Site of the Lixia Festival Uprising

Site of the Lixia Festival Uprising

The Site of the Lixia Festival Uprising is a cultural relic protection unit of Anhui Province, a classic red tourism destination, and a patriotic education base.

The Site of the Lixia Festival Uprising is located southeast of the small street in Dingjia Bu, Nanxi Town, Shangcheng County, Henan Province (now part of Jinzhai County, Anhui Province).

On May 6, 1927 (the 27th day of the third lunar month, known as the Lixia Festival), an armed uprising broke out in the southern part of Shangcheng County, Henan Province. It was primarily a revolt led by local militias, combined with a peasant rebellion. It was another armed uprising in the Dabie Mountains following the Macheng Uprising in Hubei Province. Under the organization of the Special Party Committee of Shang, Luo, and Ma counties, Communist Party members such as Zhou Weijiong, Xu Ziqing, and Xiao Fang led the peasant masses in the regions of He and Le (southern Shangcheng County, Henan, now western Jinzhai County, Anhui) in staging an armed uprising. On the evening of the 6th, Zhou Weijiong, who had infiltrated the Dingjia Bu militia, planned to disarm the militia forces and announced the uprising. At the same time, rebel peasants dealt with militias in Banzhuyuan, Wujiadian, Baishuhe, and Nanxi, gaining control of the He and Le areas overnight. On May 7, a provisional peasant committee with the nature of a revolutionary government was established. On May 9, the rebel forces gathered at Banzhuyuan and announced the founding of the 32nd Division of the 11th Army of the Chinese Workers’ and Peasants’ Red Army. After its establishment, the 32nd Division immediately began establishing a revolutionary base area. Soon after, the southeastern Henan Revolutionary Base Area began to take shape.

After the founding of New China, more than 40 revolutionaries who had participated in the Southern Shang Uprising (Lixia Festival Uprising), including Hong Xuezhi, became generals of the People’s Republic. In 1981, Dawang Temple was designated as a key cultural relics protection unit by the Anhui Provincial People's Government. In 1982, Jinzhai County officially started preparations for the Dawang Temple Revolutionary History Exhibition Hall. Marshal Xu Xiangqian inscribed the words “Eternal glory to the martyrs of the Lixia Festival Uprising.” In 1998, it was further named a revolutionary patriotic education base.

Nanxi Town: Located in the heart of the Dabie Mountains, Nanxi Town is a key border trade town at the junction of Hubei, Henan, and Anhui provinces. It is a comprehensive reform pilot town in Anhui and a place of remarkable talent. As the birthplace of the Lixia Festival Uprising, it has produced 14 generals of the People’s Republic. The country’s first Hope Primary School and the Nanshi Middle School, a model high school in Lu’an City, have become cradles for nurturing talent.

Nanxi enjoys convenient transportation and fertile land. Provincial Highway 210 runs east-west through the town. The Ding (Bu)–Shang (Cheng) Road traverses north-south. The upcoming Hefei–Wuhan Expressway and Shanghai–Wuhan High-Speed Railway will also pass through the town.

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