Photos

Photographer’s Note

This photo shows one of the paintings in the Yue Fei Tomb, explaining the history of this famous chinese hero.

YUE FEI (1103 - 1142) was a Chinese patriot and nationalist military leader who fought for the Southern Song Dynasty against the Jurchen Jin Dynasty.

He is revered as one of the great symbols of patriotism and a national hero in China and his mausoleum in Hangzhou is well-visited.

According to legend, Yue Fei's mother tattooed four characters (Simplified Chinese: 精忠报国) which mean "serve the country loyally" on his back before he left home. This statement was seen as a program for the remainder of his life.

As a valiant and tactically astute general, Yue Fei led many successful campaigns against the forces of the Jin Dynasty. Taking advantage of the difficulties which his opponents' cavalry experienced in the hilly terrain of Southern China, he was able to score victories although his troops were frequently outnumbered.

In the middle of a long victorious campaign against the Jin, corrupt officials, the most famous being the traitor Qin Hui persuaded Emperor Gaozong to recall Yue Fei to the capital. Yue Fei returned to the capital, where he would be executed.

He and his son, were sentenced to death and executed on charges that were not proven but instead "could be true" The phrase has entered the Chinese language as an expression to refer to fabricated charges. (From Wikipedia)

sergio1, sabyasachi1212 has marked this note useful

Photo Information
Viewed: 871
Points: 6
Discussions
  • None
Additional Photos by Antonio Elduque (Elduque) Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 214 W: 0 N: 138] (624)
View More Pictures
explore TREKEARTH