Zhijiang Anti-Japanese War "Surrender Hall"

Zhijiang Anti-Japanese War "Surrender Hall"

The Zhijiang Anti-Japanese War "Surrender Hall" is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit and a patriotic education base.

The Zhijiang Anti-Japanese War "Surrender Hall" is located within the Surrender Memorial Museum at Qiliqiao, seven li east of Zhijiang County, Huaihua City, about 100 meters to the right of the Surrender Memorial Archway.

The Zhijiang Anti-Japanese War "Surrender Hall" was originally the barracks of the 14th Squadron of the Sino-American Composite Wing, built in 1938. It is a two-story wooden building with horizontal black fish-scale siding. The building covers a floor area of 1,071.63 square meters and consists of three such structures: the Surrender Hall, the former headquarters of the Nationalist Government’s Army General Command, and the former office of General He Yingqin. The indoor furnishings—including tables, chairs, and sofas—are all classified as national first- or second-class cultural relics.

On August 15, 1945, after the Japanese government announced unconditional surrender, Japanese surrender representative General Takeshi Imamura signed the surrender on behalf of the Japanese government to the Chinese government. From August 21 to 23, 1945, the Chinese and Japanese governments held the China Theater Surrender Ceremony in this venue.

At 3:00 p.m. on August 21, Chinese surrender representatives, attending delegates, domestic and foreign guests, and journalists entered the venue. Lieutenant General Xiao Yisu, Chief of Staff of the Chinese Army General Headquarters, sat as the plenipotentiary representative in the surrender representatives’ section above the Surrender Hall. To his right sat Deputy Chief of Staff Leng Xin and Japanese interpreter Colonel Wang Wu; to his left was U.S. Naval Task Force Commander Brigadier General Bertram J. Rodgers. The meeting minutes were recorded by Lieutenant Colonel Chen Guihua, with Major Wang Jingxu serving as the English interpreter. Over 100 attendees were present, including conference participants and journalists from China and abroad.

At 3:40 p.m., the Japanese surrender envoys—Takeshi Imamura, Hashima Yoshio, and Maekawa Kunio—entered the venue under the guidance of Chen Yingzhuang and Chen Zhaokai, taking their seats at the surrender representatives’ section below, with Imamura seated in the center.

At 4:00 p.m., the surrender ceremony officially began. Imamura handed over the map of Japanese military deployments in China, accepted the Chinese Army General Headquarters’ Memorandum No. 1 of Surrender Order No. 1 to General Okamura Yasuji, and signed the "Surrender Certificate." Xiao Yisu also issued directives regarding the establishment of a command post in Nanjing, airlifting troops to receive Nanjing, Shanghai, and Beiping, as well as establishing radio communication between Chinese and Japanese forces. At 4:50 p.m., the Japanese surrender envoys exited the venue. The surrender talks concluded at 5:00 p.m.

In 1984, while restoring the Surrender Memorial Archway, the People’s Government of Zhijiang County decided to reconstruct the "Surrender Signing House" and collect and organize historical relics to recreate the historical scene of the surrender. Staff renovated an original U.S. military barracks of the same specifications as those used during the surrender, relocated from the "May Fourth" period. The "Surrender Hall" was restored in the center based on photographs of the surrender ceremony preserved in the archives. In the center of the venue hung a portrait of Sun Yat-sen, with the horizontal scroll reading "The World Belongs to All" and the vertical banners reading "The Revolution Is Not Yet Complete, Comrades Must Still Strive." Below the portrait hung the "Testament of the Premier," with the "Party Member Code of Conduct" on the right and the "Military Training Manual" on the left. The venue was divided into two sections: the surrender area on the right upon entry, and the spectator and press area on the left for attendees from various sectors.

The Zhijiang Anti-Japanese War "Surrender Hall" is one of the main facilities at the historic site of the Zhijiang Surrender celebrating victory in the Anti-Japanese War. In May 2006, it was designated as a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit by the State Council. In January 1995, it was named a Hunan Provincial Patriotic Education Base by the Publicity Department of the CPC Hunan Committee, and in November 2005, it was recognized as a National Patriotic Education Demonstration Base by the Central Propaganda Department.

Further Reading:

· Sixth Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units