Lin Huiyin, the "talented woman of the Republic of China", in addition to her profound achievements in poetry, is also a famous architect. In that war-torn era, she was displaced and traveled from place to place to protect ancient buildings, so that many Chinese civilizations could be preserved. However, after the founding of the People's Republic of China, on the issue of "demolition and retention" of the ancient city wall in Beijing. Despite Lin Huiyin's vigorous opposition, he was still unable to stop it in the end, leaving a lifetime of regrets.
Witness of the long years
In 1949, the people's Republic of China decided to set the capital in Beijing. During the Ming and Qing dynasties, it has always been the capital city, and the eight hundred years of years have precipitated the unique temperament of the city, and also witnessed the rise and fall of generation after generation, silently accompanying the Chinese nation to flourish.
And the walls of Beijing are like the skeleton of the city. In ancient times, when technology was not developed, the city wall had a special meaning: standing tall was wordless protection. The construction of the city wall shows the essence of ancient construction technology.
It is difficult for people today to imagine how the ancients built such a huge thing with simple tools. But in New China, whether this wall built in the old era should exist has become a dispute.
When Guo Moruo participated in beijing's construction plan, he insisted on demolishing the ancient city wall. He believes that the ancient city wall is a symbol of China's feudal society and a product of the era of absolute monarchy.
New China is a brand new bright society, and everything should be renewed, and the legacy of the old society cannot be preserved. More importantly, the existence of the ancient city wall will affect the development of the city, causing traffic inconvenience, leaving little significance.
At that time, we were in a chaotic period of replacement of the old and the new, people had just escaped the oppression of the old society, and the expectation of new light was extraordinary, so they were extremely sensitive to these problems.
Therefore, scholars led by Guo Moruo unanimously agreed that it should be demolished. Just when the crowd was excited, Lin Huiyin and his wife put forward different voices: the ancient city wall must not be demolished.
Fight for the preservation of Chinese civilization
Lin Huiyin and Liang Sicheng are both famous architects and "architectural elders" after the founding of the People's Republic of China. In their eyes, the ancient city wall represents the beauty of ancient architectural art, without a trace of political significance. Lin Huiyin believes:
Beijing's "every category and every seat is a beautiful fruit created by the working people of the past, the blood and sweat." It is a great impression that these are back in the hands of the people themselves, and we take it for granted that they are invaluable. ”
In order to preserve this precious architectural relic, the two wrote an article of more than 20,000 words to the person in charge, explaining the importance of preserving the ancient city wall. Even about the "matter of affecting traffic", Lin Huiyin also thought of a compromise method: the ancient city wall was designed as a park, and Liang Sicheng also drew a beautiful schematic map.
In 1953, at a symposium on the transformation of the ancient city, Lin Hui said to everyone in pain:
"There are definitely contradictions and conflicts between cultural relics protection and the construction of new cities, but we must first consider how to protect and how to resolve contradictions, rather than first thinking about demolition." The scientific and aesthetic value of Chinese architecture is not worse than that of European and American architecture, protect them, in the future there will be money to repair it, to all citizens, the people of the whole country and foreign friends to visit and appreciate how good it should be, if demolished, everything is gone. ”
But the demolition of the ancient city walls at that time was supported by most people. Lin Hui's health was not good because of years of upheaval and displacement. At that time, it was already the late stage of tuberculosis, and it was necessary to reserve many ways to run for the ancient city wall, which not only aggravated the disease, but also failed to achieve the wish in the end.
It will never be able to turn back into a grudge
The ancient city wall was finally demolished, and Lin Huiyin was sad. Because of the objection to the harsh words:
"If you tear down the antiques, you will regret it in the future, even if you restore it later, it is only a fake antique!"
I didn't think that many years later, this sentence was completely fulfilled.
With the increasing emphasis on history and culture, as well as the rise of tourism. Many people want to restore the ancient city walls as a landmark. But today's Beijing, there is no suitable area for recovery.
Moreover, the reconstructed city wall cannot restore the historical background of that time, and everyone can only express deep regret.
Ancient architecture is a witness to China's history, and its demolition means the removal of a city's charm. Mr. and Mrs. Lin Huiyin have seen too many examples of the destruction of famous historical cities abroad and are well aware of the consequences of doing so. Although he tried his best to stop it, he ended in failure.
Two years later, Lin Huiyin quietly died of illness in deep regret.
"A poetic Thousand Waterfalls, an Ancient April Day". At Lin Huiyin's memorial service, Jin Yuelin wrote this elegy, interpreting Lin Huiyin's life.
Because of his outstanding contributions during his lifetime, he was buried in the Babaoshan Revolutionary Cemetery after his death. Her tombstone is inscribed with six big characters: Tomb of Architect Lin Huiyin.