Former Residence of Li Dazhao in Beijing

Former Residence of Li Dazhao in Beijing

The Former Residence of Li Dazhao in Beijing is a National AA-level Tourist Attraction and a Major Historical and Cultural Site Protected at the National Level.

Destination Introduction

Li Dazhao once lived in five different residences in Beijing during his lifetime. No. 35, Rear Huai of Shifu Ma (now No. 24, Wenhua Hutong, Xinwenhua Street) in Xicheng District was where he resided from 1920 to 1922, the longest period he stayed in any one place.

The former residence of Li Dazhao in Beijing is located at No. 24, Wenhua Hutong, Xicheng District. Wenhua Hutong runs east from Tonglinge Road to Naozhongkou Middle Street. During the Qing Dynasty, it was called Rear Huai of Shifu Ma Hutong, and was renamed after the liberation. The residence is an ordinary traditional courtyard home, with a very simple entrance gate. Were it not for the cultural relic protection sign at the entrance, few would guess that this was once the home of Li Dazhao. The residence is currently under renovation, and the temporary structures within are being demolished. During his time here, Li Dazhao lived through the crucial period surrounding the founding of the Communist Party of China. It was during this time that he led and participated in numerous revolutionary activities of great historical significance. Many important meetings were held here, and many of his significant writings from the May Fourth Movement period—including "The Victory of the Common People"—were drafted in this home. In 1920, when Chen Duxiu left Beijing for Shanghai to establish the Party organization, he had an important meeting with Li Dazhao in this small courtyard before departing.

Today, the courtyard remains very quiet, despite the tremendous waves it once helped create in modern Chinese history. Standing at the entrance of the former residence, one can almost feel the silent transmission of history. Though the years have passed, the spirit of those times remains. These relics of great figures have become timeless scenes of an era—filled with passion and resolve, perseverance and immortality—all eternally engraved within these walls. As later generations, we find hope in the stormy youth of those who came before us.

The residence is a key cultural relic protected by Beijing Municipality.

In May 2013, the Former Residence of Li Dazhao in Beijing was listed as part of the seventh group of Major Historical and Cultural Sites Protected at the National Level.

Address: No. 24, Wenhua Hutong, Tonglinge Road, Xicheng District

Transportation: Get off at Xinwenhua Street Station on buses 7, 10, 25, 38, or 61, on the east side of the road.

Beijing Xicheng District

Li Dazhao was a pioneer of the Chinese communist movement, a great Marxist, an outstanding proletarian revolutionary, and one of the principal founders of the Communist Party of China.

On the sixth day of the tenth month in the fifteenth year of the Guangxu reign (October 29, 1889), Li Dazhao was born in Daheituo Village, Leting County, Hebei Province. From a young age, he was determined to find a way out for suffering China. Proceeding from a patriotic stance, he moved from democracy to communism, and in response to the needs of the era, he was the first in China to raise high the banner of Marxism-Leninism, pointing the way to a new social order for China...  More details about Li Dazhao++

Further Reading:

· Second Batch of Municipal-Level Cultural Relic Protection Units in Beijing

· Seventh Batch of Major Historical and Cultural Sites Protected at the National Level