Mount Siwang

Siwang Mountain

The Siwang Mountain Red Tourism Area is located in the western part of Shihedian Township, Shihe District, Xinyang City, nestled between the Tongbai Mountains and the Dabie Mountains on the border of Henan and Hubei provinces. It lies 40 kilometers from downtown Xinyang and is the first high peak of the Tongbai Mountain Range as it enters Xinyang. The main peak, Zushi Summit, stands at an elevation of 906.4 meters. From the summit, you can overlook four counties (cities): Xinyang and Tongbai in Henan Province, and Suizhou and Yingshan in Hubei Province—hence the name Siwang Mountain (Four-View Mountain). Due to the influence of a major north-south fault line, the area around Siwang Mountain features undulating peaks and crisscrossing ravines, making it a strategically vital location and a historically contested military stronghold. Siwang Mountain is a land steeped in revolutionary history, with a proud legacy of struggle. As early as the initial phase of the Agrarian Revolutionary War, the Henan Provincial Committee of the Communist Party and the Southern Henan Special Committee established it as a key base for armed resistance. In the winter of 1927, they launched the famous “Siwang Mountain Uprising,” creating the first red revolutionary zone in Henan Province and exerting a profound influence on the revolutionary movements across the Hubei-Henan-Anhui region. During the War of Resistance against Japan, Siwang Mountain became a renowned anti-Japanese democratic base in southern Henan. In the Liberation War period, Comrade [Liu Bocheng] led the New Fourth Army’s 5th Division northward to reclaim the Siwang Mountain base. The revolutionary base centered around Siwang Mountain (also known as the Xinying Liberated Area) continuously expanded into surrounding regions. The heroic people of Siwang Mountain fought bravely and made indelible contributions to the revolutionary cause. This region gave rise to many veteran proletarian revolutionaries, including [Deng Xiaoping], Chen Shaomin, Wei Gongzhi, Zhu Lizhi, Liu Zihou, and Wen Mingsheng. The novel *Heroes of the Tongbai Mountains* and the TV series *The Breakout from Central China* depict the battles that took place in the Siwang Mountain area during the Liberation War.

Siwang Mountain lies in the transitional zone between the subtropical and warm temperate climate belts, enjoying a mild climate and abundant rainfall. It boasts unique resource and ecological advantages. Standing atop Zushi Summit, the main peak of Siwang Mountain, and looking eastward, you can take in the panoramic view of the Nanyang Lake National Forest Park. The crystal-clear Nanyang Lake, vast as a pearl, features rolling waters dotted with islands. The surrounding mountain ranges, stretching for hundreds of miles, are covered with premium Xinyang Maojian tea bushes. The tea produced here is world-renowned for its slender, round, straight leaves with visible white tips, along with its clear green liquor, rich and lasting aroma, mellow taste, and is honored as the “Pearl of the Tea Region.” To the north of Siwang Mountain lie other famous tea-producing mountains such as Jiyun Mountain, Yunwu Mountain, and Tianyun Mountain. To the southeast are the renowned Heilongtan (Black Dragon Pool) and Bailongtan (White Dragon Pool). Hence the saying: “Red earth of Siwang, vast green tea fields, waters of South Lake at the heart, tea from the peaks of Five Clouds.” Today, the area has become a renowned red tourism destination and natural scenic belt in Xinyang. Dominated by forest landscapes, with verdant peaks as its framework and clear streams and pools as its veins, the region is interspersed with revolutionary historical sites, forming a vivid tapestry where static and dynamic scenery harmonize, and natural beauty complements cultural heritage. The scenic area features natural and cultural attractions such as Siwang Mountain, Laojun Cave, the former site of the New 5th Division Hospital, the site of the Siwang Mountain Conference, Zushi Summit, the Tomb of Unknown Martyrs, Sānxiān缸 (Three Immortals Vat), Xiannütan Waterfall, Dishuiyan Waterfall, a thousand-year-old ginkgo tree, Heilongtan, Bailongtan, and the expansive tea plantations of Hei-Bai Longtan. It holds great potential for developing red tourism.