Site of the Yaoli Reorganization

Site of the Yaoli Reorganization

The Site of the Yaoli Reorganization is a national key cultural relics protection unit and a classic destination on China's red tourism routes.

Yaoli was one of the important bases during the three-year guerrilla war in the Wan-Gan border region. After the July 7th Incident in 1937, which triggered full-scale war against Japan, the Chinese Communist Party advocated for "Kuomintang-CCP cooperation to jointly resist Japan." As part of this effort, the Red Army guerrilla forces from 14 regions across eight southern provinces were reorganized into the newly formed Fourth Army of the National Revolutionary Army. To successfully complete the reorganization, senior New Fourth Army leader Chen Yi personally came to Yaoli in late 1937 and early 1938 to provide guidance. The reorganization process was carried out in four steps: unifying military designations, conducting ideological rectification, strengthening military training, and expanding troop numbers.

In January 1938, the New Fourth Army set up a recruitment office at the “Jingyi Hall” in Yaoli. They also conducted outreach in rural towns across Qimen, Xiuning, Zhide, Fuliang, and Jingdezhen, recruiting over 200 soldiers within ten days. During the reorganization period, a meeting was held with cadres from the border region’s guerrilla forces and local party organizations to communicate the Central Committee’s decision regarding the reorganization and specific directives for transforming the southern guerrilla forces into the New Fourth Army. At the same time, the establishment of the Wan-Gan-Zhe Provincial Committee was announced, with Li Buxin appointed as secretary. Chen Yi addressed a public gathering at the ancestral temple of the Cheng family in Yaoli, promoting the CCP’s policy of forming a united front against Japanese aggression. The reorganized and trained unit, known as the “First Detachment of the Jiangxi Anti-Japanese Volunteer Army,” departed for Yan Temple in Anhui at the end of February of the same year. In mid-March, following an order from General Ye Ting, commander of the New Fourth Army, the detachment was officially incorporated into the Third Battalion of the Second Regiment of the First Detachment of the New Fourth Army, with Chen Yi serving as the commander of the First Detachment.

Soon after, this unit left the Wan-Gan border base area and headed for the front lines of the War of Resistance. Some personnel who stayed behind established the “New Fourth Army Yaoli Liaison Office” to handle post-reorganization affairs. The former site of the Liaison Office has now been designated as a municipal-level protected cultural relic. In May 1988, the county Party committee and the county government erected a monument in Yaoli commemorating the “New Fourth Army Reorganization in Yaoli.” Hundreds of people attended the unveiling ceremony, including Chen Haosu (son of Chen Yi), leaders from the People’s Liberation Army Rocket Force, as well as officials from the provincial, municipal, and county governments.

In May 2013, the State Council (State Council Document [2013] No. 13) listed the Site of the Yaoli Reorganization as part of the seventh batch of national key cultural relics protection units.

Yaoli Town: Yaoli is located at the junction of two provinces (Anhui and Jiangxi) and four counties (Qimen and Xiuning in Anhui, Wuyuan and Fuliang in Jiangxi), approximately 59 kilometers from downtown Jingdezhen.

Yaoli, formerly known as Yaoli (literally “Kiln Settlement”), was historically part of Xinzheng Township under the jurisdiction of Jinxu County in Fuliang. As early as the mid-Tang Dynasty, there were handicraft workshops producing ceramics here, and it got its name from the local kilns. In the early 20th century, Yaoli was renamed three times before settling on its current name. On August 24, 1994, the township was upgraded to a town. On April 2, 2001, it was designated as a provincial nature reserve. On October 9 of the same year, it was listed as a provincial scenic area. On August 9, 2003… More detailed information about Yaoli Town++

Further Reading:

· Seventh Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units