Fengtai County Banzhangji Revolutionary Martyrs' Cemetery

Fengtai County Banzhangji Revolutionary Martyrs' Cemetery

The Fengtai County Banzhangji Revolutionary Martyrs' Cemetery is a classic red tourism destination and a patriotic education base.

The Fengtai County Banzhangji Revolutionary Martyrs' Cemetery was first built in October 2004 and is located on the west side of Banzhangji Village by Xingfu Gully, about 20 kilometers northwest of Fengtai County town. Surrounded by greenery, the park integrates tombs, monuments, exhibition halls, pavilions, paths, bridges, and gates. It is the resting place of 14 martyrs, including Li Zhenhai, the battalion commander of the 12th Regiment, Wang Fucheng, the company commander of the 4th Company, Liu Fajia, the political instructor, and Liu Huimin, the squad leader, all from the 6th Sub-district, 12th Regiment of the Yu-Wan-Su Military Region, who sacrificed their lives in October 1948 while liberating Fengtai County. A monument stands to the south of the cemetery area in honor of five deceased county- or regiment-level revolutionary martyrs who worked before the victory of the Anti-Japanese War and sacrificed their lives within the Fengtai region.

Since its establishment, the cemetery has undergone several expansions, now covering an area of more than 25,000 square meters. At the northern end stands the “Banzhangji Revolutionary History Exhibition Hall,” where three exhibition rooms display over 300 precious photos and data from five historical phases in Fengtai’s history: the Great Revolution period, the Agrarian Revolutionary War period, the Anti-Japanese War period, the Liberation War period, and the tremendous changes since the founding of the People’s Republic of China, outlining a century of historical upheaval in Fengtai County. The main monument of the cemetery stands in the center of a small plaza. The park’s stele corridor houses 32 stone tablets, 20 of which are inscribed with quotes and calligraphy from leaders of several generations of the Communist Party, including Mao Zedong, Deng Xiaoping, Jiang Zemin, and Hu Jintao. Five pavilions, four relief sculptures, and three ornamental archways are scattered throughout the site, expressing remembrance and reverence for the martyrs, echoing the teachings and encouragement of great leaders, making it a vivid patriotic education base.

In the eight years since its completion, the cemetery has received over 100,000 visitors. On major memorial days such as Tomb-Sweeping Day, people from all walks of life and large numbers of teachers and students come to pay tribute to the martyrs and visit the exhibitions. It has become an important venue for new Party members and League members to take oaths and for grassroots Party organizations to carry out educational activities, as well as a major classroom for fostering education on the core values of socialism.