Shanxi Youth Anti-Japanese Death Squad Memorial Hall

Shanxi Youth Anti-Japanese Death Squad Memorial Hall

Shanxi Youth Anti-Japanese Death Squad Memorial Hall

The Shanxi Youth Anti-Japanese Death Squad Memorial Hall is situated by the scenic West Lake in Qinxian County, Shanxi Province. Surrounded by green pines and exuding classical elegance, this grand memorial covers a total area of 2,100 square meters with a traditional two-courtyard layout and three major exhibition halls in the northwest, north, and east. It systematically displays a rich collection of historical photos, charts, relics, and multimedia materials that trace the growth and combat journey of the Shanxi New Army’s Anti-Japanese Death Squads. It vividly recreates the sweeping history of revolutionary leaders such as [name omitted] leading the Death Squads and the Sacrifice League in carrying out a magnificent anti-Japanese struggle in Shanxi. The exhibition profoundly reflects the great victory of the Party’s Anti-Japanese National United Front policies, strategies, and tactics. It is the only comprehensive thematic memorial hall in Shanxi dedicated to the Anti-Japanese Death Squads of the Shanxi New Army.

The Sacrifice League, the Death Squads, and other New Army units were all organized by our Party and remained under its leadership and command as revolutionary organizations and armed forces. On August 1, 1937, at the suggestion of Comrade [name omitted], Secretary of the Shanxi Public Work Committee of our Party, the Shanxi Death Squads were established in Taiyuan in cooperation with Yan Xishan. Later, under the Party’s dispatch, they were led by Comrade [name omitted] to advance into southeastern Shanxi, establishing an anti-Japanese base centered around Qinxian County. Leading the Death Squads and the Sacrifice League, they engaged in anti-Japanese propaganda and armed struggle through a unique form of resistance—wearing “Shanxi hats,” speaking “Shanxi dialect,” and doing the work of the Communist Party. Their efforts played a foundational role in establishing the Taihang and Taiyue Base Areas as well as the Shanxi-Hebei-Shandong-Henan Base Area. The Shanxi New Army’s Death Squads achieved remarkable military successes, engaging in over 7,000 battles of varying scales during the eight-year war, eliminating, injuring, or capturing more than 50,000 Japanese puppet and diehard troops. Having fulfilled their historic mission during the War of Resistance, the Shanxi New Army joined the combat ranks of the People’s Liberation Army after the war. Cooperating with the Eighth Route Army, the Death Squads helped establish base areas, carried out guerrilla warfare, and struck at the invaders, exemplary implementing the Party’s Anti-Japanese National United Front policies and strategies, thus establishing historic achievements that will go down in the annals of history. Comrade Mao Zedong highly praised this effort, stating: “This is a successful example of our Party’s united front policy.”

The Shanxi Youth Anti-Japanese Death Squad Memorial Hall is a major red culture project initiated by Changzhi City to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the victory in the War of Resistance, under the direct guidance of the Publicity Department of the Shanxi Provincial Committee. Building a specialized memorial hall for the Death Squads in Qinxian County was both a historical and practical choice, as well as the result of decades of unremitting efforts by the local Party committee, government, and people of the old revolutionary base.

Qinxian County was the central area where, in the early stages of the War of Resistance, [name omitted] led the Sacrifice League and the Death Squads to establish a base. By the end of November 1937, [name omitted] led his troops into Qinxian County and, under the “legitimate” roles of Director of the Shanxi Third Administrative Office and Political Commissar of the First Column of the Death Squads, organized and mobilized anti-Japanese efforts, reformed the old regime, and developed armed forces. Making full use of the strategic advantages of the rugged terrain and abundant resources between the Taihang and Taiyue Mountains, he advanced the construction of the Southeastern Shanxi Anti-Japanese Base Area. At the same time, he directly led and directed the development and struggles of the Sacrifice League and New Army units across the province from here. As a result, Qinxian County became a central and core area in the history of the Death Squads’ development, fondly referred to by Elder Bo as his “second hometown.” For over 60 years since the victory of the War of Resistance, the people of the old revolutionary base have held deep affection for this people’s army. As early as the 1970s and 1980s, discussions began about building a memorial hall to reflect the history of the New Army’s resistance. In 1989, the Qinxian County Party Committee and government opened a photo exhibition titled “The First Column of the Death Squads in Qinxian County” on Erlang Mountain south of the city, with the inscription by Comrade Shi Huaibi. It was the earliest thematic exhibition hall dedicated to the New Army in the province. In 1994, on the eve of the 50th anniversary of Qinxian’s liberation, the county Party committee and government actively planned the “Shanxi New Army Anti-Japanese Death Squad Monument” and exhibition hall again, completing a feasibility study that received a personal annotation from Elder Bo: “This matter is worth considering… Qinxian can handle it independently,” and instructing the provincial Party history office to draft a plan. Due to various reasons, it was not implemented. However, the desire to build a memorial hall for the Death Squads never faded. In 2004, while preparing for the 60th anniversary of the War of Resistance victory, veteran cadres from within and outside the province, along with experts on New Army history, once again proposed building a memorial hall for the New Army. This initiative received high attention from the Propaganda Department of the Changzhi Municipal Committee and the Propaganda Department of the Shanxi Provincial Committee, who actively supported Qinxian County in accomplishing this significant task. The Publicity Department of the Qinxian County Party Committee carefully implemented the project, transforming the classic-style venue of the former Qinxian Cultural Relics Museum into the Shanxi New Army Anti-Japanese Death Squad Memorial Hall after six months of effort. The memorial hall officially opened on September 1, 2005, turning the decades-long dream of the people of the old revolutionary base into reality.

The Shanxi Youth Anti-Japanese Death Squad Memorial Hall is a research achievement in the history of China’s War of Resistance and the history of the Shanxi New Army, and it is also a key project in the province’s spiritual civilization construction and red tourism development. In accordance with planning requirements, to comprehensively and holistically reflect the history of the Party’s resistance in Shanxi, and as a complementary revolutionary history exhibition hall to the Eighth Route Army Taihang Memorial Hall, the project will follow the overall strategy of “unified planning, resource integration, spotlighting key points to drive broader development, and scaling up.” Efforts will be accelerated to develop red tourism related to the New Army. This involves using the Shanxi Youth Anti-Japanese Death Squad Memorial Hall in Qinxian County as the flagship site, coordinating the planning of revolutionary sites and red landmarks across the province’s New Army heritage. With the four major New Army base areas as the framework, several smaller commemorative sites will be developed, while existing sites such as the “Taiyue Martyrs Monument,” “Taiyue Martyrs Cemetery,” “Yanzhai Taiyue Military Region Site,” and “Taiyuan National Teachers College Memorial Hall” will be strengthened in terms of protection and maintenance, forming a comprehensive promotional and developmental landscape. In the vicinity of the Death Squad Memorial Hall, extensive repairs and promotional development will be carried out on a large number of revolutionary sites, including the former headquarters of the Death Squads, the former site of the Shangdang Silver Bank, the Death Squad armory, repair workshops, and uniform workshops. Key construction projects include the “Shanxi Youth Anti-Japanese Death Squad Monument,” a group sculpture of Death Squad soldiers, as well as important auxiliary attractions and artifact displays within the memorial hall. This will create a new pattern of red tourism that combines overarching and detailed elements, with one focal point linking multiple dimensions.

Phone: 0355-7029877

Address: Near Xuanhua Lane, Qinxian County, Changzhi City, Shanxi Province