Former Site of the Ningli Red Army School

Former Site of the Ningli Red Army School

The former site of the Ningli Red Army School is a classic red tourism destination.

The former site of the Ningli Red Army School is located in Ningli Natural Village, Fengji Village, Zhuangbian Town, Hanjiang District, Putian City.

In the early stages of the War of Resistance against Japan, the headquarters of the Central Fujian Work Committee (Southern Fujian Special Committee) of the Chinese Communist Party remained in Ningli until it moved to Nanyang Village, Changle in September 1941. While leading guerrilla forces to reclaim land for farming and build kilns for charcoal production in Ningli, the Central Fujian Party organization held a Red Army school from 1938 to the autumn of 1940, providing rotational training for cadres from counties and districts such as Putian, Xianyou, Fuqing, Changle, Yongtai, and Quanzhou, thereby consolidating and developing grassroots organizations.

In August 1938, the Central Fujian Work Committee held a training class of more than 10 people at the Ningli Red Army School. Participants came from Putian, Xianyou, Fuqing, and Changle, with women making up the majority.

On February 20, 1939, the Putian County Central Committee held a training class for party cadres in Ningli, training branch secretaries and some district committee members for two weeks. Courses included united front work, party operations, and military basics. Cai Wenhuan, Zhang Boting, and Yang Qisong were responsible for organizing the studies. Over 50 students used straw sheds as classrooms and lived in caves and on straw mats. Despite the harsh living conditions, their enthusiasm for learning was very high.

Starting in February 1940, the Southern Fujian Special Committee held a “District-level Cultural Relics Protection Unit Cadre Training Class” and a “Military Training Class” in Ningli, adopting a method of “rotational conscription of cadres for schooling.” From February to April, the training classes trained young cadres from Changle, Putian, Xianyou, and Yongtai. In the autumn of the same year, training began for cadres from the Quanzhou area. Young cadres from the Quanzhou County Central Committee departed in two groups: Lin Shidai, Shi Aizhu, and Su Xiaotai arrived in Ningli first, followed by Li Gang personally going to Quanzhou to bring Xu Jiming, Zhu Lunyan, Chen Zaocao, and Lin Chunsu to the Special Committee headquarters for study. However, due to the launch of a “cleansing” campaign by reactionary forces, the Provincial Committee reassigned instructor Li Gang to attend the fourth session of the Wuyi Cadre School, and the Special Committee training class had to be suspended. The students returned to their original posts to continue working as instructed by the Special Committee. Most participants of the Ningli Red Army School training class later became key figures in the Central Fujian revolutionary movement, playing an active role in cadre development.

The former site of the Ningli Red Army School is a single-story brick-and-tile structure, rebuilt in the 1980s, covering an area of 72 square meters. The original training facilities have largely fallen into disuse and are currently idle.

Source: Party History Research Office of the Putian Municipal Committee

Fengji Village: Fengji Village…… More details about Fengji Village++