Experiencing the "Northern Revolution of 1911"
This year is the 100th anniversary of the Revolution of 1911. When talking about the Revolution of 1911, we naturally think of the Wuchang Uprising, thinking that "the Revolution of 1911 only happened in the south", while missing the activities of the 1911 Revolution in the north, the heartland of Qing rule. In fact, long before the Wuchang Uprising, the revolutionaries had already prepared to launch an uprising in Luanzhou in the north and attack Tianjin and Beijing to shake the rule of the Qing Dynasty. If there had been no uprising in Wuchang at that time, the first shot to overthrow the Qing government would most likely have been fired in Luanzhou, eastern Hebei. In fact, it was also the Wuchang Uprising that ultimately led to the failure of the Luanzhou Uprising, which echoed the South. The Luanzhou Uprising directly shook the center of the Qing court and became one of the direct factors leading to the abdication of the Qing court on February 12, 1912.
In November of the 22nd year of the Republic of China, Feng Yuxiang recorded in the "Records of the Martyrs' Shrine of the Xinhai Luanzhou Uprising in Tai'an": "The Qing government was out of line, public opinion was agitated, and revolutionary ideas spread throughout the Yangtze River Basin in Guangdong. It was booming and unstoppable. North China was under the strict supervision of the capital, so it was impossible to initiate it, but a small corner of Luanzhou rose up alone. "This memorial not only explains the reasons for the Revolution of 1911, but also explains the Luanzhou Uprising in Hebei. It also ended in failure, but the Luanzhou Uprising and the Wuchang Uprising launched the Revolution of 1911 against the feudal monarchy in the north and in the south.
In October 1911, the Wuchang Uprising broke out, and the 20th Town of the New Army stationed in Luanzhou (now Luan County), Hebei Province coordinated with the Sixth Town to plan to raise troops to respond. At that time, Feng Yuxiang was serving as the battalion commander of the 3rd Battalion of the 80th Standard of the 80th Biao of the 20th Town in Luanzhou.
On January 3, 1912, Tongmenghui members Wang Jinming, Shi Congyun, and Bai Yayu led the Luanzhou New Army to declare an uprising, electrified China, declared independence, established the Northern Revolutionary Military Government, and elected Wang Jinming as the governor. Shi Congyun is the commander-in-chief, Feng Yuxiang is the chief of staff, and Bai Yayu is the chief of staff. On the 4th, the new uprising army issued a proclamation, condemning the Qing court and preparing to attack Beijing and Tianjin. Later, due to the rebellion of Zhang Jiangong, the leader of the Third Battalion, and the suppression by the Qing government troops, the uprising failed and a large number of officers and soldiers were arrested. Fourteen people including Wang Jinming, Shi Congyun, and Bai Yayu died calmly. General Feng Yuxiang escaped death and was deported back to his hometown.
To commemorate the martyrs of the Xinhai Revolution Luanzhou Uprising who resisted the rule of the Qing government, in April 1937, General Feng Yuxiang built the Xinhai Luanzhou Revolutionary Martyrs Memorial Park in the sun of Xianlong Mountain in the south of Wenquan Village in the western suburbs of Beijing. The Luanzhou Uprising Memorial Tower of the Revolution of 1911 was inscribed by General Feng Yuxiang in his own handwriting: "The spirit will never die". It is a memorial tower facing south from the north. The front of the stone memorial square has the words "Memorial Garden of the Martyrs of the Luanzhou Revolution of 1911" on the door frame. The first line is "Today the garden is full of splendor" and the second line is "The mountains and rivers were moved by bravery back then." , the forehead on the back is "Work hard for revolution", the first line is "The mountains and rivers will always leave blood stains", and the second line is "Every flower and tree wants to see the heroic spirit". Both the front and back are signed "Feng Yuxiang in November of the 25th year of the Republic of China". On the front and back of the stone platform at the foot of the tower are engraved inscriptions written by Feng Yuxiang: "The spirit will not die" and "The spirit will last forever".
Expelled Puyi from the palace
Feng Yuxiang, whose courtesy name was Huanzhang. Originally from Chao County, Anhui Province, he was born in a poor peasant family near Baoding, Hebei Province in 1882. Due to his poor family background, he enlisted in the Qing army at the age of eleven. Shortly thereafter, he dropped out of school and joined the army.
After the Revolution of 1911, Yuan Shikai usurped the leadership of the revolution and then conspired to restore the monarchy. Feng Yuxiang actively participated in the revolutionary movement to overthrow Yuan, and joined forces with the National Defense Army to thwart Yuan Shikai's conspiracy to proclaim himself emperor.
After Yuan Shikai's death, Li Yuanhong succeeded as president. Feng Yuxiang was removed from the post of brigade commander and demoted to commander of the Sixth Patrol Battalion of Baoding Prefecture in order to reduce his military power. In June and July 1917, Zhang Xun led his troops into the Forbidden City and staged a restoration scandal. After Feng Yuxiang heard the news, he immediately led his old troops, together with other troops, to attack Beijing and drive away Zhang Xun.
In 1922, Feng Yuxiang was promoted to Army Review Envoy. At that time, Cao Kun bribed the president, causing harm to the country and the people. Feng immediately launched an army to attack Cao Kun and Wu Peifu, and became the commander-in-chief of the National Army. Shortly afterwards, Feng Yuxiang defied public opinion and sent troops to expel Puyi, the deposed Emperor of the Qing Dynasty, from the palace, applauding the people. Then, Feng put forward the idea of ??welcoming Mr. Sun Yat-sen to go north.
Prior to this, Mr. Sun Yat-sen had written to Feng several times and presented him with books such as the Three People's Principles and the Outline of the Founding of the People's Republic of China. Feng Yuxiang was deeply educated and gradually became a loyal believer of Mr. Sun Yat-sen. Unfortunately, when Mr. Sun Yat-sen went north, Feng Yuxiang had already served as the Superintendent of the Northwest Frontier Defense and was unable to meet Mr. Sun.
When Feng was stationed in the northwest, he went to the Soviet Union for inspection and joined the Chinese Kuomintang on the way to the Soviet Union. In the Soviet Union after the victory of the October Revolution, Feng Yuxiang received profound lessons. During this period, the Northern Expedition broke out in the country. Feng Yuxiang hurriedly returned to China to respond to the Northern Expedition and was promoted as the commander-in-chief of the National Army Allied Forces.
First visit to Zhangjiakou
In January 1925, General Feng Yuxiang followed Mr. Sun Yat-sen’s secret instructions and moved the Northwest Frontier Supervisory Office from Xishan, Beijing to Zhangjiakou outside the Great Wall. At that time, Feng Yuxiang was leading the Northwest Army to garrison Zhangjiakou as the Northwest Frontier Defense Supervisor. During this period, Li Dazhao, one of the party leaders, came to Zhang to do Feng Yuxiang's ideological work and strive for his revolution.
In June 1925, Feng Yuxiang hatched the battle plan of the "Northern Expedition" in Zhangjiakou, which centered on "conquering the south and fighting in the north, and joining forces in Zhengzhou". The Northwest National Army increased from less than 100,000 when it first arrived in Zhangyuan to more than 200,000 during the southern expedition. In June 1926, it joined forces with the Guangzhou National Army in Zhengzhou, Henan. The strength of the Northwest National Army rapidly increased to 500,000 troops, becoming the most powerful military group during the Northern Expedition.
Second Arrival in Zhangjiakou
After the "September 18th" Incident in 1931, the Japanese army continued to attack the Great Wall, creating a serious situation of "Pingjin and Tianjin are in crisis" and "North China is in crisis". At that time, Zhangjiakou was also in danger, and Guyuan County was harassed by the puppet Manchukuo. In October 1932, Feng Yuxiang returned to Zhangzhou again.
On May 26, 1933, Feng Yuxiang established the Chahar People's Anti-Japanese Allied Army. Feng Yuxiang was appointed commander-in-chief and appointed famous anti-Japanese generals and Communist Party members Ji Hongchang and others. On this day, Zhangjiakou held a rally of Chahar people to resist humiliation and save the nation, attended by tens of thousands of people, and formally established the Anti-Japanese Allied Forces. Feng Yuxiang was publicly elected as the commander-in-chief, and a telegram was sent to the whole country, announcing armed resistance against Japan and determination to regain lost ground. The introduction of electricity quickly had an impact across the country, and congratulatory messages flew to Zhangyuan like snowflakes. Some patriots flocked to Zhang Yuan, forming a powerful anti-Japanese torrent. On June 15, the Anti-Japanese Allied Forces held the first military-civilian congress in Zhangjiakou, which lasted for five days and attracted 61 representatives. The meeting elected 35 members of the Military Commission, and recommended 11 people including Feng Yuxiang, Fang Zhenwu, Sun Liangcheng, and Ji Hongchang to form the Standing Committee. Feng Yuxiang was the chairman and commander-in-chief of the Allied Forces, and Xu Weilie was the secretary-general.
After the establishment of the Anti-Japanese Allied Forces, they advanced northward. After bloody battles and frequent good news, they successively recovered Kangbao, Baochang, Guyuan and Duolun counties. Duolun was captured from the Japanese invaders by the Anti-Japanese Allied Forces, breaking the myth that the Japanese army was invincible, and effectively refuting the fallacy of Chiang Kai-shek and Wang Jingwei that "the resistance to Japan will inevitably fail."
After Chahar's lost territory was recovered, Feng Yuxiang established the "Recovery of the Four Northeastern Provinces Planning Committee" in Zhangjiakou on July 27, with Feng Yuxiang also serving as chairman. He expressed that he would continue to "lead one hundred thousand hungry and tired men to the plan of regaining the four provinces, and this ambition will not be unremitting as long as he lasts."
However, the frightened Chiang Kai-shek quickly mobilized troops to surround Zhangjiakou, and due to the collusion between Japan and Chiang Kai-shek, which cut off the ammunition and food supplies of the Allied forces, Feng Yuxiang was forced to resign and went to the field, and the Allied forces ultimately failed. Although the Anti-Japanese Allied Forces were defeated, they were still honored. They fired the first shot against the invincible Japanese army, inspired the anti-Japanese spirit across the country, and sowed the anti-Japanese fire in the Zhangjiakou area.
On August 12, Feng Yuxiang presided over the inauguration ceremony of the Memorial Tower for the Fallen Soldiers, the Martyrs’ Shrine, and the Martyrs’ Tomb when the People’s Anti-Japanese Allied Forces regained the lost territory in Chadong. Feng personally titled the tower. On the 14th, accompanied by Song Zheyuan, Qin Dechun and others, Feng Yuxiang boarded the train and left Zhangjiakou for Mount Tai.
Feng Yuxiang and "Aiwulu"
There is a brick and stone house in the courtyard of the Municipal Rescue Management Station in Turgou, Qiaodong District.
This former residence, known as "Aiwu House", witnessed General Feng Yuxiang's ambition to resist Japan and save the country. Nowadays, the "Aiwu House" sign in front of the door has disappeared, and only the one in front of the house that reads "Municipal Key Cultural Relics" The sign "Protected Unit 'Feng Yuxiang Library'" stands.
In January 1925, General Feng Yuxiang came to Zhangjiakou outside the Great Wall and immediately purchased the Western-style bungalow at No. 45 Desheng West Street, east of Zhangjiakou Bridge, which was the residence of Li Liejun, the veteran of the Kuomintang.
The main building of "Aiwu Lu" is a high-foundation, blue-brick, two-roof bungalow with a basement. The right part has a half-gabled roof and the left has a gently sloping roof. There is a window near the wall with a round hole at the top. The right facade protrudes outward in a prism shape, with four windows on the prismatic side and four windows on the left side. The stone door has nine steps. There is a platform in front of the window on the right side of the door. There is an antechamber in the front on the right side of the room, three rooms in the back, and two large rooms in the front and back on the left. There are two rows of left and right wing rooms in the courtyard. There are three cypress trees and one old crabapple tree. General Feng Yuxiang arranged this place as a place for reading and studying. He personally inscribed a plaque "Feng Ji Library" and hung it in front of the house. The plaque no longer exists.
Feng Yuxiang and his wife Li Dequan live in the backyard of the library. Also living in the backyard are the five children of Feng Yuxiang and his ex-wife Liu. In the bungalow in the front yard lived Feng Yuxiang's personal messenger, operator, chef, driver, pistol company commander (Feng's guards lived in the surrounding warehouses and rented houses) and handymen. There are several clean guest rooms in the front yard, which are used by Feng Yuxiang's guests with unusual connections. Not many people enjoy this "honor".
After Feng Yuxiang resigned from power in January 1926, the "Feng Ji Library" and the courtyard were sold to others.
On October 9, 1932, after Feng Yuxiang returned to Zhangzhou again, he immediately sent people to buy back the "Feng Ji Library" house. On October 14, Feng Yuxiang returned to the "Feng Ji Library" after an absence of 6 years and renamed it "Aiwulu". The origin of the name "Aiwu Lu" comes from the 37th chapter of "The Romance of the Three Kingdoms", "Sima Hui recommended celebrities again, Liu Xuande visited the thatched cottage three times", Zhuge Liang sang: "The phoenix soars over a thousand renxi, and it is not a parasol to rest. The scholar crouched in one side. , I am happy to work on my farm in Longmu, and I am proud of my Qin and Shu, waiting for the right time." It expresses General Feng Yuxiang's longing for comrades in order to save the country from fire and water. Feng Yuxiang once inscribed a plaque with the words "Love my house" and hung it in front of the house.
In January 1933, Feng Yuxiang ordered 10,000 leather vests for Zhang Xueliang’s anti-Japanese troops at the front. Since the donations from the south had not yet arrived, Feng Yuxiang “thought of the officers and soldiers at the front without leather jackets in the ice and snow, and he was extremely anxious.” ", so the property of "Aiwulu" was mortgaged for 48,000 yuan.
"Aiwulu" is the library where Feng Yuxiang studied, studied and studied political culture. "Aiwulu" is the military and political research department for senior generals founded by Feng Yuxiang. "Aiwulu" is also the reception area where Feng Yuxiang receives dignitaries from home and abroad. "Aiwulu" is the place where Feng Yuxiang lived in Zhangjiakou for the longest time and had the deepest affection. It is truly Feng Yuxiang's former residence in Zhangjiakou.
Today, the main building of "Aiwu Lu" still exists. Since 1960, the Civil Affairs Bureau's Rescue Management Station has lived in "Aiwu Lu" to this day.
Excerpted from "Zhangjiakou Evening News"