Sanhe Zhongshan Memorial Hall

Sanhe Zhongshan Memorial Hall

The Sanhe Zhongshan Memorial Hall is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

The Sanhe Zhongshan Memorial Hall and Zhongshan Park are located in Huicheng Village, Sanhe Town, Dabu County. Constructed in the spring of 1929, the memorial hall is a two-story building with a reinforced concrete and earth structure, covering a construction area of 476 square meters and a site area of over 7,900 square meters. It is the earliest-built Zhongshan Memorial Hall in China.

The Sanhe Zhongshan Memorial Hall and Zhongshan Park are situated on the west bank of the ancient town at the confluence of the Meijiang, Tingjiang, and Meitan rivers. Outside the town lies Huxing Mountain, at the sunny foot of which is the tomb of Weng Wanda, a Ming Dynasty Minister of War. After the victory of the 1911 Revolution, warlords carved up the country, north and south were divided, civil wars were frequent, and foreign powers invaded. In a bid to save the nation from peril, Dr. Sun Yat-sen sought to unite the forces of Guangdong, Guangxi, and Yunnan, then march northward to eliminate the warlords and unify China. In early 1918, the army of Chen Jiongming, Commander-in-Chief of the Guangdong Army, was stationed in Chayang and Sanhe in Dabu, with its headquarters set up in the Catholic Church in Huicheng, Sanhe. In May of the same year, Dr. Sun Yat-sen traveled specially from Chaozhou aboard the steamer “Hsieh Ho,” going upstream against the river’s current to Huicheng in Sanhe to discuss plans for aiding Fujian with Chen and to urge him to launch the Northern Expedition. Dr. Sun stayed in Sanhe for as long as six days (including one night in Songkou). In 1928, Xu Tongxiong, a member of the Chinese Revolutionary Party, a member of the Tongmenghui, president of the Tong De Bookstore in Singapore, and head of the Kuomintang’s Singapore branch, initiated and raised substantial funds to build the “Zhongshan Memorial Hall” and “Zhongshan Park” within the Weng Wanda Stone Archway as a memorial. After the liberation and during the Cultural Revolution, the Zhongshan Memorial Hall was used as a school auditorium, but the cultural relics inside and the park facilities were all damaged. In the winter of 2003, under the guidance of provincial and municipal cultural relics authorities, and adhering to the principles of respecting history, restoring the original appearance, renovating the old as it was, and incorporating modern elements, additions were made including a bronze statue of Dr. Sun Yat-sen, a stone sculpture platform, surrounding lacquered railings, an ancient tripod, figurines, pavilions, artificial hills, stone carvings, flower corridors, as well as exhibitions of calligraphy and paintings on “The Life of Dr. Sun Yat-sen” and “Dr. Sun Yat-sen and Xu Tongxiong.” The restoration project commenced in July 2004 and was completed by the end of October, establishing it as a patriotic education base and tourist park. Zhongshan Park covers an area of over 11,000 square meters, with the gate archway inscribed with the four characters “Zhongshan Park,” written by Hu Hanmin, a veteran leader of the Kuomintang. The park is lush with bamboo, trees, and flowers, exuding an elegant atmosphere. In the winter of 2003, the Dabu County Party Committee and County Government treated the restoration of the Zhongshan Memorial Hall and Zhongshan Park as a key project under the initiative of “Revitalizing the County through Culture.” On the basis of restoring the original appearance and preserving the old as it was, additions were made including a bronze statue of Dr. Sun Yat-sen, a stone sculpture platform, surrounding lacquered railings, an ancient tripod, figurines, pavilions, flower stands, flower corridors, as well as garden art installations such as exhibitions of calligraphy and paintings on “Dr. Sun Yat-sen and Xu Tongxiong” and “Dr. Sun Yat-sen and Overseas Chinese.” The restoration project began in July 2004 and was completed by the end of October of the same year, establishing it as a patriotic education base and tourist park.

The present-day Zhongshan Park covers an area of over 11,000 square meters, with lush bamboo, trees, and flowers creating an elegant environment. At the center of the park is the Zhongshan Memorial Hall, with a lotus pond and a stele pavilion on the right. The stele is about 3.5 meters high, with an inscription written by Fan Qi, a local scholar and former Dean of the College of Liberal Arts at Sun Yat-sen University, and the calligraphy engraved in stone in the clerical script of Mr. Chen Litang, providing a detailed account of the entire process of constructing the Zhongshan Memorial Hall and Zhongshan Park. The park also displays large stone carvings featuring poems and lyrics by poets throughout the ages praising the scenery of Sanhe. In front of the Zhongshan Memorial Hall stand two stone huabiao (ornamental columns) and a full-body bronze statue of Dr. Sun Yat-sen. The central hall on the first floor features plaques inscribed with “Admire the Father of the Nation” by Chiang Kai-shek and “Be Ruler and Teacher” by Lin Sen. The two characters “Bo Ai” (Universal Love) on the hanging portrait of Dr. Sun Yat-sen are his original handwriting. The wax figures on the first floor recreate the scene of Dr. Sun Yat-sen discussing the joint forces of Guangdong, Guangxi, and Yunnan with Chen Jiongming in the Catholic Church. There is also a protective notice for the memorial hall jointly issued by Chiang Kai-shek and Zhang Xueliang at that time. The second floor displays photographic and textual materials about “Father of the Nation” Dr. Sun Yat-sen and “Uncle of the Nation” Xu Tongxiong.

The Dabu County Party Committee and County Government have always attached great importance to the protection of the Sanhe Zhongshan Memorial Hall and Zhongshan Park. In April 1985, the Zhongshan Memorial Hall was designated as a County-Level Cultural Relics Protection Unit by the Dabu County People’s Government, and in 2009, it was listed as a Guangdong Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Unit by the Guangdong Provincial People’s Government. According to experts from the Guangdong Provincial Cultural Relics Bureau, the architectural style, historical imprints, and celebrity handwriting preserved in the Sanhe Zhongshan Memorial Hall are currently the most intact among all Zhongshan Memorial Halls.

On October 7, 2019, the Sanhe Zhongshan Memorial Hall was included in the eighth batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units.

Huicheng Village: Located at the source of the Han River—where the Meijiang, Tingjiang, and Meitan rivers converge—Huicheng Village in Dabu County, Meizhou City, administers 25 villager groups, with 1,013 registered households and a population of 2,524. The village covers a total area of 11 square kilometers, including 939 mu of arable land. The annual average temperature is 20°C, with annual rainfall of about 750 mm. The climate is characterized by hot, rainy summers and mild, dry winters. The main cash crop is honey pomelo, and the village’s distinctive economic income comes from tourism. The previous year’s total rural economic income of the village was 23 million yuan. Efforts include leveraging the Zhongshan Memorial Hall, the Ming Dynasty ancient city wall, ... More details on Huicheng Village++

Further Reading:

· Fifth Batch of Guangdong Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units

· Eighth Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units