The Zhongsu Memorial Temple is located at the eastern end of Dongzhu Lane in Yicheng Town, Yixing City. It was built to commemorate Lu Xiangsheng, the minister of war in the late Ming Dynasty and a famous anti-Qing general. The Zhongsu Memorial Temple was originally called Lu Gong Memorial Temple. It was first built in 1687 (the 26th year of Kangxi in the Qing Dynasty). In 1776 (the 41st year of Qianlong in the Qing Dynasty), Lu Xiangsheng was bestowed the title of Zhongsu by the emperor, so it was called Zhongsu Memorial Temple. In 1854 (the fourth year of Xianfeng in the Qing Dynasty), it was destroyed by war. In 1870 (the ninth year of Tongzhi in the Qing Dynasty), local gentry and descendants of Lu Xiangsheng raised funds to rebuild it. The original buildings of the Zhongsu Memorial Temple face north and sit south. It is bordered by the Changqiao River in the north and connects to Dongzhu Lane in the south. There are more than 20 rooms in two courtyards, covering an area of about 1,000 square meters. In front of the temple, facing the river, is a small square paved with bluestone. In the middle of the first entrance hall, there is a plaque hanging above that reads ‘A person close to ancient times’, which was written by Zhou Fohai, the minister of education of the former National Government. There are wooden seats for enshrining spirit tablets in the east and west wing rooms. On one side of the tablet is written ‘The spirit tablets of the fallen soldiers under Lu Xiangsheng, the minister of war of the Ming Dynasty’. On the other side is the spirit tablet of Gu Xian, a righteous servant who died with Lu Xiangsheng. In the courtyards of the first and second entrances, there are three wing rooms on each side. In the west wing room, the spirit tablets of Lu Xiangsheng’s uncles Lu Guoyun, Lu Guojun, and Lu Guohong, as well as his younger brothers Lu Xiangguan, Lu Xiangguo, Lu Xiangjin, and Lu Xiangzhen are enshrined. In the east wing room, there are the spirit tablets of Hu Dawei, Yang Guozhu, the chief flag officer Yu Zhenlong, and Yang Lukai, the groom, who were all under Lu Xiangsheng. The second entrance main hall has three rooms and one ear room on each side. Under the eaves of the hall door, there is a plaque hanging in the middle that reads ‘Loyalty, filial piety, civil and military’. On both sides of the pillars are couplets that read ‘Without Yang Sichang, he is no more than Guo Ziyi. With Huang Degong, he becomes Yue Fei.’ In the middle of the hall, there is a colored clay statue of Lu Xiangsheng in full gold. In front of the statue stands the spirit tablet that reads ‘The position of Lu Zhongsu Gong Xiangsheng, the minister of war and junior tutor to the crown prince of the Ming Dynasty’. On the left and right are statues of the middle officer and the seal-holding officer. Above the spirit seat hangs a blue background plaque with golden characters that reads ‘The heroic spirit still exists’. The ear rooms on both sides of the main hall are study rooms where the Complete Works of Lu Zhongsu Gong are stored.
Opening hours: Open from 08:30 to 11:00 all year round; Open from 14:00 to 17:00 all year round.Lu Zhongsu Gong Memorial Temple
The Zhongsu Memorial Temple is located at the eastern end of Dongzhu Lane in Yicheng Town, Yixing Ci[...]
