Graveyard of the National Heroes, National heroes cemetery in Tengchong City, China
The Graveyard of the National Heroes covers 53,300 square metres on the north slope of Laifeng Mountain by the Dieshui River. Its bell-shaped plan follows the hillside along a north–south axis: gate, Loyalty Shrine, 3,346 graves and a 10-metre memorial tower of local volcanic rock. The graves radiate around the tower in nine rows per division, each marked with rank and name.
Construction began on 15 January 1945, funded largely by Tengchong residents and Chinese communities in India, and the cemetery opened on 7 July 1945. Li Genyuan, supervisor of Yunnan and Guizhou, chose the name from the "Guoshang" chapter of the Chu Ci. The memorial tower was destroyed and graves dug up during the Cultural Revolution, and restoration began around 1983.
Memorial tablets throughout the site display names and ranks of fallen soldiers, turning each tomb into a personal record that visitors can read and remember. This practice helps people connect individual lives to the larger story of sacrifice and service.
The cemetery lies about 1 km southwest of Tengchong's old town, on the north slope of Laifeng Shan by the Dieshui River. The grounds are laid out along a north–south axis, with the gate, Loyalty Shrine, grave sectors and hilltop memorial tower in sequence. The site has been free to enter since 14 September 2008.
The grounds contain a separate section honoring 19 Allied soldiers who took part in the military campaign to liberate the city during World War II. This area reflects the international dimension of the conflict and the cooperation between different forces during this period.
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