Former Site of the Soviet Government of Wanzai County

Former Site of the Soviet Government of Wanzai County

The former site of the Soviet Government of Wanzai County is located at Huangjia House, situated at the foot of Damu Mountain, about 500 meters southeast of Bitian Village, Tanbu Township. The house faces south, features a brick-and-wood structure typical of Republican-era residences, and is covered with blue tiles. It has a split-level roof design, consists of two courtyards, and covers an area of 263.5 square meters. The rear courtyard was burned down by the Kuomintang army, destroying 115 square meters, while the front courtyard remains well-preserved.

After its establishment in July 1930, the Soviet Government of Workers, Peasants, and Soldiers of Wanzai County was first based in Chixing Shutang, then moved to Baishui Xindian. In mid-August, when the First Red Army Corps arrived in Wanzai, it temporarily relocated to the county seat for several days before moving to Bitian in Tanbu for about a year. During this time, Zhou Da served as the Chairman of the County Soviet.

While the County Soviet Government was stationed in Bitian, the land distribution in the Wanzai Soviet Area was entering a phase of readjustment. A notice titled "Thoroughly Resolving the Land Issue" was issued, correcting the previous errors of allocating land based on the amount of labor and production tools, and instead implementing equal distribution according to household population. Later, the government also recognized farmers’ ownership of the land, “allowing private buying, selling, and leasing of land,” which greatly boosted the revolutionary enthusiasm of the peasants.

At the same time, the County Soviet also focused on industrial and agricultural production, as well as work related to finance, culture, and education. Agricultural production was organized through mass efforts such as farming teams, plowing stations, and farm tool lending services. The government strongly promoted water conservancy projects, the reclamation of wasteland, improved farming techniques, and offered incentives for cultivation. These measures not only restored production in the Soviet Area but even led some regions to exceed pre-revolutionary levels. The government actively established over a hundred production units including paper mills, fireworks factories, ceramic workshops, ramie cloth mills, and salt refineries. It abolished various exorbitant taxes imposed by the Kuomintang government, introduced progressive commercial and land taxes, and implemented a fair burden system. To counter the reactionary forces' looting of supplies in the Soviet Area and to thwart the Kuomintang’s—, the government founded a mint, opened the Liqun Store, and issued local public bonds. Due to leading cadres setting an example of austerity and the masses voluntarily donating money and grain, trade in the Soviet Area flourished, supporting the revolutionary war. To develop education and strengthen political and ideological work in the Soviet Area, the government established training classes for red clerks, literacy classes, night schools, Lenin Rooms, and clubs. In terms of medical and health services, adhering to the principles of using local methods and making do with simple resources, the government overcame numerous difficulties to establish a rear hospital and a pharmaceutical cooperative union.