1954: Awakening from a Dream of Red Mansions

The Story of the Stone (also known as Dream of the Red Chamber) is China’s most famous novel. It depicts the height of court power and wealth in an imaginary capital city, often thought to be loosely based on Nanking (Jiangning 江寧/ Jinling 金陵).… Read

April-September 1949: The Nanking Press

Knight Biggerstaff The following account of the post-liberation Nanking print media appeared on 8 March 1950 in Far Eastern Survey, vol.19 no.5: 50-54. — The Editors The Chinese Communists frankly regard the press as an instrument of propaganda, as an important means of ‘educating’ the people.… Read

April 1949: Trapped in Nanking

K.M. Pannikar In his memoir In Two Chinas, Kavalam Madhava Panikkar, the Indian ambassador to the Republic of China, gives an account of the Communist takeover of Nanking in April 1949.… Read

April 1949: Nanking Liberated, in verse

The People’s Liberation Army Captures Nanking Mao Zedong April 1949 Over Chungshan swept a storm, headlong,
鍾山風雨起蒼黃,
Our mighty army, a million strong, has crossed the Great River.
百萬雄師過大江。
The City, a tiger crouching, a dragon curling, outshines its ancient glories;
虎踞龍盤今勝昔,
In heroic triumph heaven and earth have been overturned.… Read

Acknowledgements

China Heritage Annual was designed by Callum Smith who worked with me in 2016-2017 to develop a site that built on China Heritage Quarterly (2005-2012). The character 遺 yí, the leitmotif both of this site and of China Heritage, is in the hand of Li Huailin 李懷琳 of the Tang dynasty.… Read