The district was named after the Great Wall (Changcheng), which was built during the Qin Dynasty (221-206 BC) and the Qingshui Gully. It was established as a county in 594 during the Sui Dynasty (581-618). With the approval of the State Council, Changqing was upgraded to Changqing district on June 26, 2001.

Covering 1,178 sq km, Changqing district governs seven subdistricts, three towns and 613 administrative villages (communities).

It is home to 165,600 households and has a population of 563,400. The sex ratio of newborns is 99.32 male babies per 100 female babies. The birth rate, death rate and natural growth rate of the population are 15.03 per thousand, 10.68 per thousand and 4.35 per thousand.

Changqing district's GDP increased by 8.4 percent in 2019. Its general public budget revenue grew by 9.1 percent to 2.56 billion yuan, and investment in fixed assets increased by 14.6 percent. The per capita disposable income of urban and rural residents reached 42,390 yuan and 19,229 yuan respectively, increases of 8 percent and 8.3 percent.