Revolutionary sites with a red history (2)

Shenzhen Revolutionary Martyrs Cemetery is located at the intersection of Beihuan Boulevard and Caitian Road in Futian District.

Reliefs on the Revolutionary Martyrs Monument in Futian District. Photos by Sun Yuchen

An imposing 27-meter-tall monument, erected in 1983, is inscribed with the words “Revolutionary Martyrs Are Immortal” written by Zeng Sheng, commander of the Dongjiang Column of Guangdong People’s Guerilla Against Japanese Aggression.

The Revolutionary Martyrs Monument at the Shenzhen Revolutionary Martyrs Cemetery in Futian District.

At the southwest corner of the cemetery lies a pavilion, where the names of 1,050 Shenzhen revolutionary martyrs since 1900 had been inscribed, including 490 who gave their lives during the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression (1931-1945), 416 during the Chinese People’s War of Liberation (1945-1949), 65 during the Socialist Revolution and Socialist Construction (1949-1976) and 25 martyrs who had died since the launch of reform and opening up.

A sculpture of the five main participants of the Sanzhoutian Uprising is on display at a memorial hall of the Shenzhen Revolutionary Martyrs Cemetery. The uprising, led by Sun Yat-sen in 1900, is known as the start of China’s democratic revolution against the Qing Dynasty’s royal court. The troops marched from Huizhou to Shenzhen.

The ashes of Zeng, a Pingshan native, were also interred at the cemetery. Zeng joined the Communist Party of China (CPC) in 1936 and made great contributions to the victory in the South China battlefield. He died in 1995 and the CPC Central Committee and State Council approved to lay his ashes at the cemetery in 1996.

Dongjiang Column commander Zeng Sheng’s old residence near the Dongjiang Column Memorial Hall. His bust sculpture is seen by the entrance.

The Dongjiang Column was formed in 1943. The Dongjiang Column Memorial Hall was built in 2000 in Pingshan to display historical documents, photos, veterans’ paraphernalia and a monument inscribed with thousands of martyrs’ names.

The Dongjiang Column Memorial Hall in Pingshan District.

Photos of some Dongjiang Column heroes on display at the Dongjiang Column Memorial Hall in Pingshan District.

Visitors at the Dongjiang Column Memorial Hall in Pingshan District in this 2016 file photo.