Exhibition Hall of Tao Zhu’s Life and Deeds

Exhibition Hall of Tao Zhu’s Life and Deeds

The Exhibition Hall of Tao Zhu’s Life and Deeds is a classic red tourism destination and a patriotic education base.

The Exhibition Hall of Tao Zhu’s Life and Deeds is located within the Wuxi Scenic Area (Wuxi Park) in Qiyang, Yongzhou City.

Tao Zhu, whose formal name was Tao Jihua, courtesy name Jianhan, and alias Tao Lei, was born on January 16, 1908, in Taojiawan Village, Panshi Town, Qiyang County. In 1926, he entered the fifth term of the Whampoa Military Academy in Guangzhou and joined the Communist Party of China the same year. During the New Democratic Revolution period, Tao Zhu fought across the country and achieved remarkable feats. He participated in the Nanchang Uprising and the Guangzhou Uprising, successfully led and commanded the sensational Xiamen Prison Break, formed the Minnan Red Army Guerrilla Corps and the People's Armed Forces in eastern Fujian, and established the anti-Japanese guerrilla forces and zones in central Hubei. Commissioned by the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, he successively led negotiations with Fu Zuoyi and Cheng Qian, playing a significant role in the peaceful liberation of Beiping and Hunan. During the period of socialist revolution and construction, as one of the key leaders of the CPC Central-South Bureau and the Party Central Committee, Tao Zhu dared to uphold truth and act in accordance with facts, earning the trust and support of the majority of cadres and the people. During the Cultural Revolution, he assisted Premier Zhou Enlai in handling the daily affairs of the Party and the state, and resolutely struggled against Lin Biao and the Gang of Four. On November 30, 1969, he was persecuted to death by Lin Biao and the Gang of Four. After the Gang of Four was crushed, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China fully rehabilitated Tao Zhu.

In January 1988, during the activities commemorating the 80th anniversary of Tao Zhu’s birth, the Exhibition Hall of Tao Zhu’s Life and Deeds was built. The name of the hall was inscribed by Wang Renzhong, then Vice Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress. At that time, it was called an exhibition room. In January 1998, during the activities commemorating the 90th anniversary of Tao Zhu’s birth, upon approval from the relevant higher authorities, it was renamed the Exhibition Hall of Tao Zhu’s Life and Deeds.

The bronze statue of Tao Zhu and the Exhibition Hall of His Life and Deeds were designated as a Hunan Provincial Patriotic Education Base by the Publicity Department of the CPC Hunan Provincial Committee in January 1995.