Situated at the confluence of the Yangtze River and its greatest
branch, the Hanjiang, Wuhan (population 8 million), the provincial
capital of Hubei, is one of the major economic and industrial cities
in China. Although today there is little indication of the important
historical and cultural role the city once played, in fact, Wuhan
was one of the most politically crucial spots in the nation, when
the Guomintang moved the capital here from Guangzhou in 1927. After
the foundation of the People's Republic of China, Wuhan was directly
under the control of the Central Government and under provincial
control by 1954.
