At the south side of Xiling Bridge is the grave of Qiu Jin flanked by flowers, pines and cypresses against hills. There rest the soul of Qiu Jin, a martyr who died in 1907 for overthrowing the Qing Dynasty. With great ambition and dedication to China's modernization, Qiu called herself a female warrior of Jian Lake and fought bravely. Visitors and passers-by solute her when they pass the tomb.
Qiu Jin was born in Shanyin (today's Shaoxing) of Zhejiang Province in 1875. She had studied in Japan. During her stay in Japan, she joined the Recovery League and the Chinese Revolutionary League. Qiu Jin was in charge of Shaoxing Datong School in 1907. She used the school as a base to get associated with revolutionaries and plot uprisings against the Qing Dynasty.
In July 1907, the uprising she had masterminded was aborted and thwarted due to the secret made known to the government. She was arrested and executed on 15th July.
Qiu Jin had come to Hangzhou for revolutionary work many times. Many of her poems describe the beautiful West Lake.
On December 10, 1912, Dr. Sun Yet-san held a memorial ceremony at Qiu Jin's grave personally. He wrote an elegiac couplet: “We should praise the Chinese Revolutionary League, and deeply cherish this great female warrior of Jian Lake.”
In 70 years, Qiu Jin's remains had been buried 10 times since the first burial until 1981 when her grave was rebuilt at the south side of Xiling Bridge. On the top of her tomb stood the statue of Qiu Jin made of white marble. There she leans on a sharp sword, looking valiant and heroic. |
Asia Travel 
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