Zhanggong Ancestral Hall in Zhangzhu

Zhangzhu Zhanggong Ancestral Hall

The Zhangzhu Zhanggong Ancestral Hall is a cultural relics protection unit in Yixing City.

The Zhanggong Ancestral Hall is located on West Street in Zhangzhu Town (No. 68 Gongnong Street). In November 1996, it was designated as a municipal-level cultural relics protection unit by the Yixing Municipal People's Government.

The Zhanggong Ancestral Hall was originally the residence of Zhang Wan from the Song Dynasty, and was later converted into an ancestral hall. Zhang Danian (dates unknown), also known as Zhang Wan, with the courtesy name Anguo, was a native of North Gate, Zhangzhu. He became a Jinshi in the eighth year of the Yuanyou era (1085) during the Northern Song Dynasty, and held positions such as Court Preceptor and Tongpan (vice-prefect) of Huangzhou, Hubei. During the Jianyan era of the Southern Song Dynasty, the famous anti-Jin general Yue Fei stationed his troops in Yixing on multiple occasions. In the fourth year of Jianyan (1130), while stationed in Changzhou, Yue Fei was invited by the Yixing County Magistrate Qian Zhan to lead troops to Yixing to suppress the notorious outlaw Guo Ji. He stayed at Zhang Danian’s home and composed the quatrain “Passing Zhangxi and Presenting to Zhang Wan”: “I had no heart to buy wine to greet spring, / Before the mirror I sigh at my new white hair. / The youths under flowers must laugh at me — / A lean horse brings me, aged, to see the sage.” Zhang Wan responded in rhyme: “Our meetings and partings defy counting springs, / What meets my eyes is neither old nor new. / Seeking form and sound is all empty show — / Don’t mistake me for the man you knew.” This poetic exchange was inscribed on a stone stele, known as the “Poetic Dialogue Stele.” Though the original stele was later destroyed, the current engraved stone is a recarving made in the fifty-fifth year of the Kangxi era (1716).

In May of the fourth year of Jianyan, Yue Fei led his troops to reclaim Jiankang (present-day Nanjing) in one swift campaign. On June 15, he returned to Zhangzhu to rest and regroup his forces. Zhang Wan hosted a victory banquet in his residence. In high spirits, Yue Fei wrote on the screen in the main hall: “With the Central Plains in turmoil, the Jurchen invaders rode unchecked as if in unmanned territory. Our generals proved incompetent, falling short of the might of the Great Wall. Filled with resolve from my days in Hebei, rising from Sui Tai, I joined the army in childhood and fought over two hundred battles, large and small. Although I’ve yet to venture deep into barbarian lands or root out their strongholds, I have somewhat avenged the nation’s shame. Now, leading a lone army, I have revitalized Yixing and reclaimed Jiankang in one fell swoop. The enemy fled in panic by boat under cover of night. My only regret is not being able to pursue them until not a single horse returns unscathed. For now, we rest our troops and train our soldiers, honing our strength for future battles. Should the court take note and bestow us weaponry and armor, complete our equipment, and grant meritorious rewards, then, blessed by imperial grace, I shall press deep into the enemy court, capture their ruler, spill blood before our horses, annihilate the foreign tribes, welcome back the Two Emperors, restore the capital, reclaim lost territories, and re-register the populace. On a future visit here, I will carve my achievements in gold and stone — would that not be glorious? This resolve of mine is known to heaven and earth, and to those who know me. Written on the sixteenth day of the fifth month in the fourth year of Jianyan, by Yue Fei of Hebei.” This expressed Yue Fei’s unyielding determination to resist the Jin invaders and reclaim the nation’s rivers and mountains.

The existing structures of the Zhanggong Ancestral Hall face east but are situated westward, fronting Taohu Creek. The hall has three courtyards and was built during the Qing Dynasty. All sections feature flush-gable roofs, with a total width of 14.50 meters and a depth of 39.94 meters. The first courtyard is four bays wide but has been rebuilt. The second courtyard is also four bays wide with a depth of seven rafters. The third courtyard is four bays wide and eight rafters deep. A passageway runs through the southern side of the building, connecting front and back. Between the second and third courtyards, there was once a ginkgo tree in the yard, beside which a stone was erected inscribed with: “Yue Wumu Tethered His Horse Here.” Unfortunately, the tree was cut down in 1958.

Zhangzhu Town: Located in Yixing City, Zhangzhu Town was historically known as Taohu (Peach Creek). Established in the fourth year of the Yongjia era of the Western Jin Dynasty (310 AD), the town boasts a history of nearly 1,700 years. It lies 30 kilometers southwest of downtown Yixing, nestled in a hilly area. Surrounded by undulating green mountains, bamboo forests, and fragrant tea fields, the renowned Shanxuan Scenic Area is within Zhangzhu’s jurisdiction. For a long time, it has served as a major hub for agricultural and sideline product distribution and commercial trade in the tri-provincial border region of Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Anhui, earning the reputation of “Golden Zhangzhu.” It has been successively recognized by the provincial government as a Key Industrial Satellite Town, One of Jiangsu’s Hundred Famous Towns, a Model New-Type Town in Jiangsu, and a Provincial Sanitary Town. Currently... More detailed information about Zhangzhu Town++