Former Site of Anhui Guild Hall

Former Site of Anhui Guild Hall

The former site of the Anhui Guild Hall is a Major Historical and Cultural Site Protected at the National Level.

The Anhui Guild Hall was a renowned guild hall in old Beijing. It is located on Housunyuan Park Lane in Xuanwu District, Beijing. Originally part of "Sun Park," the residence of the late Ming and early Qing scholar Sun Chengze, it was approved by the State Council on May 25, 2006, as part of the sixth group of Major Historical and Cultural Sites Protected at the National Level.

During the reign of Emperor Kangxi in the Qing Dynasty, Hong Sheng’s opera “The Palace of Eternal Youth” was performed in its grand theater. After Sun Chengze, many notable figures of the Qing Dynasty resided here, such as Weng Fanggang, Grand Secretary of the Cabinet during the Qianlong era, Sun Xingyan, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Punishments, and Liu Weitan, known for owning the Jiaxu edition of “Dream of the Red Chamber” with Zhi Yanzhai commentary. In the eighth year of the Tongzhi reign (1869), Li Hongzhang, Viceroy of Zhili and Minister of Beiyang, along with his brother Li Han Zhang, Viceroy of Huguang, and various Huai Army generals, pooled funds to purchase most of Sun Park and built the Anhui Guild Hall, which was completed in the tenth year of Tongzhi. Unlike guild halls of other provinces, the Anhui Guild Hall only hosted incumbent prefectural, county-level officials, and military officers of deputy colonel rank or above. In the 24th year of the Guangxu reign (1898), it served as an activity site for reformists including Kang Youwei. In the 26th year of Guangxu, the guild hall was occupied by the Eight-Nation Alliance, who established the German military headquarters there, and nearby houses were burned down.

Source: Beijing Municipal Commission of Tourism Development

Further Reading:

· Beijing’s Third Batch of Municipal-Level Cultural Relics Protection Units