Tomb of Liao Zhongkai and He Xiangning

Tomb of Liao Zhongkai and He Xiangning

The Tomb of Liao Zhongkai and He Xiangning is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit and a classic site of red tourism.

The Tomb of Liao Zhongkai and He Xiangning in Nanjing is located at the foot of Tianbao City on the southern slopes of the Zhongshan Mountain, within the Zhongshan Scenic Area. It lies to the west of the Ming Xiaoling Mausoleum, facing Qianhu Lake, and enjoys a serene environment with majestic architecture. Originally designated as a Jiangsu Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Unit, in July 2001, it was further listed as a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

Liao Zhongkai (1877–1925), courtesy name Enxu, was a native of Huiyang, Guangdong. He was a key member of the Tongmenghui and a close friend of Dr. Sun Yat-sen. After the Chinese Communist Party proposed organizing a revolutionary united front, he assisted Sun Yat-sen in restructuring the Kuomintang. Following Sun’s passing, Liao upheld the Three Major Policies of “allying with Russia, cooperating with the Communists, and supporting peasants and workers,” which put him at odds with the right wing of the Kuomintang. On August 20, 1925, he was assassinated in front of the Central Party Headquarters in Guangzhou. In June 1926, his coffin was transported to Nanjing by his wife, He Xiangning, and a state funeral was held here in September of that year.

He Xiangning (1878–1972), the wife of Liao Zhongkai, was born in Nanhai, Guangdong, but in Hong Kong. She studied in Japan in her early years. In 1905, she joined the Tongmenghui and supported the cooperation between the Kuomintang and the Communists, serving as head of the Women’s Department of the Kuomintang Central Executive Committee. After Liao Zhongkai’s assassination, she continued to unite the left wing of the Kuomintang in struggle against the right wing. In 1947, she co-founded the China Revolutionary Committee of the Kuomintang with Li Jishen and others. After the liberation, even in her seventies, she still held important national positions and made contributions to the revolutionary cause, enjoying high prestige among the people. She passed away in Beijing on September 1, 1972, at the age of 95. Her coffin was transported to Nanjing on September 6 and interred together with Liao Zhongkai.

In front of the joint tomb of Liao Zhongkai and He Xiangning, two curved paths lead upward on either side. The paths are lined with dense plantings of dragon cypress and pine trees, creating a solemn and dignified atmosphere. At the end of the paths is a semicircular platform, surrounded by a ring of stone benches where mourners can rest. At the center of this platform once stood an octagonal memorial pavilion, housing eight granite steles inscribed with Liao Zhongkai’s life story, written by Hu Hanmin. After the tomb became a joint burial site in 1972, the pavilion was dismantled (the eight granite steles were preserved). At either end of the platform stand two ornamental columns modeled after the spirit way pillars of Six Dynasties imperial tombs, topped with lotus-shaped capitals, each adorned with a stone mythical beast (taotie).

Passing through the gate walls between the two columns leads into the tomb area. Ascending the concrete path in front of the tomb brings you to a rectangular platform, with square pavilions built on both sides. Below the pavilions are guard rooms where the guards who protected the tomb were stationed. A few more steps up lead to a large 330-square-meter platform where the tall tombstone and the burial mound are situated. The mound is constructed of reinforced concrete, with a hemispherical upper part nine meters in diameter and an octagonal lower section surrounded by 24 circular concrete columns. The overall layout of the tomb area is symmetrical and grand, and among all the auxiliary tombs of the Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum, the joint tomb of Liao Zhongkai and He Xiangning is particularly distinctive.

On the Qingming Festival in 1983, descendants of Liao Zhongkai and He Xiangning visited the tomb and wrote a five-character poem: “Jinling holds boundless beauty, we arrive just at Qingming. With pen I note my heart’s thoughts, fresh flowers mourn our elders.” It fully expresses deep remembrance for their ancestors.

Further Reading:

· First and Second Batches of Jiangsu Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units