The Site Park of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom’s Feudal Lord Titles and System Establishment

The Site Park of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom’s Feudal Lord Titles and System Establishment

The site where the feudal lords were enfeoffed and the system was established at the founding of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom

The site where the feudal lords were enfeoffed and the system was established at the founding of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom is located on Yong’an Xinjie Street in the county town, adjacent to the County People’s Government. It is an important historical site of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom revolution and has now been developed into a cultural park. The park features the ancient city wall of Yong’an Prefecture, the Temple of Martial Deities, an ancient magnolia tree, a dried-up well pit, a stele corridor of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom’s imperial edicts, and a museum exhibiting Taiping Heavenly Kingdom relics. Outside the city, there are also the East and West Gun Batteries, the Long Wall, and the former command post of the Southern King Feng Yunshan. Among these, the western city wall, the Temple of Martial Deities, and Feng Yunshan’s command post were all designated as national key cultural relics protection units on June 10, 2006.

The Site Park of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom’s Feudal Lord Titles and System Establishment is located on Yong’an Xinjie Street in Mengshan County. During the Ming Dynasty, in the 13th year of the Chenghua reign (1477), Mengshan County was once called Yong’an Prefecture. The Taiping Heavenly Kingdom revolution lasted 20 years and spanned 18 provinces, marking the pinnacle of peasant warfare in Chinese history.

In the first year of the Xianfeng reign of the Qing Dynasty (1851), the sensational Taiping Heavenly Kingdom peasant revolution broke out in Jintian Village, Guiping. On September 25 (the first day of the leap eighth month in the lunar calendar), the rebels captured Yong’an Prefecture (now the county town) and stayed there for over half a year. Here, under the leadership of Hong Xiuquan, the Taiping Army enfeoffed feudal lords and established a governing system, carrying out a series of political constructions; they promulgated the Taiping Calendar, published new books, meticulously organized defenses, and repeatedly repelled the Qing army’s fierce military sieges, breaking their tight economic blockades. These efforts laid the foundation for the advance into southern China and the establishment of their capital in Jinling (Nanjing), writing an immortal chapter in the history of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom revolution.

Mengshan was the cradle of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom revolution and its first capital. Today, Mengshan County still preserves 26 historical sites and over 1,500 relics from the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. The park also retains sites such as the ancient city wall of Yong’an Prefecture, the Temple of Martial Deities, the ancient magnolia tree, the stele corridor of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom’s imperial edicts, and the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Relics Museum. Outside the city, there are also the East and West Gun Batteries and the former headquarters of the Southern King Feng Yunshan.