Tomb of Major General Yang Xianyi

Tomb of Major General Yang Xianyi

The Tomb of Major General Yang Xianyi is a cultural relic protection unit of Guangzhou City.

In 1924, the remains of Mr. Yang Xianyi were buried in the Air Force Cemetery at Sanwangang, adjacent to Huanghuagang in Guangzhou, and were later relocated to Xianzhuang in the suburbs of Guangzhou. In 1981, following instructions from Vice Chairwoman Soong Ching Ling, the Guangdong Provincial Government allocated funds to rebuild the Tomb of Major General Yang Xianyi next to the Mausoleum of the 72 Martyrs of Huanghuagang. In August 1983, the tomb was designated as a cultural relic protection unit of Guangzhou City.

Yang Xianyi (1891–1923) was born into an overseas Chinese family and was a native of Xiangshan County (now Zhongshan City), Guangdong Province.

In 1909, Yang Xianyi studied aviation in the United States. In 1918, he was summoned back to China by telegraph from Sun Yat-sen. Later, he raised funds to purchase 12 airplanes and established China’s first air force unit.

Later, Yang Xianyi founded the Guangdong Aircraft Manufacturing Factory. A few months later, one airplane was completed, and Sun Yat-sen personally inscribed the phrase “Aspire to Soar to the Heavens” in recognition.

Next to Yang Xianyi’s tomb are the graves of two other individuals. Online research reveals that in September 1923, Navy Bureau Chief Xie Tieliang followed Sun Yat-sen in the campaign against warlord Chen Jiongming. On the 20th, Xie Tieliang, along with Yang Xianyi and Su Congshan, Commander of the Changzhou Fortress, went to Baishadui in Meihu, Boluo County, to inspect the navy when an accidental explosion occurred, resulting in the deaths of all three. They were later buried together.

The tombstone bears the seven large characters “Tomb of Mr. Yang Xianyi,” handwritten by Sun Yat-sen. When the Guangdong Provincial Government renovated the tomb in 1927, Yang’s family, citing the distance of the Guangzhou grave from their hometown and the inconvenience for descendants to pay respects, had his remains returned to Zhongshan City and reburied on Pinqi Mountain in Xincun, East District (now within Zimaling Park). The tomb site was renovated twice, in 1981 and 2000.

The current Yang Xianyi Tomb in Guangzhou’s Huanghuagang Cemetery is actually a cenotaph. As early as 1927, during the tomb’s renovation by the Guangdong Provincial Government, Yang’s family, citing the grave’s distance from home and the inconvenience for descendants to worship, arranged for his remains to be transported back to their hometown by his elder brother Yang Jianglin and father-in-law Cheng Youyi, among others. He was reburied on Pengqi Mountain in Xincun, East District, Zhongshan County (now within Zimaling Park).

Further Reading:

· Second Batch of Cultural Relic Protection Units of Guangzhou City