Li Ancestral Hall in Shaoshan Village

Li Ancestral Hall in Shaoshan Village

Li Ancestral Hall in Shaoshan Village is a cultural relic protection unit of Hunan Province.

About two kilometers north of the former residence of Comrade Mao Zedong in Shaoshan, nestled within the village of Shaobei, stands a solemn and dignified building clad in gray bricks and blue tiles, partially hidden among residential houses. A plaque above the gate reads “Li Ancestral Hall.” This is not only an ancestral temple but also served as a local elementary school for many years. However, its significance goes far beyond that...

In 1925, Chairman Mao and his wife Yang Kaihui founded a night school for farmers here, spreading the seeds of revolution. Yang Kaihui personally gave classes. Since then, Shaoshan’s Li Ancestral Hall has been sacredly “bonded” with the red revolution. (In 1945, Zhou Li, Secretary of the CPC Hunan Provincial Committee, and his wife also carried out party activities under the guise of teaching at the ancestral hall school.)

Recently, the hometown of the Chairman, Shaoshan, implemented the Mao Zedong Quest Route project, restoring the entire ancestral hall. Although its old appearance has been renewed, what remains unchanged is the deep remembrance of the revolutionary martyrs by future generations. In the courtyard, the osmanthus tree planted by Chairman Mao and his wife Yang Kaihui has grown into a towering tree, lush and green, quietly blooming. It witnessed a magnificent and glorious chapter of history.

Back then, those who carried out the agrarian movement with Chairman Mao in Shaoshan also included the “Five Heroes of Shaoshan”: Mao Fucun, Li Genghou, Zhong Zhishen, Pang Shukan, and Mao Xinmei. (In 1925, introduced by Mao Zedong, they established the Special Branch of the Chinese Communist Party in Shaoshan, one of the earliest rural party branches in the history of the CCP. During the Great Revolution, the “Five Heroes of Shaoshan” were successively brutally killed by the reactionary regime for the revolution.)

Among them, the martyr Li Genghou was the leader of the Xun generation of the Shaoshan Li clan. During the Great Revolution, he followed his fellow villager Mao Zedong and actively devoted himself to the revolution. In 1925, he carried out the agrarian movement with Mao Zedong, founded the night school for farmers in the ancestral hall, and successively served as an executive member of the Peasants' Association, organizational member of the CCP Shaoshan Branch, organizational member of the CCP Xiangtan Special District Committee, executive vice-chairman of the Xiangtan Special District Peasants' Association, head of the militia, leading the militia in brave struggles against the Kuomintang army and local tyrants.

In 1927, he led the workers’ militia to march to Jinggangshan from Shuikoushan. In 1928, he and his son were both martyred in battle. Chairman Mao once praised him: “His heroic deeds will forever remain in the memory of the people.” Li Genghou’s younger brother, Li Gonghou, also died a martyr in the revolution.

Among the Shaoshan Li clan, many also joined the early revolution, the War of Resistance Against Japan, and the Liberation War. Li Deshen, Li Guyi, and Li Dibin sacrificed their lives for the revolution. Underground CCP cadres such as Li Xunqi and underground party members such as Li Xunkè made great contributions to the revolution.

In 2019, Li Ancestral Hall in Shaoshan Village was approved as a provincial-level cultural relic protection unit in the tenth batch of Hunan Province.

Shaoshan Township: Shaoshan Township and Daping Township were merged to form Shaoshan Township.

“Trimming three mountains that pierce the sky, a fairyland on earth called Shaofeng. Of the three hundred and sixty famous mountains under heaven, this is the foremost granary of southern China.” The praise of Shaofeng by the early Qing literati Zhou Dingning casts a mysterious aura over Shaoshan. Shaoshan Township is located in the “fairyland on earth” at the southeastern foot of Shaofeng. Legend has it that when Emperor Shun toured the south in ancient times, he rested at Shaoshanzui within today’s Shaoshan Township area. Seeing the beautiful scenery, he played the Shao music, attracting phoenixes and inspiring birds to sing in harmony—hence the name Shaoshan.

December 26, 1893, the great contemporary... More details about Shaoshan Township++

Further reading:

· Tenth Batch of Cultural Relic Protection Units of Hunan Province