After the outbreak of the Songhu Anti-Japanese War in 1937, when the Anti-Japanese Eighth Army was stationed in Pudong and Punan in August, Zhang Fakui, commander of the group army, set up a headquarters at No. 558 Xinjian Middle Road.
Nanqiao held a military and civilian anti-Japanese party in Fengxian County, and invited 30 people, including Guo Moruo, Xia Yan, Tian Han, and Lin Mohan, to participate. Du Yuesheng, Song Ziliang, Wu Kaixian and others also came to express their condolences to the army.
By the beginning of November, the Japanese army bombed the market towns of Qianqiao, Zhelin, and Xiaotang in Fengcheng, and gathered 80 ships on the north shore of Hangzhou Bay, and landed at Zhelin, Jinshanzui, Zhapu and other places at the same time, and carried out large-scale burning, killing and looting in the county. The Eighth Army put up stubborn resistance with the Japanese, but on 7 November it was ordered to withdraw, Nanqiao fell, and the headquarters was forced to withdraw.
The former site of the headquarters of the Eighth Group Army of the Anti-Japanese Resistance was built in the first year of Tongzhi in the Qing Dynasty (1862), which was originally the priest's building of the Nanqiao Catholic Church, and later changed to Yaocian School, and was inscribed by Ma Xiangbo.
In this arduous war of resistance, countless people with lofty ideals rose up to resist for the survival of the nation, and wrote a magnificent chapter of national salvation. They are the true heroes of the Chinese nation, and their sacrifices and struggles have laid a solid foundation for our happy life today.
As one of the hardest hit areas of the Japanese invasion of China, Fengxian witnessed the cruelty and atrocities of the invaders. However, it is under such oppression that countless warriors choose to resist. On the battlefield behind enemy lines, they fought bloody battles and dealt heavy blows to the invaders with courage and wisdom. The Songhu detachment of the New Fourth Army is an outstanding representative of this, who held high the banner of national liberation, persisted in the war of resistance behind enemy lines, rescued the people, and made great contributions to the victory of the war of resistance.
In this great war of resistance, countless martyrs went forward one after another to save the nation from peril. Their deeds are deeply moving, and their spirit will forever be recorded in the annals of history. Their dedication and sacrifice will always be remembered, and they will always live in our hearts.
Today, we must not only remember history, but also inherit and carry forward the spirit of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression. Let us take the martyrs as an example, strengthen our faith, move forward bravely, and work hard to realize the Chinese dream of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.