Former Site of the Jiutian Palace Battle

Former Site of the Jiutian Palace Battle

The former site of the Jiutian Palace Battle is located in Jiutian Palace Natural Village, Langqiao Village, Zhongshan Town, Xianyou County, Putian City.

In April 1947, the Central Fujian Committee of the Chinese Communist Party established the Central Fujian Guerrilla Column (also known as the Daiyun Column) in Putian as the main force directly under the committee. Huang Guozhang was appointed commander and political commissar, Chen Hengyuan as deputy commander, Lin Runan as deputy political commissar, and Luo Yingxiang as chief of staff. After its establishment, following instructions from the Fujian–Zhejiang–Jiangxi Border Region Committee of the CCP, the Daiyun Column advanced toward southern Central Fujian. By the end of April, advance personnel and the column’s headquarters moved into Xianyou, passing through areas such as Gaoyang and Qingxi, and set up camp in a cave in the Baiyan Mountain area of Fengshan in Xiyuan. In May, the column relocated to Maixie Mountain in Zhongshan, Xianyou. By the end of May, over 30 young people and progressive farmers from Putian joined the Daiyun Column in Maixie Mountain, bringing the total number of troops to more than 100.

Maixie Village in Zhongshan was the hometown of Luo Yingxiang, the column’s chief of staff. Not long after the column settled there, its presence was discovered by spies working for the Nationalist Xianyou County government. As a result, the column withdrew from Maixie Village and moved to a remote mountainous area near Jiutian Palace in Langqiao Village, Zhongshan. Due to continuous heavy rain, the column took shelter in Jiutian Palace Village to rest and wait out the weather. In early June, the column's location was again discovered by spies of the Nationalist Xianyou County government. On June 6, about 50 soldiers from the 6th Squadron of the Fujian Provincial Security Command, together with the Xianyou County militia, approached Jiutian Palace under thick fog. They were spotted by the column’s sentries, leading to intense fighting. The battle lasted several minutes. Due to the dense fog and heavy smoke, neither side could clearly assess the other’s strength and thus avoided prolonged engagement. To preserve their combat capability, the Daiyun Column voluntarily withdrew from Jiutian Palace and moved toward the northwestern mountainous region of Xianyou. In this brief skirmish, the Daiyun Column killed one member of the security forces and wounded several others. However, during the retreat, one member of the column fell behind and was captured. This marked the first direct clash between the Daiyun Column and local Nationalist forces after entering Xianyou.

The former site of the Jiutian Palace Battle is situated in a rugged and densely forested mountain valley within Langqiao Village.

Source: Party History Research Office of the Putian Municipal Committee

Zhongshan Town: A town under the jurisdiction of Xianyou County. Established as Zhongshan Commune in 1958, reorganized as a township in 1984, and upgraded to a town in 1991. It is located in the northeastern part of the county, covering an area of 128.7 square kilometers with a population of 27,000. The Xianpu-Zhuang Highway and Xianshi Highway intersect here. The town administers 16 village committees: Zhongshan, Nanxing, Nanhu, Zhuoquan, Wuhe, Xiangshan, Meiyang, Maixie, Langqiao, Tianzhu, Huting, Dongxi, Xilin, Xinlian, Linsui, and Fenshan. The main agricultural products are rice, sugarcane, and fruits. Local attractions include Jiuli Lake and Maixie Rock. ... More detailed information on Zhongshan Town++