What was the origin of the Grand Canal and what was its purpose at that time?

When it comes to the Grand Canal, people will first think of the Sui and Tang Grand Canal built by Yang Di. In fact, the Grand Canal consists of three canals, namely the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, the Sui-Tang Grand Canal and the East Zhejiang Grand Canal. The purpose of building the Grand Canal in different periods is different. Let's talk about the Grand Canal built in Yang Di. He built the Grand Canal for two purposes. One is to consolidate his political position. The second is to increase North-South trade.

There are rumors in history that the main purpose of building the Grand Canal in Yang Di is to facilitate Yang Di's entry into Beijing, but this is not the main purpose. The main purpose is to strengthen centralization. At that time, due to the inconvenient transportation in the south and the huge family, it was not controlled by the emperor at all because of the long distance and inconvenient transportation. In particular, it is impossible to quickly understand the situation and the news is lagging behind, which is not conducive to the stability of political status. Based on this consideration, Yang Di built the Grand Canal by taking advantage of its geographical environment.

? ? Secondly, it is because the south is rich in resources, especially the high grain output, which is obviously different from the north. Then the construction of the Grand Canal will not only promote the cultural exchange between the North and the South, but also transport the grain from the South to the North. In particular, stationing a large number of troops on the northern border can ensure that the army's food can be guaranteed and become the main supply place for military materials. The construction of the Grand Canal has greatly accelerated the convenience of transportation, at the same time, it has also promoted the economy in the north and narrowed the differences in national economic development.

However, when Yang Di built the Grand Canal, he was eager for success, so he let people rest and let them complain, so he had a negative view of Yang Di. In fact, from a political point of view, Yang Di's move to build the Grand Canal was correct, and it was a decision that benefited the people and greatly promoted the economic development in the Sui and Tang Dynasties.