Confucius’ Southern Ancestral Temple

　　   Confucius’ Southern Ancestral Temple is situated on the north side of the middle section of Xinqiao Street in downtown Quzhou, covering an area of 14,000 square meters and a construction area of 7,490 square meters. The eastern and central axes of the temple were built during the Daoguang reign of the Qing Dynasty and have since undergone renovations. In November 1998, the municipal government invested 16 million yuan to begin the reconstruction of the western axis of the temple, along with the Confucius Mansion and Confucius Garden. These projects were completed in May 2000 and officially opened to the public on July 1, 2000.

　　   I. Main Buildings of the Ancestral Temple:

　　   Eastern Axis: Main Gate, En Gate Shrine, Qisheng Shrine, Shengze Tower.

　　   Central Axis: Main Gate (Confucius’ Southern Ancestral Temple), Dacheng Gate, East and West Side Halls, Dacheng Hall.

　　   Western Axis: Main Gate (Ancestral Temple of the Confucius Mansion), Five Branches Shrine, Xifeng Shrine, Six Generations Dukes Shrine, Silu Pavilion.

　　   Confucius Mansion: Screen Wall, Main Gate (Southeast Que Li), Main Hall, Flower Hall, Inner Residence, with corridors and street-facing wing rooms on the west side.

　　   Confucius Garden: A garden centered around the Dazhong Hall, featuring pavilions, terraces, towers, gazebos, rockeries, corridors, and ponds.

　　   II. Historical Development: From the establishment of the Confucius Ancestral Temple in Quzhou during the Southern Song Dynasty until the eve of the founding of the People’s Republic of China, it was managed by the direct descendants of Confucius as the “Yansheng Duke Mansion,” “Doctorate Office,” and “Ritual Officer Office.” After the liberation, it was managed by the cultural authorities under government commission. In 1999, the Quzhou Municipal Government’s directly affiliated institution, the Management Committee of Confucius’ Southern Ancestral Temple, took full responsibility for managing the temple and the mansion.

　　   III. Historical Background of Confucius’ Southern Ancestral Temple and Mansion: In the third year of the Jianyan era (1129), Kong Duanyou, the 48th-generation direct descendant and Yansheng Duke of Confucius, accompanied the imperial court on its southern relocation. During the Jianyan period, Emperor Gaozong of the Song decreed that “the state school be temporarily used as the ancestral temple.” By the midsummer of the first year of the Baoyou era (1253) during the reign of Emperor Lizong of the Song, with no hope of returning north, Yansheng Duke Kong Zhu and Quzhou Prefect Sun Zixiu petitioned to build a new ancestral temple. The imperial court allocated 360,000 strings of cash to construct the temple on Linghu Lake northeast of the city, with over 200 bays of architectural space, matching the scale and design of the Qufu ancestral temple. It was completed in the second spring of the following year. In the late Song and early Yuan dynasties, the temple was destroyed in warfare and relocated south of the city. However, “its layout was no longer the same as the Baoyou-era original.”

　　   In the 19th year of the Yuan Dynasty (1283), after court deliberation, the Southern Branch of the Kong family was recognized as the legitimate lineage of Confucius. The founding emperor of the Yuan summoned Kong Zhu, the 53rd-generation direct descendant and Yansheng Duke, to the capital and ordered him to return to Qufu with his title to preside over ancestral worship. Kong Zhu declined, citing that the temple and tombs were in Quzhou, and offered his title to Qufu. The founding emperor praised him as “preferring honor without violating righteousness—truly a descendant of the sage,” and instead appointed him as the Sacrificial Official of the Imperial College to oversee southern temple worship. From then on, the main branch of the Kong family lost its title.

　　   In the 18th year of the Ming Hongzhi era (1505), Shen Jie, Prefect of Quzhou, submitted a memorial to Emperor Xiaozong of the Ming, Zhu Youcheng, stating: “Since Kong Zhu relinquished the title, the rituals and attire at the Quzhou sacred temple have been reduced to the level of commoners. Now we have found Kong Yanruo, the sixth-generation descendant of Kong Zhu, and request that he be granted an official position to oversee the worship ceremonies.” The following year, in the first year of the Zhengde era (1506), Emperor Wuzong Zhu Houzhao, following the decree of his predecessor, appointed Kong Yanruo as a Five Classics Doctor of the Hanlin Academy, with hereditary succession for his descendants. Thus, after 224 years without a title, the main branch of the Kong family in Quzhou regained official recognition. In 1935, the Nationalist Government abolished all feudal titles and appointed Kong Fanhao, the 73rd-generation direct descendant, and Kong Decheng, the 77th-generation descendant, as the “Sacrificial Officials of the Great Achieving and Supreme Sage” for the Southern and Northern branches, respectively.

　　   Regarding the Southern Branch of the Kong family, Mr. Kong Decheng wrote in the 1937 preface to the Genealogy of the Kong Family: “... Among the descendants in Lu, only the 43rd-generation ancestor, Wenru Gong, survived as an orphan, becoming the reviver of the Kong family. He was the fifth-generation ancestor after Kong Duanyou, who relocated the family to Quzhou during the southern migration with the Song court—thus establishing the Southern Branch.”

　　   After the Qing Dynasty, the location of Confucius’ Southern Ancestral Temple has never changed. However, it underwent multiple renovations during the reigns of Shunzhi, Kangxi, Yongzheng, Qianlong, Daoguang, Tongzhi, and Guangxu, with the most extensive reconstruction taking place in the first year of the Daoguang era. Major projects included relocating the Silu Pavilion to the northwest corner of the Dacheng Hall, raising the hall foundation by five feet, replacing wooden pillars with stone, and expanding and renovating all structures below the Chongsheng Shrine (formerly Qisheng Shrine). The entire project lasted nearly a year and a half, costing over ten thousand taels of silver, and completely renewed the temple.

　　   During the War of Resistance against Japan, the Japanese army occupied Quzhou twice, looting all musical instruments and ritual vessels. In 1947, the Nationalist Government allocated funds for repairs. In 1960, the Qu County government provided funding for maintenance. In 1984, the Quzhou Municipal Government funded repairs to the main buildings of the ancestral temple. In 1988, the municipal government again funded further repairs, reconstructing the Shengze Tower and renovating the Silu Pavilion. On December 12, 1989, the Zhejiang Provincial People’s Government designated Confucius’ Southern Ancestral Temple as a provincial-level cultural heritage site. On November 20, 1996, the State Council approved it as a national key cultural relics protection unit. In May 2000, the western axis of the ancestral temple and the Confucius Mansion, reconstructed under the leadership of the Quzhou Municipal Government, were completed.

　　   IV. Major Cultural Relics: Carved wooden statues of Confucius and his wife hand-copied by Zigong, a painting of Confucius wearing a sword by Wu Daozi, stone stelae, and more.