Chizhou is located in the southwestern part of Anhui Province, on the south bank of the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River. It was established as a prefecture in the fourth year of the Wude era(a reign title) of the Tang Dynasty (621 AD), with a history of more than 1,400 years. It was upgraded from a prefecture to a prefecture-level city in 2000, administering Guichi District, three counties including Dongzhi, Shitai and Qingyang, as well as Jiuhua Mountain Scenic Area and Pingtian Lake Scenic Area. It also boasts the Wanjiang Jiangnan Emerging Industries Concentration Zone and the national-level Chizhou Economic & Technological Development Zone. Covering an area of 8,399 square kilometers, the city had a registered population of 1.583 million and a permanent resident population of 1.309 million by the end of 2025. It has earned numerous honors including China Excellent Tourism City, National Garden City, National Forest City, China Habitat Award City, National Double Support Model City, National Civilized City. In 2025, the city's gross domestic product(GDP) grew by 5.3%.The added value of industrial enterprises above designated size rose by 8.3%, general public budget revenue increased by 4.6%, and the outstanding balance of local and foreign currency loans of financial institutions went up by 14.1%. The per capita disposable income of urban and rural residents grew by 4.3% and 5.3% respectively.