Wacang Uprising Revolutionary Martyrs' Cemetery

Wacang Uprising Revolutionary Martyrs' Cemetery

The Wacang Uprising Revolutionary Martyrs' Cemetery is located in Group 7, Miaodian Village, Miaodian Town, Dangyang City, Yichang.

The Wacang Uprising broke out during a low point in the Chinese revolution. In 1927, after Chiang Kai-shek and the Wang Jingwei clique successively betrayed the revolution, the Hubei-Western Special Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, in accordance with the spirit of the August 7th Meeting and instructions from the Hubei Provincial Committee, decided to focus on the Wacang District of Dangyang County to launch an armed uprising against the Kuomintang as part of the Autumn Harvest Uprising. On September 7, the Dangyang County Committee of the CCP established the Wacang Uprising Command, with Li Chaoran serving as Commander-in-Chief. At the same time, the First Regiment of the Hubei-Western Workers’ and Peasants’ Revolutionary Army—the Wacang Peasant Self-Defense Corps—was formed, with Wang Xiaoyu as commander, Fu Danxiang and Li Xunchen as deputy commanders, Hong Xun as political instructor, and Fu Hengzhi as chief of staff. The number of members in the self-defense corps grew from over 1,600 to more than 2,000, equipped with over 40 rifles, 14 pistols, more than 700 shotguns, 14 shell guns, and over 2,000 sabers and spears. On the night of September 14, the Wacang Uprising began with an attack on the Wacang District Militia Bureau stationed at Shima Cao, marking the first Autumn Harvest Uprising in the Hubei-Western region. The insurgents and members of the Peasant Association defeated the militia bureau, captured over 80 local tyrants and corrupt officials, executed more than 30 of the most egregious offenders, redistributed the confiscated property of the tyrants and officials to poor peasants, and burned land contracts and IOUs. On September 15, the first red government in the Hubei-Western region—the Wacang Workers’ and Peasants’ Revolutionary Government—was established at the Fu Family Ancestral Hall near Miaodian, with Fu Dianyun as its chairman. Subsequently, uprisings also occurred in the Guanyin District, Jiuzishan, and southern Yuan’an, and within less than 10 days, a Soviet area covering more than 1,500 square kilometers and a population of over 120,000 was formed, centered around the Wacang District along the border of Jingmen, Dangyang, Yuan’an, and the south. The massive Wacang Uprising and the surging revolutionary activities across the county alarmed the enemy. In late October, the Kuomintang assembled over 10,000 troops to launch a frenzied “encirclement and suppression” of the Soviet area. The Soviet forces and civilians engaged in a life-and-death struggle with the enemy; nearly 200 cadres, Communists, Peasant Association members, and self-defense corps soldiers were killed, and over 50 households were ransacked and sealed. Between April and May 1928, the Kuomintang again mobilized several thousand troops to carry out another “encirclement and suppression” of the Soviet area, resulting in the brutal killing of over 1,000 revolutionary civilians. After more than eight months, the Wacang Soviet area was lost. The Wacang Uprising laid the foundation for establishing the Jing-Dang-Yuan Revolutionary Base Area and held a significant position within the Hunan-Hubei-Western Soviet region.

In December 2004, Dangyang City built the Wacang Uprising Revolutionary Martyrs' Cemetery on the former site of Fu Hengzhi’s tomb in Liufangwan, Miaodian Village, Miaodian Town. The cemetery faces southeast and is situated northwest, with 77 steps symbolizing the 77th anniversary of the Wacang Uprising, built against the mountainside. Covering an area of 1,200 square meters, the cemetery was opened on January 28, 2005. The main gate of the cemetery has two pillars and three uneven eaves. The plaque above the gate reads “Wacang Uprising Revolutionary Martyrs' Cemetery.” Upon entering the gate, the Introduction Stele to the Wacang Uprising is aligned along the central axis, followed by the memorial steles of martyrs Li Chaoran and Fu Hengzhi. Each individual stele is 1.2 meters high, 0.6 meters wide, and 0.06 meters thick, made of bluestone. Behind these lies the tomb of Fu Hengzhi, with a mound 1.5 meters high and 3.5 meters in diameter, surrounded by a 0.8-meter-high cement protective wall. To the right of the tomb stands the memorial stele of martyr Hong Xun, and to the left, that of martyr Wang Xiaoyu. On the flat ground above the stone steps behind the tomb are 12 memorial steles for martyrs, listed in order as follows: Li Xunchen, Liu Xiusong, Luo Qingguang, Zhang Renrui, Fu Danxiang, Wang Wenhua, Fang Zhensheng, Hu Deshan, Huang Guanbai, Li Shixin, Fu Qinfeng, and Wang Jishan. Behind the steles is a gentle slope covered with lush green pines.

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