Hengkeng Anti-Japanese Martyrs Monument

Hengkeng Anti-Japanese Martyrs Monument

The Hengkeng Anti-Japanese Martyrs Monument is located near Tofu Ridge to the west of Hengkeng Village, Liaobu Town. GPS coordinates: 23°01'07.3", 113°48'08.5", at an elevation of 21 meters.

It was erected in honor of the 54 villagers from Liangheng Township (now consisting of seven natural villages: Hengkeng, Zhuyuan, Shangtun, Xiabian, Xinjiuwei, Lingxia, and Xialingbei) who died resisting Japanese forces during the War of Resistance against Japan.

On July 4, 1939, Japanese troops stationed in Dongguan, acting on intelligence provided by a traitor claiming that Liangheng Township had anti-Japanese armed forces, dispatched over 300 soldiers to attack Hengkeng Village in Liangheng Township. The local self-defense militia of Liangheng Township rose to fight back, pledging the solemn oath: “As long as there are people, the position stands; if the people fall, the position falls.” The battle was fierce, lasting from morning until afternoon, with intense hand-to-hand combat between the two sides. Eventually, the Japanese captured Hengkeng Village and carried out widespread arson, killing, and looting. In this battle, the Liangheng Township militia lost 54 members and had 20 injured, while inflicting over 30 casualties on the Japanese forces. This was a ground battle between civilians and the Japanese invaders—an spontaneous act of resistance by poorly-equipped local people fighting to defend their homeland. At the time, overseas Chinese newspapers in Hong Kong and Southeast Asia extensively reported the incident. In 1942, the Dongguan County Government submitted a petition titled “Request for Compensation for Civilian Casualties in the Resistance against the Enemy in Liangheng Township, Dongguan County” to the Guangdong Provincial Government. On October 29 of the same year, the 375th meeting of the 9th Committee of the Guangdong Provincial Government passed a resolution approving the inclusion of the case in the provincial budget for compensation and commended the people of Liangheng Township for their “brave resistance against the enemy” and “loyalty and courage.”

After the battle, the villagers gathered the remains of the fallen and buried them in the Black Olive Garden behind Hengkeng Village, naming it the “Anti-Japanese Martyrs Tomb.” In 1995, the Hengkeng Village Committee relocated the original earthen tomb to Ailingshan and rebuilt it into a cemetery covering 308 square meters, facing east. A monument was erected in the cemetery, named the “Anti-Japanese Martyrs Monument.” The base of the monument is a cube, with a total height of 8.8 meters. In front of the monument lies a tomb called the “Tomb of the Anti-Japanese Martyrs,” which houses the remains of the 54 villagers.

In 2004, due to planning and construction needs, the Hengkeng Village Committee demolished the original martyrs’ tomb and monument and rebuilt the Hengkeng Anti-Japanese Martyrs Monument near Tofu Ridge. The entire monument is constructed of granite, covering a construction area of 60.84 square meters. The base is a cube with sides 3.8 meters long and a height of 1 meter, housing the urns of the ashes of the 54 martyrs. The main body of the monument is carved in the shape of an open book—the right page bears an inscription recounting the heroic deeds of the people of Liangheng Township in resisting the Japanese, while the left page is engraved with the names of the 54 martyrs. The redesigned Hengkeng Anti-Japanese Martyrs Monument features an innovative design and profound symbolism.

Liaobu Town: Located in the economically most developed Pearl River Delta region of mainland China, Liaobu Town is situated in the central part of Dongguan City, serving as the geographical center of Dongguan. Adjacent to the urban area and neighboring the Songshan Lake High-Tech Industrial Park, it lies at the heart of the Guangzhou-Hong Kong Economic Corridor, enjoying exceptional locational advantages. The town boasts well-developed road transportation, with the Guanshen Expressway running through the entire town. Two top-tier highways, Guanzhang and Shida, intersect here along with newly built roads such as Songshan Lake Avenue, Dongguan Eastern Expressway, and the urban ring road, forming a highly developed and modern transportation network. Within a half-hour drive, nearly every part of Dongguan can be reached... More details about Liaobu Town++