The former site of the Yunnan Army Military Institute lies near the Agrarian Exhibition Hall and the library on the western banks of Cuihu Lake in Kunming City, Yunnan Province.

The site features the main building -- a two-storied construct of brick and wood. Its surrounding buildings are 120 meters in length, 10 meters wide and 12 meters high. The garrets are all symmetrical and connected to form a quadrangle in the center, which served as a temporary inner playground. In the middle of the southern building is a parade building, including offices, classrooms, dormitories and many other structures.

The Qing government opened the Yunnan Army Military Institute -- one of the earliest military institutes that offered courses in infantry, cavalry, artillery and military engineering -- in 1909 to found a new army. From 1909-1928, it held nine terms in all, each for one and a half to two years. Its students totaled over 4,000. After the Revolution of 1911, instructors and students from the institute play a great role in the Kunming Uprising and movement to defend the republic against Yuan Shikai. Many graduates became outstanding revolutionary leaders, such as Zhu De, Ye Jianying and others.