(Video/ Nanhu District People's Government, Jiaxing)

A historically and culturally significant spot, South Lake of Jiaxing City in Zhejiang Province remains best known for the ruins of a 10th-century tower. Dating back to the Ming Dynasty, this structure serves as a mesmerizing example of traditional Chinese architecture.

South Lake not only enjoys a great reputation for its beautiful sceneries, but also accepts much attention for the First National Congress of the Communist Party of China.

On July 23, 1921, 13 delegates of the Chinese communists nationwide gathered in a French concession building in Shanghai to hold the CPC's 1st National Congress. The meeting was put to an end due to harassment from the French Concession police on July 30. The delegates then agreed to move the meeting to a rented tourist boat on South Lake.

It was in this little boat that the first “Constitution of the Communist Party of China” was formed and Communist Party of China was born, signifying the new page of Chinese revolution.

After the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, the local government of Jiaxing decided to replicate the boat to commemorate the historical event. On July 1, 1959, the 38th anniversary of the founding of the CPC, the replica, known as "Red Boat," was launched into the South Lake and has since become one of the key places of red culture tourism in Zhejiang Province. (Note: Red Culture refers to the culture created during the years of revolutions and wars by the Communist Party of China, revolutionaries and common people.)

Just one week after the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China closed in 2017, Xi Jinping and other members of the standing committee of CPC Central Committee, paid a visit with reverence to the site of the First National Congress of the Communist Party of China, visited the Red Boat and South Lake Revolution Memorial. Xi urged Party members to “implement the Red Boat spirit in the new era”, encouraging the CPC to overcome difficulties along its journey of revolution and governance.

Get a great overview of what happened in China before and since the beginning of the Chinese Communist Party in Jiaxing’s South Lake.

Name in Chinese : 南湖旅游区

Opening Hours: 08:00 - 17:00 (Peak Season); 08:00 - 16:30 (Off-season)

Admission Fee: RMB 110 yuan

Telephone: +86 573 82532848

Address: No. 1 Nanxi Road, Jiaxing City, Zhejiang Province

(Executive Editor: Yongliu HE)