Former Site of the Headquarters of the First Red Army Corps

Former Site of the Headquarters of the First Red Army Corps

The former site of the headquarters of the First Red Army Corps is a classic red tourism attraction.

The former site of the headquarters of the First Red Army Corps is located on Xinjie Street in Jiantou Village, Xikou Town, Jianning County.

In September 1933, Chiang Kai-shek mobilized 600,000 troops to launch the fifth “encirclement and suppression” campaign against the Central Soviet Area. At that time, Bo Gu, the head of the interim central leadership of the Chinese Communist Party, and military advisor Otto Braun pursued a “Left” adventurist line and adopted the tactic of “repelling the enemy at the national border,” engaging in positional and fortress warfare. This led to successive setbacks in the Red Army’s fifth counter-“encirclement and suppression” campaign, with the enemy advancing step by step toward Jianning. From January to May 1934, the Red Army successively launched five major defensive battles—the Qiujia’ao, General Temple, Zhuma Fort, Snow Mountain Ridge, and Wuzhen Ridge battles—on the northern and eastern fronts of Jianning to defend the Central Soviet Area and Red Jianning. During this period, Nie Rongzhen and Lin Biao were ordered to lead the First Red Army Corps into Jianning twice to take part in the defense of the county and directly commanded the battle at Zhuma Fort. The corps headquarters was stationed in Jiantou Village, Xikou Town. After the failure of the Jianning Defense Battle, the First Red Army Corps gradually withdrew westward.

The former site of the headquarters of the First Red Army Corps (formerly the Lower Xinwu House in Jiantou) is a Qing Dynasty building constructed with brick and wood, featuring a flush gable roof and an east-west orientation. The main hall has a width of five bays and a depth of seven columns, consisting of an entrance hall, a front courtyard, the main hall, a rear courtyard, and an upper hall. It spans 20 meters in width and 45 meters in depth, covering a total area of 900 square meters. In recent years, the building has been unoccupied, and the entrance hall and wing rooms on both sides of the rear hall have collapsed.

Source: Party History Research Office of the Sanming Municipal Committee

Jiantou Village: Jiantou Village is located in the eastern and western parts of Xikou Town, approximately 6 kilometers from the town center. The village has 19 villager groups, residing in 35 natural villages, with 635 households, 2,473 residents, 5,495 acres of arable land, and 21,440 acres of forestland (including 11,000 acres gratuitously allocated to the county forestry bureau in 1968), as well as over 7,000 acres of fruit orchards. The village Party branch has 73 official members, and the village’s two committees consist of 7 cadres. The village is rich in talent and resources, with fertile soil and abundant water sources. In 2012, the per capita income reached 8,100 yuan, and village fiscal revenue increased by 20,000 yuan. …… More details about Jiantou Village++