Yuan Haowen Memorial Hall

Yuan Haowen Memorial Hall

Yuan Haowen Memorial Hall is located in Guan County.

Yuan Haowen, courtesy name Yuzhi, art name Yishan, was a native of Xinzhou, Shanxi. He was the foremost poet, writer, and historian in northern China during the Jin and Yuan dynasties. His poetic achievements were on par with those of Lu You from the Southern Song Dynasty. In 1234, when the Mongol army captured Bianjing, the Jin Dynasty fell. At that time, Yuan Haowen — then serving as an official under the Jin administration (Vice Director of the Left Bureau of the Secretariat) along with his entire family of ten (including the son of his close friend, Bai Pu, who would later become one of the “Four Great Masters of Yuan Opera”) — were captured and detained in Liaocheng. They were rescued by Zhao Tiansi, the magistrate of Guanshi County, and settled down in Guan County.

Zhao Tiansi, a native of Baoyili in Guanshi (now untraceable), rose up with his sister — revered by the people as a “queen” who “commanded thousands of troops as easily as moving one’s arm” — to defend the region and protect the people during the chaotic warfare among the Jin, Song, and Mongol forces. Later, he submitted to the Yuan Dynasty and served as Left Deputy Marshal, Commander-in-Chief of Daming Prefecture Route, Military Commandant, and concurrently Magistrate of Guanshi. Though a military man, he deeply valued talent and was passionate about helping scholars. With his support, Yuan Haowen spent the most perilous four years of his life in Guanshi. Most of the over a hundred poems and writings he composed in Guanshi are considered among his finest works.

The memorial hall displays portraits of Yuan Haowen, introductions to his life, accounts of his activities in Guan County, as well as the details of his relationship with Zhao Tiansi. It also exhibits calligraphy works by renowned artists featuring Yuan Haowen’s poetry and prose composed in Guan.

Yuan Haowen (1190–1257), courtesy name Yuzhi, art name Yishan, was a native of Xiurong in Taiyuan (present-day Xinzhou, Shanxi). He was a renowned writer, historian, and literary leader during the late Jin and early Yuan periods, representing the pinnacle of northern literature during the Song-Jin confrontation era. He also served as a bridge in literature between the Jin and Yuan dynasties, earning titles such as “Literary Giant of the North” and “Literary Sage of the Era.” He excelled in all forms of poetry, prose, ci, and qu. Yuan Haowen also wrote fiction; his collection of short supernatural tales, Sequel to Records of the Listener (《续夷坚志》), contains four volumes and 202 stories. Excluding four entries with titles but no text and one incomplete story, there are actually… More details about Yuan Haowen ++