The tomb of Lin Zexu is located at the foot
of the Jinshi Mountain in Ma'an Village in the north suburb
of Fuzhou City, Fujian Province.
Lin, who was born in 1785 in Houguan
(today's Fuzhou City), Fujian Province, was a famous statesman at the end of the
Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). He served as an official during the Qing Dynasty in 13
provinces for more than 40 years. In 1839, Lin, who was governor-general of
Hunan-Guangzhou, was appointed to commissioner of Guandong Province when his
move to ban opium received high acclaim. In his new post, Lin was to implement
the prohibition on opium smoking and the opium trade. In Humen, the opium ban
reached its climax: Lin ordered all of the opium -- over 2.37 million Jin, which
was confiscated from Britain and
American opium traders -- destroyed. He also constructed a coastal defense
system and organized the common people to resist armed provocations by the
British army. However, due to his victimization by powerful capitulators in the
Qing government, Lin was removed from office and exiled to Xinjiang. He was
reinstated as governor-general of Shaanxi-Gansu in 1846 for his superior
governance in Xinjiang. In 1848, Lin was transferred to being the
governor-general of Yunnan-Guizhou and in 1849 he resigned to his hometown due
to illness. Although Lin was appointed commissioner once again to superintend
military affairs, he died of an illness in 1850 on his way to Chaozhou, Guangdong Province and was buried in his
hometown. Lin not only served as an excellent statesman, but he also penned many
works, such as Collected Works By Lin Zexu.
Lin's mortar tomb faces south, inclining
slightly to the east. It is 13.2 meters wide and 24.8 meters high with a pair of
lions sitting at its side. On a horizontal screen it says: Wu Feng Lai
Xiang (five phoenixes flying and dancing here) in Kaishu (regular
script). The mausoleum was originally built for Lin's parents at his request in
1824. It consists of his parents' tombs as the focal point, with tombs of Lin,
his wife, brother and his brother's wife, as
attachments.