Monument to the Victory at Huangshidu

Monument to the Victory at Huangshidu

The Monument to the Victory at Huangshidu is a classic site for red tourism.

Monument to the Victory at Huangshidu:

Located in Huangshi Village, Shazhou Town, Nancheng County (formerly part of Jinxi), it was built in July 1964. The "Victory at Huangshidu" was the first major triumph of the First Front Red Army during the Jinxi Campaign in the Fourth Counter-Encirclement Campaign. To commemorate this victory, the people of Nancheng erected a monument in Huangshi, which bears the famous quote by Comrade Mao Zedong: “Political power grows out of the barrel of a gun.”

The Huangshidu and Jinxi Campaigns:

On December 30, 1932, the Nationalist “Bandit Suppression” Headquarters for the Gan, Yue, and Min Border Region issued an operational plan for the Fourth “Encirclement Campaign” against the Central Soviet Area. They gradually assembled over 40 divisions, totaling around 400,000 troops, and decided to launch attacks along three routes—left, center, and right. The overall commander was Gu Zhutong, with Chen Cheng as the front-line commander. Chen Cheng directed the 12 elite divisions (approximately 160,000 troops) directly under Chiang Kai-shek’s command, serving as the central force tasked with the main offensive. The 19th Route Army, commanded by Cai Tingkai, consisting of six divisions and one brigade, formed the left-wing army, while the Guangdong forces under Yu Hanmou served as the right-wing army, responsible for “pacification” operations in Fujian and southern/ northern Jiangxi regions respectively, as well as supporting the actions of the central force. The 23rd Division was held as the general reserve, and four other divisions plus two brigades were stationed in Nancheng, Nanfeng, Le’an, Chongren, and Yongfeng for defensive purposes. On January 1, 1933, Chen Cheng, the front-line commander stationed in Fuzhou, following Chiang Kai-shek’s directive to first “pacify” the Red Army near Jinxi, consolidate Linchuan, and then advance the main force toward southern Jiangxi, ordered Wu Qiwu, commander of the Second Column, to assemble the 14th Division under Zhou Zhirou, the 27th Division under Sun Lianzhong (re-established after being previously destroyed), and the 90th Division under Wu Qiwu in Linchuan and await orders.

In response to the enemy’s strategic deployment, on December 31, 1932, the First Front Red Army headquarters issued the “Order to Attack Huangshidu and Songshi, and Capture Jinxi,” instructing the First Front Red Army to move north from Lichuan, seek opportunities to eliminate enemy forces in the Huangshidu area of Nancheng County and the Songshi area of Zixi County, capture Jinxi, and draw enemies from both the southwest of Jinxi into a decisive battle. The directive emphasized that this was key to breaking the enemy’s encirclement line in the Fuzhou region, disrupting their plans, and shattering their major offensive against the Central Revolutionary Base.

On January 4, 1933, the Third Corps and the 22nd Army of the First Front Red Army took advantage of the enemy’s repositioning and launched an attack on Huangshidu, north of Nancheng. By January 5, they had annihilated the majority of the 13th Brigade of the 5th Division under Zhou Hunyuan, capturing over 1,000 troops including brigade commander Zhou Shida, with the remaining enemy forces fleeing back to Nancheng. On January 7, the Nationalist 27th and 90th Divisions attacked Jinxi from Hukou, while the 14th Division advanced toward Huangshidu. A division also moved northeast from Nancheng to provide support, attempting to encircle and annihilate the main Red Army forces in the Hukou area west of Jinxi. The Red Army deployed the First and Third Corps, among others, as the right column, and the Fifth Corps as the left column to counter the enemy. By the afternoon of January 8, the Red Army had routed the enemy, killing over 2,000 troops and seizing numerous weapons and ammunition. Among them, the newly reorganized 27th Division under Sun Lianzhong suffered a devastating blow.

The Red Army also sustained heavy casualties. Zhao Botao, one of the main leaders of the Ningdu Uprising and commander of the Fifth Corps as well as commander of the 13th Army, was killed in action at the age of 36.

Huangshi Village: Huangshi Village…… More information about Huangshi Village++