Former Residence of Mao Zedong or Mao Zedong's Former Residence () was built in the late

Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-spea ...

(1644–1911). It is located in Shaoshan Village of Shaoshan Township in

Shaoshan Shaoshan () is a county-level city in Hunan Province, China. It is under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Xiangtan. Qingxi Town is its seat. Located on the mid-eastern Hunan and the mid-north of Xiangtan, Shaoshan is bordered by ...

Xiangtan Xiangtan () is a prefecture-level city in east-central Hunan province, south-central China. The hometowns of several founding leaders of the Chinese Communist Party, including Chairman Mao Zedong, President Liu Shaoqi, and Marshal Peng Dehuai, a ...

Hunan Hunan (, ; ) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the South Central China region. Located in the middle reaches of the Yangtze watershed, it borders the province-level divisions of Hubei to the north, Jiangxi ...

, China. The building was the birthplace and childhood home of

Mao Zedong Mao Zedong pronounced ; also romanised traditionally as Mao Tse-tung. (26 December 1893 – 9 September 1976), also known as Chairman Mao, was a Chinese communist revolutionary who was the founder of the People's Republic of China (PRC) ...

, the first leader of the People's Republic of China. It has a building area of about , embodies buildings such as the old houses, the Mao Zedong Memorial Hall, the Bronze Statue of Mao Zedong, the Cultural relics Exhibition Hall, and the Dishui Hole (Dripping Water Cave; ).

History

In 1893,

was born here, and he lived here about 17 years before leaving for his studies. He returned home in 1912 to mobilize his relatives to join the

revolution In political science, a revolution (Latin: ''revolutio'', "a turn around") is a fundamental and relatively sudden change in political power and political organization which occurs when the population revolts against the government, typically due ...

, and he again returned home in 1925 and 1927. Having led the

Peasant Movement A peasant movement is a social movement involved with the agricultural policy, which claims peasants rights. Peasant movements have a long history that can be traced to the numerous peasant uprisings that occurred in various regions of the wor ...

in Guangzhou, he sought to start a similar movement in Hunan. The house was destroyed by the government in 1929, but in 1950, the newly triumphant Communist government rebuilt the house, and it was visited by Mao's oldest son

Mao Anying Mao Anying (; 24 October 1922 – 25 November 1950) was the eldest son of Mao Zedong and Yang Kaihui. Educated in Moscow and a veteran of multiple wars, Mao was killed in action by an air strike during the Korean War. Early life Mao was ...

in May 1950. Mao again returned in 1959, eight years after the new house had been opened as a museum, and five years after it had officially been renamed ''Mao Zedong's Former Residence''. The former residence of Mao Zedong 11

In 1961, it was listed as a "

Major Historical and Cultural Site Protected at the National Level A Major Historical and Cultural Site Protected at the National LevelEnglish translation for "全国重点文物保护单位" varies, it includes Major Site (to Be) Protected for Its Historical and Cultural Value at the National Level, Major Histo ...

" () by the State Council of China. In 1966, in the

Cultural Revolution The Cultural Revolution, formally known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, was a sociopolitical movement in the People's Republic of China (PRC) launched by Mao Zedong in 1966, and lasting until his death in 1976. Its stated goa ...

, the number of tourists was inflated. The site was open at all times of the day or night. On June 27, 1983,

Central Advisory Commission The Central Advisory Commission () (CAC) was a body of the Chinese Communist Party that existed during the era of the paramount leadership of Deng Xiaoping. The body was supposed to provide "political assistance and consultation" to the Party' ...

chairman

Deng Xiaoping Deng Xiaoping (22 August 1904 – 19 February 1997) was a Chinese revolutionary leader, military commander and statesman who served as the paramount leader of the People's Republic of China (PRC) from December 1978 to November 1989. After CCP ...

wrote "Mao Zedong's Former Residence" on the horizontal tablet. On December 20, 1993, the Communist Party general secretary

Jiang Zemin Jiang Zemin (17 August 1926 – 30 November 2022) was a Chinese politician who served as general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from 1989 to 2002, as chairman of the Central Military Commission from 1989 to 2004, and as pr ...

attended the unveiling of the statue of Mao Zedong outside the house. In July 1997, it was listed as a ''National Patriotic Education Base'' () by the Propaganda Department of the Communist Party of China. In December 2004, it was closed for rebuilding and repairs.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mao Zedong's Former Residence Major National Historical and Cultural Sites in Hunan Traditional folk houses in Hunan Buildings and structures in Xiangtan Tourist attractions in Xiangtan Shaoshan Mao Zedong