湘江

The Xiang is Hunan's main river (the province's short name 湘 comes from it) and runs 856 km before emptying into Dongting Lake. It is immortalized in Mao Zedong's 1925 poem 《沁园春·长沙》: 独立寒秋，湘江北去，橘子洲头, 'Alone I stand in the cold autumn, as the Xiang flows north past Orange Isle.'

history

The 1934 湘江战役 (Battle of the Xiang River) was one of the bloodiest moments of the Long March. The Red Army lost more than half its troops crossing the river under KMT attack.