Lake Baiyangdian is the largest shallow lake in the North China Plain. It enjoys the reputation of “the Kidney of North China” and “the pearl of North China”. It plays a role as an ecological security barrier to maintain the regional ecosystem balance and biodiversity of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei metropolitan area. For a long time, intensive human activities have led to a sharp decreasing in the amount of water into the Lake Baiyangdian, serious water pollution, and the decline of biodiversity and ecosystem functions. Therefore, the “Pearl” has lost its luster. Combined with historical documents and the long-term monitoring results on this lake, this paper systematically reviews the evolution of hydrology, water quality and water ecology in the Lake Baiyangdian since 1960s, and analyzes the possible reasons for the evolution. With the development of regional economy and the enhancement of human activities, the water quantity, water environment and ecological quality in the Lake Baiyangdian have been gradually degraded since the 1960s. In the past 20 years, with the implementation of a series of environmental control policies and ecological water replenishment projects, the deterioration trend of Lake Baiyangdian water quality has been curbed to some extent. In 2017, the CPC Central Committee and the State Council announced the establishment of the Xiong'an New Area. Its concept of “setting the city by water” highlights the importance of the Lake Baiyangdian as the center of the new area, which has a long way to go in environmental and ecological management. This paper is expected to provide a basis and support for the environmental and ecological management of the Lake Baiyangdian in the new period.