buying scandal where it was found that 56 officials were founded to be complicit in paying lower level local officials for votes. The 56 were subsequently removed from office, and an additional 512 resigned from their positions.{{cite web| url = https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-resign/lawmakers-in-chinese-city-resign-in-mass-bribery-case-idUSBRE9BR04620131228| title = Lawmakers in Chinese city resign in mass bribery case| website = Reuters}}

{{Unreferencedsect|date=August 2024}}

Hengyang has an area of {{convert|15,279|km2|abbr=on}} and a population of 7,141,162. There are 1,075,516 people in the built-up area of {{convert|522|km2|abbr=on}} in the four central urban districts. Hengyang is a busy and growing industrial City and the leading transportation centre of Hunan, linking water, rail, and highway routes. Manufacturing includes: chemicals, agricultural, mining equipment, textiles, paper and processed foods. Lead, zinc, coal, and tin are mined nearby. Hengyang is the second largest city in Hunan province, and is a growing industrial hub and transportation center.

Known as the 'Bright Pearl in Southern China' and as 'Wild Goose City' (the latter because of wild geese that used to rest here while flying south for the winter), Hengyang has been the birthplace of many historical figures, such the revolutionist Luo Ronghuan[http://www.luopan.com/ci/h/en_US/421000.html Luopan. Hengyang Details] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101215075428/http://luopan.com/ci/h/en_US/421000.html |date=2010-12-15 }} and a noted Ming scholar Wang Fuzhi. The city was badly damaged during World War II[http://www.accci.com.au/keycity/hunan.htm The Australia-China Chamber of Commerce and Industry of New South Wales HUNAN PROVINCE] and few historical buildings survive in diverse stage of reconstruction, including Shigu Academy, Dragon Tower, Confucian School on the Dongzhou Island ({{lang|zh-Hans|东洲岛}}), Laiyan Pagoda and Nantai Temple. Mount Heng, one of the Five Sacred Mountains, lies 45 kilometres north from the city proper.

Hengyang has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cfa), with four distinct seasons. Spring is subject to heavy rainfall, while the summers are long, hot, and humid with lesser rainfall, and autumn is comfortable and rather dry. Winter is rather brief, but cold snaps occur with temperatures occasionally dropping below freezing, and while not heavy, rain can be frequent. The monthly daily mean temperature ranges from {{convert|6.0|°C|1}} in January to {{convert|29.8|°C}} in July.{{Cite web |date=2024-03-15 |title=衡阳气候 |trans-title=climate in Hengyang |url=https://www.hengyang.gov.cn/hyly/hygk/zrdl/20200111/i45672.html |access-date=2024-05-25 |website=PEOPLE'S GOVERNMENT OF HENGYAN |language=zh}}

{{Weather box|width=auto

|metric first=y

|single line=y

|collapsed = Y

|location = Hengyang, elevation {{convert|105|m|ft|abbr=on}}, (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1971–2010)

|Jan high C = 9.3

|Feb high C = 12.2

|Mar high C = 16.4

|Apr high C = 23.2

|May high C = 27.8

|Jun high C = 31.0

|Jul high C = 34.5

|Aug high C = 33.7

|Sep high C = 29.7

|Oct high C = 24.3

|Nov high C = 18.3

|Dec high C = 12.2

|Jan mean C = 6.4

|Feb mean C = 8.8

|Mar mean C = 12.7

|Apr mean C = 18.8

|May mean C = 23.4

|Jun mean C = 26.9

|Jul mean C = 30.0

|Aug mean C = 29.1

|Sep mean C = 25.4

|Oct mean C = 20.1

|Nov mean C = 14.3

|Dec mean C = 8.7

|Jan low C = 4.2

|Feb low C = 6.3

|Mar low C = 10.0

|Apr low C = 15.6

|May low C = 20.2

|Jun low C = 23.9

|Jul low C = 26.4

|Aug low C = 25.8

|Sep low C = 22.2

|Oct low C = 16.9

|Nov low C = 11.3

|Dec low C = 6.0

|Jan record high C = 27.7 |Jan record low C = −6.2

|Feb record high C = 32.2 |Feb record low C = −7.9

|Mar record high C = 36.0 |Mar record low C = −0.3

|Apr record high C = 37.0 |Apr record low C = 3.7

|May record high C = 37.3 |May record low C = 10.2

|Jun record high C = 38.6 |Jun record low C = 13.2

|Jul record high C = 40.2 |Jul record low C = 18.9

|Aug record high C = 41.3 |Aug record low C = 18.3

|Sep record high C = 38.7 |Sep record low C = 12.8

|Oct record high C = 36.5 |Oct record low C = 5.4

|Nov record high C = 32.6 |Nov record low C = −0.7

|Dec record high C = 26.3 |Dec record low C = −5.9

|precipitation colour = green

|Jan precipitation mm = 81.6

|Feb precipitation mm = 85.8

|Mar precipitation mm = 159.0

|Apr precipitation mm = 150.6

|May precipitation mm = 179.1

|Jun precipitation mm = 169.0

|Jul precipitation mm = 119.1

|Aug precipitation mm = 117.8

|Sep precipitation mm = 55.0

|Oct precipitation mm = 62.4

|Nov precipitation mm = 81.6

|Dec precipitation mm = 58.8

|Jan humidity = 78

|Feb humidity = 77

|Mar humidity = 79

|Apr humidity = 77

|May humidity = 76

|Jun humidity = 78

|Jul humidity = 70

|Aug humidity = 72

|Sep humidity = 72

|Oct humidity = 71

|Nov humidity = 73

|Dec humidity = 73

|unit precipitation days = 0.1 mm

|Jan precipitation days = 15.4

|Feb precipitation days = 14.4

|Mar precipitation days = 18.7

|Apr precipitation days = 16.6

|May precipitation days = 16.0

|Jun precipitation days = 14.2

|Jul precipitation days = 10.0

|Aug precipitation days = 10.5

|Sep precipitation days = 8.6

|Oct precipitation days = 9.7

|Nov precipitation days = 10.9

|Dec precipitation days = 10.7

|year precipitation days =

|Jan sun = 57.4

|Feb sun = 58.6

|Mar sun = 73.1

|Apr sun = 101.1

|May sun = 130.9

|Jun sun = 137.8

|Jul sun = 232.3

|Aug sun = 197.6

|Sep sun = 152.9

|Oct sun = 130.4

|Nov sun = 112.5

|Dec sun = 96.4

|year sun =

| Jan percentsun = 17

| Feb percentsun = 18

| Mar percentsun = 20

| Apr percentsun = 26

| May percentsun = 31

| Jun percentsun = 33

| Jul percentsun = 55

| Aug percentsun = 49

| Sep percentsun = 42

| Oct percentsun = 37

| Nov percentsun = 35

| Dec percentsun = 30

| year percentsun =

|Jan snow days = 3.5

|Feb snow days = 2.0

|Mar snow days = 0.5

|Apr snow days = 0

|May snow days = 0

|Jun snow days = 0

|Jul snow days = 0

|Aug snow days = 0

|Sep snow days = 0

|Oct snow days = 0

|Nov snow days = 0

|Dec snow days = 0.9

|year snow days =

|source 1 = China Meteorological Administration{{cite web |url=http://data.cma.cn/data/weatherBk.html |script-title=zh:中国气象数据网 – WeatherBk Data |publisher=China Meteorological Administration |language = zh-hans |access-date=11 June 2023}}

{{cite web|url=https://experience.arcgis.com/template/e724038fda394e9d9b7921f10fd1aa55/page/%E7%BA%AF%E8%A1%A8%E6%A0%BC%E7%BB%9F%E8%AE%A1-(%E5%AF%B9%E6%AF%948110%E5%8F%98%E5%8C%96)/?org=UQmaps |script-title=zh:中国气象数据网|publisher=China Meteorological Administration |language = zh-hans | access-date =28 May 2023 |title=Experience Template }}

| source 2 = Weather China{{cite web

| url = http://www.weather.com.cn/cityintro/101250401.shtml?

| script-title=zh:衡阳 - 气象数据 -中国天气网

| publisher = Weather China

| language = zh

| access-date = 21 November 2022}}

}}

File:Txu-oclc-10552568-ng49-8.jpg, 1954)]]

The city is divided into the old and new districts. The latter offer citizens and businesses the chance to move from the bleak and polluted city centre to newly constructed housing estates.

• Yanfeng District ({{lang|zh-hans|雁峰区}})
• Zhuhui District ({{lang|zh-hans|珠晖区}})
• Shigu District ({{lang|zh-hans|石鼓区}})
• Zhengxiang District ({{lang|zh-hans|蒸湘区}})
• Nanyue District ({{lang|zh-hans|南岳区}})
• Changning City ({{lang|zh-hans|常宁市}})
• Leiyang City ({{lang|zh-hans|耒阳市}})
• Hengyang County ({{lang|zh-hans|衡阳县}})
• Hengnan County ({{lang|zh-hans|衡南县}})
• Hengshan County ({{lang|zh-hans|衡山县}})
• Hengdong County ({{lang|zh-hans|衡东县}})
• Qidong County ({{lang|zh-hans|祁东县}})

{{main|Politics of Hengyang}}

The current CPC Party Secretary of Hengyang is Deng Cequn and the current mayor is Zhu Jian.

This is a list of institutions with full-time bachelor programs in Hengyang:

• University of South China (南华大学)
• Hengyang Normal University (衡阳师范学院)
• Hunan Institute of Technology (湖南工学院)
• Hunan University of Technology Hengyang (湖南工业大学衡阳分校)

File:HengYang Rail.JPG

File:Hengyang Nanyue Airport.jpg

Hengyang is one of the {{citation needed span|45 highway hubs|date=April 2020}} in China. G4 Beijing–Hong Kong and Macau Expressway and G72 Quanzhou–Nanning Expressway intersect here. China National Highway 107 (to Beijing, to Guangzhou) and China National Highway 322 (to Kunming) pass the city centre.

Two bus terminals are located in the city. One is Hengyang Western Terminal which is located in the city centre and operates provincial lines and intra-metro lines in northern and western directions. Another is LingHu Terminal which operates lines of southern and eastern directions and locates on the edge of the city.

Hengyang is an important transport hub in southern China. The Beijing–Guangzhou railway and Hunan–Guangxi railway intersect at Hengyang. Hengyang railway station is one of the ten largest railway stations in China and is recognized as one of the extra-premium level stations.{{citation needed|date=March 2021}} More than 100 trains pass by and stop at Hengyang Railway Station, making it one of the busiest stations all over the country and connecting it to most cities of China.

The city's new Hengyang East railway station is served by the Wuhan–Guangzhou high-speed railway and the Huaihua–Shaoyang–Hengyang railway. The Hengyang Metro is a planned monorail rapid transit system.

Opened in 2014, the city is served by Hengyang Nanyue Airport.

Hengyang dialect (Xiang - Lao Xiang 湘语-老湘语; Gan 赣语; Southwest Mandarin 西南官话): the dialects of Hengyang city, Hengyang county and Hennan county are authentic Hengyang local dialects.{{Cite web |last=hu |first=shunguo |date=2013-05-21 |title=衡阳方言 |trans-title=Hengyang dialect |url=http://www.hunan.gov.cn/hnszf/jxxx/hxwh/jfy/201711/t20171111_4685274.html |access-date=2023-10-15}}

By the end of 2022, Hengyang City has 8 national intangible cultural heritage protection programs and 27 provincial ones.{{Cite web |date=2019-03-27 |title=List of Hengyang Municipal, Provincial and National Cultural Relics Protection Units |trans-title=衡阳市市级、省级、国家级文物保护单位名录 |url=https://www.hengyang.gov.cn/wlgtj/wtfw/wwbh/20200118/i400901.html |access-date=2023-10-15}}

{{expand section|date=January 2024}}

• Ho Chen Tsu (1918-1994), born in Hengyang, architect and architecture educator{{Cite book |last=國立成功大學建築學系 |title=成果報告書 |publisher=國立臺灣博物館 |year=2019}}
• Zhou Yaqin (2005), born in Hengyang, Silver medalist, 2024 Paris Olympics

{{Reflist|30em}}

{{Commons category|Hengyang}}

• {{wikivoyage inline|Hengyang}}
• [http://www.hengyang.gov.cn/ Official website of Hengyang Government]
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20111008075637/http://hengyang.me/english Hengyang Information Network]

{{Hunan topics}}

{{Hunan}}

{{Prefectural-level divisions of the People's Republic of China}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:Cities in Hunan

Category:Prefecture-level divisions of Hunan