Huai'an Five Emperors Temple

Huai'an Five Emperors Temple

The Huai'an Five Emperors Temple is a cultural relic protection unit of Fuzhou City.

Huai'an Five Emperors Temple

Located on the Huai'an Peninsula in Jianxin Town, Cangshan District, it is a shrine dedicated to the Five Emperors (Zhang Yuanbo, Zhong Shixiu, Liu Yuanda, Shi Wenyue, and Zhao Gongming) of Fuzhou's traditional folk beliefs. The building faces east and covers an area of approximately 608 square meters. It includes a stage, courtyard, bell and drum towers (niche towers), main hall, rear hall, and side courtyards. The main gate is in the form of a memorial archway with rolled-up calligraphy; the stage has a hip-and-gable roof; the main structure features a mixed wood-frame construction of flush gable and through-tenon styles with fireproof walls, some components being relics from the Ming Dynasty. It is three bays wide and five bays deep. The clay sculpture reliefs on the water-shedding walls along the corridors are exquisitely carved. It was announced as part of the sixth batch of municipal cultural relic protection units in 2015.

The Huai'an Five Emperors Temple enshrines the Five Emperors of Fuzhou's traditional folk beliefs: Zhang Yuanbo, Zhong Shixiu, Liu Yuanda, Shi Wenyue, and Zhao Gongming. The temple’s original construction date is unknown, but the current main structure dates to the Qing Dynasty and exhibits the traditional architectural style of the Fuzhou region.

During the Qing Dynasty, this Five Emperors Temple was once converted to worship Guan Yu to avoid the Qing government’s suppression and destruction of unauthorized “licentious worship.”

After 1949, during campaigns such as the “Smashing of the Four Olds” and “Anti-feudal Superstition,” normal worship activities at the Five Emperors Temple were halted, and the temple was used as a warehouse for production teams and as a sheepfold.

In 1995, Fujian Rongqiao Real Estate Co., Ltd. carried out demolition of the entire Huai'an village. During the demolition, four cultural relic structures were discovered: the Huai'an County Government Office, the Five Emperors Temple, the Xianggong Temple, and the Linshui Palace, along with a two-story brick house that was preserved. After the demolition, Huai'an remained abandoned for a long time. Although these cultural relic buildings were listed as suburban cultural relic protection units, none were maintained, allowing them to fall into disrepair.

Starting in 2005, road projects such as the Nanjiang Bin Avenue and the Third Ring Road were successively launched, causing poor drainage in Huai'an and worsening the preservation environment of the cultural relic structures. The Five Emperors Temple suffered severe damage.

From 2012 to 2013, the “Jinhui Hua’an Peninsula” project incorporated the Five Emperors Temple into the entrance landscape of the residential complex’s third phase, planting trees and shrubs around the building. However, the building itself was not renovated.

In 2014, the Five Emperors Temple underwent restoration. Due to the severity of its collapse, the restoration work amounted to nearly a complete reconstruction.

In January 2015, it was announced as part of the sixth batch of municipal cultural relic protection units.

Jianxin Town: A town under the jurisdiction of Cangshan District, Fuzhou City. Established as Jianxin Township in 1984 and upgraded to a town in 1992. It is located in the northwestern part of the district, 7.2 kilometers from the city center, covering an area of 39.6 square kilometers with a population of 35,000. The municipal-level Julong Road runs through the entire town, connecting to National Highway 316. It administers Hongguang, Laoguang, Hua’an, Zhenban, Louxia, Maipu, Meiting, Yanzhou, Shangtang, Tangxia, Mozhu, Wengpai, Shangyan, Panbian, Shibian, Xinyi, Lubin, Houcao, Gaozhai, Geyu, Liu’zhai, Feng’zhai, Hongjiang, Jiangbian, Toupu, Yulan, Dongling, Fenggao, Guanzhou, Zhongjie, Henglong, Changcheng, … Detailed information about Jianxin Town++