Founded by the Kingdom of Shu in the 4th century BC, Chengdu is unique as the only major Chinese settlement that has maintained its name unchanged throughout the imperial, republican, and communist eras for more than two thousand years.

In the third year of the reign of Emperor Jing of the Han dynasty (141 BC), the Wen Dang, the prefect of Shu County, established the world's earliest local government-run school, "Wenweng Shishi", in Chengdu.

In the fifth year of Zhongping (188), Emperor Ling of Han, the court accepted Liu Yan's suggestion and changed the provincial governors to state shepherds with actual recruitment and command power.

The city's present Caotang ("Grass Hall") was constructed in 1078 in honor of an earlier, more humble structure of that name erected by Du Fu in 760, the second year of his 4-year stay.

In any case, Chengdu was said to have become a virtual ghost town frequented by tigers[52] and the depopulation of Sichuan necessitated the resettlement of millions of people from other provinces during the Qing dynasty.

However, the Japanese frequently flew in the then-highly advanced twin-engine long-ranged G3M "Nell" medium bombers to conduct massive aerial bombardments of both civilian and military targets in Chongqing and Chengdu.

[55] The massed formation of the G3M bombers provided heavy firepower against Chinese fighter planes assigned to the defense of Chongqing and Chengdu, which continued to cause problems for the Japanese attacks.

[56][57] Slow and vulnerable obsolescent Chinese fighter aircraft burning low-grade fuel were still sufficiently dangerous in the hands of capable pilots against the Japanese schnellbomber-terror bombing raiders;[58] on 4 November 1939 for instance, Capt.

In 1944, the American XX Bomber Command launched Operation Matterhorn, an ambitious plan to base B-29 Superfortresses in Chengdu and strategically bomb the Japanese Home Islands.

[67][68] Because the operation required a massive airlift of fuel and supplies over the Himalayas, it was not a significant military success, but it did earn Chengdu the distinction of launching the first serious retaliation against the Japanese homeland.

[111][112][113] From a photo of Ms. Jiang's detention warrant it appears that the authorities have charged the church's leaders with "inciting subversion of state power," which carries a maximum sentence of 15 years.

[138] With its peak 1,600 m (5,200 ft) above sea level, Mount Qingcheng enjoys a cool climate, but remains a lush green all year round and surrounded by hills and waterways.

With the help from his friends, the thatched cottage was built along the Huanhua Stream in the west suburbs of Chengdu, where Du Fu spent four years of his life and produced more than 240 now-famous poems.

Currently, a series of memorial buildings representing Du Fu's humble life stand on the river bank, along with a large collection of relics and various editions of his poems.

Many aspects of the urban life of Chengdu are present in the current-day Jinli area: teahouses, restaurants, bars, theaters, handicraft stores, local snack vendors, and specialty shops.

[168][169] Facing the Jinjiang River to the east and leaning against Muma Mountain to the north, the ancient town of Huanglongxi is approximately 40 km (25 mi) southeast of Chengdu.

The head of the Shu Han State in the Three Kingdoms period was seated in Huanglongxi, and for some time, the general government offices for Renshou, Pengshan, and Huayang counties were also located here.

[177] China's state council has designated Chengdu as the country's western center of logistics, commerce, finance, science and technology, as well as a hub of transportation and communication.

"[178] Also based on a research report undertaken by the Nobel economics laureate, Dr. Robert Mundell and the celebrated Chinese economist, Li Yining, published by the State Information Center in 2010, Chengdu has become an "engine" of the Western Development Program, a benchmark city for investment environment in inland China, and a major leader in new urbanization.

[179] In 2010, 12 of the Fortune 500 companies, including ANZ Bank, Nippon Steel Corporation, and Electricité de France, have opened offices, branches, or operation centers in Chengdu, the largest number in recent years.

[187] These MNEs include Intel, Cisco, Sony and Toyota that have assembly and manufacturing bases, as well as Motorola, Ericsson, and Microsoft that have R&D centers in Chengdu.

[199] Following the footsteps of Intel, Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation (SMIC), the world's third largest foundry, set up an assembly and testing plant in Chengdu in 2006.

[204][205] In July 2019, Amazon Web Services, the cloud computing company, signed a deal with the Chengdu High-Tech Zone to establish an innovation center.

[244][245] Chengdu Hi-tech Comprehensive Free Trade Zone was established with the approval of the State Council on 18 October 2010 and passed the national acceptance on 25 February 2011.

[247] Chengdu Hi-Tech Comprehensive Free Trade Zone has attracted top 500 and multinational enterprises including as Intel, Foxconn, Texas Instruments, Dell, and Morse.

Several major road projects have been constructed: a 15 km (9.3 mi) tunnel from Shuangliu Taiping to Jianyang Sancha Lake; alteration of the National Expressway 321, from Jiangyang to Longquanyi.

[273] Wen Weng, administer of Chengdu in the Han dynasty, established the first local public school now named Shishi (literally a stone house) in the world.

Punished with relegation the owners eventually sold their majority on 9 December 2010 to Hung Fu Enterprise Co., Ltd and Scarborough Development (China) Co., Ltd.[283][284] On 23 May 2013 the Tiancheng Investment Group announced the acquisition of the club.

[286] Chengdu is now part of an elite group of cities to host an ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) Champions Tour tournament, along with London, Zürich, São Paulo and Delray Beach.

Chengdu Open, an ATP Championships Tour starting in 2009, have successfully invited star players including Pete Sampras, Marat Safin, Carlos Moya, Tomas Enqvist, and Mark Philippoussis.