Former Residence of Liu Qingxia

The Former Residence of Liu Qingxia has been preserved in memory of Ms. Liu Qingxia, a distinguished modern Chinese educator, social activist and bourgeois democratic revolutionary.

The residence was originally part of the manor belonging to the wealthy landlord known as "Half-County Liu" in Weishi County. Located right at the centre of Weishi County seat, the compound named Shigutang stretches across two east-west thoroughfares. The grand compound was once magnificent, with three successive gatehouses adorned with carved floral patterns and mythical beasts. A platform extended forward from the gate, leading to a courtyard used for parking carriages and tethering horses. The entire Shigutang complex contained more than 300 rooms covering an area of about 19 mu. It represented the finest and most concentrated architectural cluster of the "Half-County Liu" clan.

The Liu clan’s manors once sprawled between East Street, West Street and Houxin Street in the county seat. Pawnshops, money exchange houses and commercial stores owned by the family lined the eastern side of East Street and Xinmin Street. The South Garden stood south of Renmin Road, and the North Garden was situated inside the North City Gate. In short, the clan’s properties occupied nearly half of the county town, hence the nickname "Half-County Liu".

The surviving Former Residence of Liu Qingxia is divided into eastern and western sections on both sides of West Street. The East Courtyard contains 36 rooms arranged in an inner and outer two-tier layout. The main hall in the inner courtyard spans five bays, with a depth of six metres and a total height of nearly twelve metres. The east and west side towers are slightly shorter, also covering five bays with a depth of five metres. It is a courtyard house built with polished black bricks and covered corridors. The eaves are decorated with hollow carved bricks, with green tiles laid on high ridges topped with animal ornaments. Wooden pillars support the continuous overhanging eaves on the ground floor, fitted with large bright windows. Inside are carved wooden partition screens, and staircases lead up to the upper storeys. In the old days, the courtyard was landscaped with exotic rocks and rare flowers, including peonies, osmanthus, lilacs and wintersweets blooming all year round. One wintersweet tree planted personally by Liu Qingxia still survives today.

The West Courtyard consists of three parts:

Altogether, the West Courtyard has 88 rooms built in the same architectural style as the East Courtyard.

The compound is a typical northern Chinese quadrangle residence constructed in the late Qing Dynasty. It stands as an architectural model of the transitional period in Chinese architectural history, boasting remarkable historical and artistic value.

In June 2006, the State Council designated the Former Residence of Liu Qingxia as a Major Historical and Cultural Site Protected at the National Level.