Anliu Ancient Town

Anliu Ancient Town

Originally called Hengliu Ferry, Anliu was an important agricultural trade market town and transportation hub in southern Wuhua. After the Republican era, it was renamed Anliu. In Wuhua’s commercial exchanges, it was known as “Anliu in the south, Huacheng in the north.” Anliu has been an established town for hundreds of years, and in many parts of Anliu, villages are referred to as “zhai” (fortified settlements), such as Loujiangzhai, the former residence of Xu Huaqing — the imperial physician who treated Empress Dowager Cixi during the Qing Dynasty, and Qinglongzhai, the birthplace of the famous writer Chen Guokai. Anliu also has the revolutionary-minded Sanjiang Academy. The academy was first built in the 20th year of the Guangxu reign (1894) and was initiated by progressive local gentry, being completed in the winter of the 23rd year of Guangxu (1897). In May 1925, during the Eastern Expedition, the National Revolutionary Army arrived in Anliu. Chiang Kai-shek, Zhou Enlai, Liao Zhongkai, and Soviet advisor Borodin stayed at the academy, where they promoted the significance of the Eastern Expedition and revolutionary ideals.