Unveiling Huaihua                 

Ø  Area: 27,600 square kilometers

Ø  Total population: 5.25 million

Ø  Administrative division: 12 counties, county-level cities and districts as well as one administrative district within jurisdiction 

Geographical Location

Located in southwest Hunan Province, Huaihua is known as the “gateway to Guizhou and Yunnan” and has connections to various major Chinese cities. Covering an area of 27,600 square kilometers, it is the largest prefecture-level city in Hunan Province as well as the central city in the border regions of Hunan, Hubei, Chongqing, Guizhou and Guangxi. With a total population of 5.25 million, Huaihua has jurisdiction over 12 counties, county-level cities and districts, one administrative district, one national high-tech industrial development zone, and one provincial economic development zone. 

Three-dimensional transportation

Ø  Railways: 3 high-speed railways and 3 converntional railways converge in Huaihua

Ø  Airlines: Zhijiang Airport operates 4 routes, connecting 6 cities in China.

Ø  Expessways: Expressways within Huaihua City have a combined length of 862 kilometers, the second longest in Hunan Province.

Ø  Water transport: Waterways within Huaihua City have a combined navigable length of 1404 kilometers, connecting rivers and seas.

Currently, three conventional railways, namely the Shanghai-Kunming line, the Jiaozuo-Liuzhou line, and the Chongqing-Huaihua line, together with three high-speed railways, namely the Shanghai-Kunming line, the Huaihua-Shaoyang-Hengyang, and the Zhangjiajie-Jishou-Huaihua, converg in a "snowflake-like" pattern in the urban area of the city. Huaihuaxi Marshalling Station is the largest railway marshalling station in Southwest China. Zhijiang Airport offers flights to six cities, including Beijing, Xi’an, and Hangzhou. 

Xinhua-Xupu Expressway in Sanjiang Town, Xupu County

Huaihuaxi Marshalling Station 

Natural Landscape

Ø  Forest coverage rate: 67.06%

Ø  Average annual temperature: 16.4°C

Ø  Average annual sunshine hours: 962-1,452 hours

Ø  Average annual rainfall: about 1,600 millimeters

Ø  Tourist demonstration sites: 27  

Huaihua has a forest coverage rate of 67.06%, ranking first in Hunan Province. Boasting numerous natural oxygen zones, the city is one of the nine areas with good ecological conditions in China. It was once described as “a place of stunning beauty” by the prestigious writer Shen Congwen.

Chuanyan Mountain in Xupu County 

Culture and History

The ancient temples and cultural sites within the area trace back 7,800 years of Chinese civilization. The saying “learned and erudite, with knowledge from both the major You mountain and the minor You mountain” originates from this place, and figures such as Qu Yuan, Li Bai, Wang Changling, and Wang Yangming left behind timeless masterpieces in this place. Huaihua City is home to 50 ethnic minorities, including the Dong, Miao, Miao, Yao, and others, boasting a rich cultural heritage and strong ethnic customs, earning it the reputation of a “museum of ancient Chinese architecture” and a “multi-ethnic cultural village”.

On December 12, 1934, the person in charge of the CPC Central Committee held an emergency meeting in Tongdao, deciding that the Chinese Central Red Army would march westward to Guizhou. This event is known to history as “troop transfer in Tongdao”. General Secretary Xi Jinping, during his inspection tour in Hunan Province in September 2020, particularly mentioned that the “troop transfer in Tongdao” is a major historical event of the Party that took place in Hunan, the birthplace of a number of revolutionary forefathers with remarkable contributions, including Xiang Jingyu, Su Yu and Teng Daiyuan.

 

                         Xiang Jingyu           Su Yu            Teng Daiyuan

Tongdao Troop Transfer Memorial 

  On August 21, 1945, following the victory of the Anti-Japanese War, a surrender ceremony was held in Zhijiang of Huaihua, an event known to history as the “Zhijiang surrender”. The Zhijiang Surrender Memorial Hall is the only building in China commemorating the victory of the Anti-Japanese War. It is a testimony to and an important symbol of the victory of the war.                       

Zhijiang Surrender Memorial Hall

Yuan Longping, known as “father of hybrid rice”, worked and lived in Anjiang of Huaihua for 37 years. He successfully cultivated hybrid rice there, changing the world with one seed. The city is therefore called the “birthplace of hybrid rice”.

Site of the old Anjiang Agricultural School

The Gaomiao Ruins in Huaihua boasts a history of 7,800 years. The idioms “having five cartloads of books” and “storing books in the Eryou Mountain” find their origin there. Scholars such as Qu Yuan, Li Bai, Wang Changling and Wang Yangming wrote articles and poems there, which have been handed down from age to age. There are 50 ethnic minorities in Huaihua, including Dong, Miao, Tujia and Yao. With profound cultural heritage and ethnic custom, Huaihua is hailed as “a museum of ancient Chinese architecture” and “a cultural village of multiple ethnic groups”. 

Zhonghua Book Mountain