Former Residence of Wang Honghui

Former Residence of Wang Honghui

The former residence of Wang Honghui is a cultural tourism attraction.

Longmei Village in Leiming Town, Ding’an County, is the former residence of Wang Honghui. Wang Honghui passed the imperial examination in the 44th year of the Jiajing reign (1565), and successively held positions such as compiler at the Hanlin Academy, associate examiner for the metropolitan examination, vice minister of the Ministry of Personnel in Nanjing, and minister of rites in Nanjing. After his death, he was posthumously awarded the title of “Junior Guardian of the Heir Apparent.” He achieved distinction in literature, authoring notable works such as Shangyou Hall Manuscripts, Wuyue Travelogue, Tianchi Grass, Laihe Study Collection, Record of the Marvelous Frontier of the South Seas, Memorials on Rites in the South, and Discussions in the Realm of Writing. Throughout his life, he served as an upright and capable official, sympathized with the common people, and showed great concern for education. In the 4th year of the Wanli reign (1576), Wang Honghui submitted a memorial titled “Memorial on Changing the Hainan Military Defense Circuit to Also Oversee Education” to the imperial court, requesting Emperor Wanli to establish an education circuit in Hainan so that Hainanese scholars could take the metropolitan examination locally. This request was approved by the emperor and implemented. This is the famous “Memorial to Move the Examination Back to Hainan” in Hainan folklore. This move greatly promoted the development of education in Hainan.

The former residence of Wang Honghui was built during the Jiajing reign of the Ming Dynasty, covering an area of about 500 square meters. It is a courtyard-style building with two main houses and one wing house remaining. Both front and rear main houses are three-bay brick-and-wood structures with gable-and-hip roofs; the decorative ridge ornaments on the main ridges have collapsed. The front courtyard has a screen wall, and there is a courtyard gate on the left side. To the right of the residence is the ancestral temple of the Wang family, which was established by Wang Honghui during the Wanli reign of the Ming Dynasty. The Wang Ancestral Temple consists of a mountain gate, an octagonal hall, a main hall, and two side corridors, all with gable-and-hip roofs. Currently, the mountain gate and side corridors are damaged. The octagonal hall was burned down in the late Ming Dynasty and was rebuilt during the Kangxi reign of the Qing Dynasty with a hip-and-gable roof. The main hall is three bays deep and five bays wide, and is a replica of an ancient palace-style building. The temple houses many plaques from the Qing Dynasty and inscriptions by modern celebrities. It was listed as a provincial-level cultural relics protection unit in 1994. To the left of the old residence is the Taishi Archway, which was first built in the 2nd year of the Wanli reign (1574). The Taishi Archway is a four-pillar, three-bay stone carved memorial archway, standing 5.1 meters tall and spanning 7.3 meters wide. The archway features a tiled roof design and has a simple yet majestic appearance.

Wang Honghui, courtesy name Shaochuan, art name Zhongming, was a native of Ding’an County, Qiongzhou Prefecture (now Hainan Province), born in 1541 and passing away in his hometown of Ding’an in 1617 at the age of 76. He was posthumously awarded the title of “Junior Guardian of the Heir Apparent” and given an imperial funeral. Wang Honghui was a renowned official and educator of the Ming Dynasty. He held positions such as shujishi (imperial scholar), Hanlin Academy reviser, compiler, associate examiner for the metropolitan examination, minister of the National University, vice minister of the Ministry of Personnel in Nanjing, and minister of rites in Nanjing. He achieved distinction in literature, authoring works such as Shangyou Hall Manuscripts, Wuyue Travelogue, Tianchi Grass, Laihe Study Collection, Record of the Marvelous Frontier of the South Seas, Memorials on Rites in the South... For more detailed information about Wang Honghui ++