Former Site of Duan Qirui’s Executive Yuan

Former Site of Duan Qirui’s Executive Yuan

The former site of Duan Qirui’s Executive Yuan is a cultural relic protection unit of Beijing.

Destination Introduction

The former site of Duan Qirui’s Executive Yuan is located at No. 3 Zhangzizhong Road, Dongcheng District, originally known as Iron Lion Lane.

During the Qing Dynasty, there were three mansions here: the Heshun Prince’s Mansion to the east, the Beile Feisu Mansion in the middle, and the Hejing Princess’s Mansion to the west. The Heshun Prince’s Mansion was formerly the residence of Prince Yun. In the 11th year of the Yongzheng reign (1733), the fifth son of the Yongzheng Emperor, Hongzhou, rebuilt it into the Heshun Prince’s Mansion. The Beile Feisu Mansion was the residence of Prince Gong Changying in the early Qing Dynasty. By the end of the Qing Dynasty, all the buildings within the two mansions were demolished, and three groups of brick-and-wood structures were newly constructed: the central main building was a European classical-style gray-brick structure, with one building each to the east, west, and north.

In 1912, when Yuan Shikai served as the provisional president of the Republic of China, the State Council was located here; after 1919, when Jin Yunpeng served as premier and minister of the army, it was converted into the Premier’s Office; in 1924, when Duan Qirui was elected provisional executive of the Republic of China by the Beiyang warlords, it became the Executive Yuan. On April 10, 1926, a coup took place in Beijing. National Army officers stationed in Beijing, led by Lu Zhonglin, surrounded the provisional Executive Yuan, forcing Duan Qirui to flee; the Executive Yuan collapsed and was taken over by General Feng Yuxiang. When Wang Shuchang served as commander of the Beiping garrison, it was renamed the Beiping Garrison Command. Before 1937, it became the military headquarters of the 29th Army in Beiping and the Hebei-Chahar Political Council. In 1937, it became the headquarters of the Japanese North China Garrison Army, led by General Kanji Ishiwara, while the east courtyard housed the Japanese intelligence agency Kōa-in, led by General Keiji Hioki. After 1945, it was converted into the headquarters of the 11th War Zone and the Beiping garrison command. In 1949, it was used as school buildings by Renmin University of China. In 1978, the main building was used by the Institute of Qing History. The Duan Qirui Executive Yuan was originally the Heshun Prince’s Mansion, the residence of Hongzhou, the fifth son of the Yongzheng Emperor, who was granted the title of Heshun Prince. After the Republic of China, it became the navy department of the Beiyang government. In 1924, after the Zhili-Fengtian War, it was converted into Duan Qirui’s Executive Yuan.

On March 18, 1926, over 5,000 people from all walks of life in Beijing, under the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party and figures such as Li Dazhao, protested in front of Tiananmen Square against the Japanese imperialist aggression violating China’s sovereignty. After the rally, they marched to the Duan Qirui Executive Yuan. Duan Qirui’s guards opened fire, resulting in a bloody massacre where 47 people were killed and over 150 injured. Liu Hezhen and Yang Dequn, students of the National Beijing Women's Normal University, sacrificed their lives in the tragedy.

To commemorate the martyrs and promote the tradition of patriotism, the Beijing Municipal People’s Government designated the former site of Duan Qirui’s Executive Yuan—the site of the “March 18 Massacre”—as a key cultural relic protection unit of Beijing. Dongcheng District listed it as a youth patriotic education base.

Attraction Location

No. 3 Zhangzizhong Road, eastern section of Ping’an Avenue, Dongcheng District, Beijing

Transportation

Get off at Zhangzizhong Road Station on bus lines 13, 42, 113, 115, 118, 701, 734, 823, or 850, then walk north.

Duan Qirui (1865–1936), originally named Qirui, courtesy name Zhiquan, also known in his later years as Zhengdao Laoren, was a Han Chinese from Hefei, Anhui. Born on March 6, 1865 (the ninth day of the second lunar month in the fourth year of the Tongzhi reign), he was a politician during the Republican era and leader of the Anhui Clique warlords.

He was born in Taipingji, Lu’an County (now Jinqiao Township, Feixi County) on March 6, 1865 (the ninth day of the second lunar month in the fourth year of the Qing Tongzhi reign), in his ancestral home three li north of Taipingji. His grandfather, Duan Pei (courtesy name Yunshan), had previously traded in smuggled salt and organized local militias with Liu Mingchuan, earning merit in suppressing the Nian Rebellion. He served as commander of the Huai Army, leading troops in...  More details about Duan Qirui++

Further Reading:

· Third Batch of Beijing Municipal Cultural Relic Protection Units