Yihuang Revolutionary Martyrs' Monument

Yihuang Revolutionary Martyrs' Monument

Yihuang Revolutionary Martyrs' Monument is a classic red tourism destination.

Yihuang Revolutionary Martyrs' Monument

About 300 meters south of Yihuang County town lies a small hill covered with pines and cypresses, lush and green all year round. Majestically standing on the hill is the solemn Revolutionary Martyrs' Monument. On the front of the monument tower, eight gilded regular-script characters are strikingly prominent: “Eternal Glory to the Revolutionary Martyrs!”

The county was once part of the Red Soviet Area. In the spring of 1926, the Communist Party of China established the first grassroots Party branch in the county in Tanfang, Yihuang. Revolutionary veterans such as Mao Zedong, Zhu De, Zhou Enlai, Liu Bocheng, Chen Yi, Luo Ronghuan, and Nie Rongzhen left glorious footprints here. In February 1933, Chiang Kai-shek mobilized 500,000 troops to launch the fourth “encirclement and suppression” campaign against the Red Army in the Central Soviet Area. Yihuang was a major battleground in the counter-campaign. Successive battles at Jiaohu in Huangpi, Huoyuan, Huangbailing in Dongpi, and Caoxiegang led to the annihilation of the Nationalist 52nd, 59th, and 11th Divisions, with enemy division commanders Li Ming and Chen Shiji captured. These victories are historically known as the “Huangpi Victory” and the “Dongpi Victory,” which completely shattered the Nationalists’ fourth “encirclement and suppression” campaign. A total of over 5,000 soldiers sacrificed their lives heroically in these battles, among whom 3,280 are recorded by name. To commemorate these revolutionary martyrs, the Yihuang County Committee and County Government built this Revolutionary Martyrs' Monument in October 1964.

The base of the monument is 44 meters long and 24 meters wide. At the mountain entrance stands a reinforced concrete archway that is 10.5 meters long and 5 meters high. Entering through the gate, there is a paved pathway consisting of four tiers of cement steps totaling 100 steps, each 4.2 meters wide, flanked by neatly arranged cypress trees, leading to the monument at the end. The inscription on the north face of the base recounts the arduous revolutionary struggle history of the people of Yihuang from 1926 to 1949 under the organization and leadership of the Communist Party of China, calling on all citizens to inherit and carry forward the revolutionary traditions of the martyrs. The text is about 720 characters long, engraved in clerical script in intaglio. The southern face bears an inscription by the Yihuang County Committee of the Communist Party of China: “Inherit the Glorious Traditions of Revolutionary Martyrs, Achieve Even Greater Glory!” The eastern face features an inscription by the Yihuang County People’s Committee: “Carry Forward the Martyrs’ Legacy, Fight to the End for the Cause of Communism!” The western face displays an inscription by the Yihuang County People’s Armed Forces Department: “Firmly Defend the Fruits of Victory Won with the Martyrs’ Blood!”