Aviation Martyrs' Cemetery

Aviation Martyrs' Cemetery

The Aviation Martyrs' Cemetery is a Jiangsu Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Unit and a classic red tourism attraction.

The Aviation Martyrs' Cemetery was first built in 1932 by the Aviation Administration of the then Nationalist Government’s Military Affairs Commission to commemorate the air force pilots who died during the Northern Expedition and the Battle of Shanghai. In August 1931, Huang Bingheng, head of the Aviation Administration, proposed building the Aviation Martyrs' Cemetery near the National Revolutionary Martyrs' Cemetery in the eastern suburbs of Nanjing. At that time, the Zhongshan Mausoleum Management Committee considered it difficult to allocate space on the southern foothills of the Purple Mountain, so they designated about 50 acres of land near Wangjiawan on the northern foothills for the cemetery.

The original design of the Aviation Martyrs' Cemetery was created by Professor Qiu Dexiao from the Department of Architecture at the University of Nanking. Construction began in 1932 with a total cost of 26,000 yuan, funded by the reorganized Aviation Commission and public donations, including a 3,000-yuan donation from Chiang Kai-shek. After several months of intensive work, the project was completed in August of the same year.

The main structures of the cemetery include a memorial archway, east and west side halls, a stele pavilion, a memorial hall, a memorial pavilion, burial tombs, and a memorial tower, among other above-ground buildings. The memorial tower is square-shaped, with an eagle statue at the top symbolizing the unyielding spirit of the martyrs. Behind and on both sides of the memorial hall, there are three burial sections with over 160 tomb niches, each inscribed with a brief biography of the martyr. After its completion, the first burials were Huang Yiquan and Wu Minghui, who died in the Battle of Shanghai, as well as more than 30 air force pilots who perished in the Northern Expedition. By April 1937, over 40 individuals had been laid to rest. Later, due to the tense situation, 24 martyrs who died in the defense of Shanghai and Nanjing were buried together in a single grave, including aviation hero Liu Cuigang, who shot down 11 enemy planes.

After the fall of Nanjing, the Aviation Martyrs' Cemetery was damaged. The memorial tower was destroyed, many structures in the cemetery were dismantled, and the site was nearly reduced to ruins. After the victory in the War of Resistance, the Nationalist Government returned to Nanjing and carried out large-scale repairs to the cemetery, restoring some of the above-ground structures. They also requisitioned over 2,000 Japanese POWs to repair the roads around the cemetery.

The newly built Anti-Japanese Aviation Martyrs Memorial Monument consists of a main and auxiliary steles. The main stele is 15 meters tall, carved from granite in the shape of an aircraft wing. One side features Chinese text, the other English, forming a “V” shape symbolizing Victory. The inscription at the top reads “Anti-Japanese Aviation Martyrs Memorial Monument,” handwritten by General Zhang Aiping. Below the monument are four sets of reliefs depicting heroic scenes of Chinese, American, and Soviet air force soldiers fighting bravely. There are 30 auxiliary steles, each an individual memorial tablet arranged in an arc behind the main stele. On these 3-meter-tall black granite tablets, the names and deeds of 3,500 martyrs (only 3,306 were inscribed at the time, with others to be added after verification) who died from the January 28th Incident of the Battle of Shanghai to September 1945 are engraved in Chinese, Russian, and English.

On the back of the pillar’s horizontal beam are four characters written by Chiang Kai-shek: “Loyal Hearts Serve the Country.” The pillars also bear a couplet he wrote: “Glory everlasting for the flying generals; Righteous spirit strengthens the cemetery’s soul.” In the center of the stele pavilion stands a white marble tombstone, 2.45 meters tall, 1.25 meters wide, and 0.18 meters thick, inscribed with the text of the Aviation Martyrs' Cemetery stele written in August 1932 by Huang Bingheng, then head of the Aviation Administration. Each of the east and west side halls has three rooms, which were used as temporary resting places for coffins of martyrs arriving from various places before burial. The memorial hall also has three rooms, covering an area of 144 square meters.

Within this cemetery lie the remains of 870 Chinese martyrs, 2,197 American martyrs, 237 Soviet martyrs, and 2 Korean martyrs, along with others pending verification for future engraving. Due to the many trials the cemetery has endured and repeated damage, some martyrs’ remains could not be located, leaving many tombs as empty niches. Yet, the spirits of those who sacrificed for their country will forever be revered. Whether or not a martyr’s remains lie within a particular tomb, people visit here to mourn and pay tribute—to honor their timeless spirit.

Today, the Aviation Martyrs' Cemetery is not only a burial ground for those who fought in the Anti-Japanese War but also one of the best historical testimonies to the shared bloodshed and struggle of the Chinese, American, and Soviet peoples during the war.

Further Reading:

· Fifth Batch of Jiangsu Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units