Former Site of the New Fourth Army Headquarters in Liyang

Former Site of the New Fourth Army Headquarters in Liyang

The Former Site of the New Fourth Army Headquarters in Liyang is a cultural tourism attraction and a classic red tourism destination.

The Memorial Hall of the New Fourth Army Southern China Command is located in Shuixi Village, Liyang City. It was originally named the "Preservation Office of the Revolutionary Site of the New Fourth Army in Shuixi Village," established on November 23, 1979. On September 25, 1984, it was renamed the "Exhibition Hall of the Former Site of the New Fourth Army Southern China Command," and on August 1, 1994, it adopted its current name, operating under the Liyang Municipal Bureau of Culture.

In the summer of 1938, the First and Second Detachments of the New Fourth Army advanced into the enemy-occupied areas of southern Jiangsu to carry out guerrilla warfare against the Japanese. In November of the following year, the New Fourth Army Southern China Command was established in Shuixi Village to unify the command of the First and Second Detachments and local anti-Japanese forces, thereby consolidating and expanding the anti-Japanese base in southern Jiangsu. On July 9, 1979, a moderate earthquake struck the Liyang area, damaging six surviving historical sites including the headquarters and political department of the New Fourth Army Southern China Command as well as the battlefield service troupe. To commemorate the great achievements of the revolutionary predecessors and to inherit and promote the revolutionary spirit of the New Fourth Army, these sites were restored in the same year under the direct leadership of the Liyang Municipal Party Committee and Municipal Government, along with the establishment of a management and protection body. On March 25, 1982, the Jiangsu Provincial People’s Government designated the "Former Site of the New Fourth Army Southern China Command" as a provincial-level cultural relics protection unit. In October of that year, Comrade Su Yu inscribed a dedication. By September 1984, the restoration of the site was completed, and the memorial hall officially opened to the public on November 7 of the same year. The plaque bearing the name of the museum was inscribed by Comrade Ye Fei.

The Former Site of the New Fourth Army Southern China Command was originally the ancestral hall of the Li family, built during the Ming Dynasty. The entire complex consists of three courtyards and four wing rooms, featuring carved windows, painted beams, and corbel brackets. After restoration, its historical appearance was preserved. The other five sites, including the battlefield service troupe of the political department, are all brick-and-wood residential buildings. The site covers an area of 6,000 square meters, with a building area of 2,645 square meters.

The former headquarters site has been arranged as an exhibition space. The office and bedroom of Commander Chen Yi and Deputy Commander Su Yu have been preserved in their original layout, recreating the working and living conditions of these veteran proletarian revolutionaries from 1939 to 1940. Auxiliary exhibitions have been set up in the former sites of the Cipher Section, Reconnaissance Section, and Communications Section. Through a combination of photographs, artifacts, sculptures, electronic models, and audiovisual materials, the exhibition systematically introduces the arduous struggle of the New Fourth Army Southern China Command leading the anti-Japanese soldiers and civilians of southern Jiangsu. In accordance with Su Yu’s wishes, some of his ashes have been scattered in the courtyard of the former headquarters.

In 1997, to expand educational outreach and diversify teaching methods, the museum added the "New Fourth Army Generals' Hall" and the "Inscription Gallery of Calligraphy by Veterans of the New Fourth Army." The "Generals' Hall" showcases the life stories of 78 New Fourth Army generals who fought on the battlefields of southern Jiangsu during the War of Resistance and were later awarded the rank of Major General or higher after the founding of the People’s Republic of China. The "Inscription Gallery" displays poems and verses inscribed by 52 veterans of the New Fourth Army.

The museum currently houses a collection of over 2,000 cultural relics and documents, which serve as extremely valuable and rich educational resources. Major publications include the "Compilation of Historical Materials of the New Fourth Army Southern China Command," "Introduction to the Former Site of the Southern China Command," and the "Illustrated Handbook of New Fourth Army Historical Sites (Southern China Command Memorial Hall)."

Since its opening, the museum has welcomed over a million visitors, including national leaders such as Zhang Zhen, Peng Chong, Ye Fei, Ji Pengfei, and Chi Haotian, as well as international guests from countries such as the United States and Cuba. Today, it has been designated as an extracurricular moral education base in Jiangsu Province, a national defense education base for all citizens, and a patriotic education base. It plays a significant role in promoting patriotism and revolutionary traditions, as well as in advancing the Party’s construction and the development of socialist spiritual civilization.