Xincai Confucius Temple

Xincai Confucius Temple

Xincai Confucius Temple is a national AA-level tourist attraction and a cultural tourism site.

Confucius Temple

The Confucius Temple, also known as the Temple of Confucius, was a place where emperors and people in feudal society throughout the ages paid homage and offered sacrifices to the sage and great teacher — Confucius. Xincai Confucius Temple houses the Dacheng Hall, which contains a bronze statue of Confucius. Adjacent to the temple is the Confucian School (commonly called the Huangxue), which includes the Minglun Hall — a lecture hall where Confucian scholars "preached moral teachings, nurtured talented individuals, and promoted good customs."

According to the Xincai County Annals, the Confucian School and Temple underwent three constructions and two relocations during the Yuan and Ming dynasties: In the eighth year of the Yuandade era (1304 AD), County Magistrate He Zhen initially built it outside the east gate of the city, south of the road, constructing only the rough framework of the main hall. In the eleventh year of Yuandade (1307 AD), County Magistrate Li Yan completed the construction on this foundation. The temple collapsed at the end of the Yuan Dynasty. In the eleventh year of the Hongwu era of the Ming Dynasty (1378 AD), County Magistrate Ying Zongyi rebuilt it. In the first year of the Tianshun era (1457 AD), Instructor Wang Zhengyan petitioned for relocation due to its remote and inconvenient location, resulting in the move from south of the road outside the east gate to the north side. In the twelfth year of the Zhengde era (1517 AD), County Magistrate Liu Han, believing that having the Confucius Temple outside the city showed insufficient respect and dreaming of relocating it, found a site at the southeastern corner of the city near a nunnery. He considered the area open, bright, and uniquely beautiful — an ideal location — so he demolished the nunnery, destroyed the idols, and began relocating the temple. However, only the lecture hall was constructed before Liu Han left office, halting the project. At that time, the main hall remained outside the city, and the new lecture hall was referred to as the Southern School. In the thirty-third year of the Jiajing era (1554 AD), shortly after taking office, County Magistrate Zhu Ru proposed constructing a school palace on this foundation. It was completed by May of the following year. By the end of the Ming Dynasty, it suffered again from warfare, leaving the surrounding walls in ruins. During the Qing Shunzhi era, County Magistrates Zhong E, Tan Hongxian, and Yu Shuxu all oversaw restorations. In the twenty-fourth year of the Kangxi era (1688 AD), County Magistrate Lü Minfu further expanded the site, adding ritual vessels, musical instruments for ceremonies, and establishing strict systems, thus giving the temple a completely renewed appearance.

In the early years of the Republic of China, the site was repeatedly used as military barracks and frequently damaged. Bandits entering the city further vandalized it, causing the loss of documents, musical instruments, ritual vessels, and performance costumes stored in the temple. Some ancestral halls, pavilions, study rooms, corridors, the Kuixing Tower, and the Civilization Tower collapsed, while stone tablets and gates were damaged. The Dragon Gate was also torn down during the Anti-Japanese War. Later, two rounds of restoration were carried out on the Confucius Temple, but some ancient and fine trees in the courtyard were cut down. The center of the back wall of the Dacheng Hall was modified to bulge backward, and the statue of Confucius was moved back. During this period, the site was used as a Persuasion-to-Study Institute, a Normal School Training Institute, an elementary school, and a complete primary school.

On the eve of liberation, the Confucius Temple was looted again, although most of the buildings in the courtyard still remained. After liberation, the government reopened a complete primary school here. During the Cultural Revolution...

Key surviving structures of Xincai once again suffered damage; one leg of the bronze statue of Confucius was destroyed, and after restoration, the statue was relocated to the county’s cultural relics protection unit for safekeeping. Although the Dacheng Hall has endured many trials, erosion by wind and rain, it still retains the characteristics of ancient architecture and is now listed as a provincial-level cultural relic protection unit.

Confucius (551–479 BC), whose personal name was Qiu and courtesy name Zhongni, was a native of Zouyi, Changping, in the State of Lu (present-day southeastern Qufu, Shandong Province). He was a thinker, educator, and statesman in the late Spring and Autumn Period, the founder of Confucianism, and one of the most influential figures in Chinese history and culture. His impact extends globally, especially across Southeast Asia, making him one of the world’s cultural icons.