Abstract: In the context of the coordinated development of Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei, the planning of Xiong'an New Area focuses on inheriting the traditional Chinese concept of city planning and applying the method of plain city construction. It is of great significance to carry out the research on historical cities of Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei. Based on the research of existing historical cities, this paper studies 27 urban sites in Hebei Plain during the Ming and Qing Dynasties, analyzes the city-water spatial relationship by referring to the site selection concept of 'planning the location of the city', and summarizes four types of city-water relationship, such as water surrounding the city, water containing the city, water next to the city and water facing the city. On this basis, the spatial form of the water system and the city is investigated. Referring to the concept of 'round sky and square earth', the planning method of taking the surrounding water system as the circle to determine the center point and the unit site modulus of the neighborhood to determine the scale of the city site is proposed, as well as the outer circle and inner square space model formed. Based on the city-water relationship and planning concepts of historical cities, this paper further puts forward some principles applied to the shaping of modern city-water relationship.