Meihua Massacre Memorial Hall

Meihua Massacre Memorial Hall

The Meihua Massacre Memorial Hall is a cultural relic protection unit of Hebei Province and a patriotic education base.

The Meihua Massacre Memorial Hall is located in Meihua Town, about 20 kilometers due south of Gaocheng City, Hebei Province. In 1982, the People's Government of Hebei Province designated it as a key cultural relic protection unit of the province, and in 1994, it was approved as a provincial-level patriotic education base.

Meihua has long been a well-known commercial town in North China. After the “Marco Polo Bridge Incident,” the Japanese invaders advanced rapidly and furiously pushed southward. On October 11, 1937, the 691st Regiment of the former Nationalist 53rd Army, under the command of Regimental Commander Lü Zhengcao (who had already joined the Communist Party of China), held high the banner of resisting Japan and saving the nation, and heroically resisted the invading Japanese forces in Meihua Village. They killed and wounded over 800 Japanese soldiers, shattering the myth of the “invincible Imperial Army.”

On the night of October 12 (the ninth day of the ninth lunar month), Japanese invaders occupied Meihua and carried out a bloody massacre, slaughtering 1,547 of our fellow countrymen—accounting for 60% of the village’s population at the time—wiping out 46 families entirely, and burning down more than 600 houses. Women and children were not spared either. The corpses of villagers littered the streets and alleys, with dismembered remains strewn everywhere and blood flowing across the entire town. The three days and four nights of burning, killing, and looting by the Japanese turned the area into a hell on earth with shattered walls everywhere and every household in mourning. This is the horrifying “September 9 Meihua Massacre.”

After the founding of the People’s Republic of China, the Party and government successively built a martyrs’ pavilion and a memorial monument in Meihua Village, preserving four major massacre sites—the Well Pulley Pit, Alkali Water Pit, Blood Well, and Thirty-Six Graves—which have become patriotic education bases.

The Meihua Massacre Memorial Hall was initially built in 1958 but collapsed entirely due to severe flooding in August 1996. In February 1998, with approval from the Provincial Patriotic Education Base Leadership Group, it was rebuilt with a total investment of over 3.5 million yuan. The site consists of three parts: the north courtyard, south courtyard, and the Well Pulley Pit site west of the village, covering an area of 27.9 mu with a total floor space of 736 square meters. The north and south courtyards face each other across the road. The Meihua Massacre Memorial Hall, which faces south and is situated right in the center of the north courtyard, covers an area of 576 square meters and is a square-shaped building. At the center of the hall rises a hemispherical structure six meters high, symbolizing the “sinking of the Chinese land.” Above the main entrance of the memorial hall is the nameplate inscribed by Lü Zhengcao, former Vice Chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference. The gate of the north courtyard features two large Chinese characters for “nine,” facing each other, signifying the date of the massacre (the ninth day of the ninth lunar month). At the center of the exhibition hall stands a 2.35-meter-high bronze sculpture, behind which is a massive relief measuring 7.02 meters in length and 2.65 meters in height. The surrounding exhibits include a circular display themed “Pearl of the Fertile Land,” “Roar of the Iron Lion,” “Blood Evidence of September 9,” and “History Speaks.” The hall is also equipped with VCD players and rear-projection TVs to show documentaries featuring materials, physical evidence, and eyewitness accounts related to the massacre.

The Meihua Massacre is a national monument of shame.

The Meihua Massacre is a page from the history textbook.

The Meihua Massacre is a classroom for patriotic education. It is also a firsthand testament exposing the atrocities of Japanese fascism.

Meihua Village: Located 20 kilometers south of Gaocheng, Meihua Village is home to various local government offices, including the Meihua Town People’s Government, Meihua Town Industry and Commerce Office, Meihua Town Local Taxation Office, and Meihua Town Health Center. It borders Zhaojin Village to the east, Nanliu Village to the west, Zhao County to the south, and Dongzhuang Village to the north. Guaomei Road runs north-south through the village, while Hengjing Line crosses east-west, providing convenient transportation and a prime location.

Meihua Village has a long history. According to the “Gaocheng County Annals” compiled in the 13th year of the Jiajing reign during the Ming Dynasty, Liu Li, the daughter of Emperor Guangwu of Han, Liu Xiu, once resided here for an extended period and was known as the “Meihua Princess,” bringing benefits to the local people. After the princess passed away… More details about Meihua Village++

Further Reading:

· Second Batch of Cultural Relic Protection Units of Hebei Province