Qinhuangdao has rich history and condensed culture. It was called Jieshi in ancient times as the central area of Guzhu, a civilized and prosperous ancient state, where once lived Boyi and Shuqi, ancient men of virtue entitled by Confucius. China's first emperor, Qinshihuang came here on his eastward inspection tour in B.C 215 and sent Lusheng, a person of the State of Yan and Handong, an alchemist to seek immortals out to the sea and made the Inscription of Jieshi Gate, which is the origin of the name Qinhuangdao, meaning island of Emperor Qinshihuang. Qinhuangdao is the only city in China named after an emperor. After that, several emperors including Emperor Hanwudi, who was of great talent and bold strategy; Emperor Weiwudi, who was proficient in both civil and military thoughts; Emperor Tangtaizong, who was a wise governor of prosperous era; and Emperor Yuantaizu, was a most brilliant man at the time, came to Qinhuangdao and endorsed the place with numerous legendary stories. At the beginning of the Ming Daynasty, General Xuda built a fort here, Shaihaiguan is named the First Pass under Heaven for its magnificence, steepness and crucial military importance. In 1898, Emperor Guangxu of the Ching Dynasty approved Qinhuangdao to open as a port and Beidaihe to be built into a tourism and summer resort. Great men like Sun Zhongshan, Li Dazhao, Mao Zedong and Deng Xiaoping etc all visited the place which adds to the splendor of the city. The appealing poem about Beidaihe in ancient verse style greatly expanded the popularity of Qinhuangdao.
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