Rabe's former residence

Rabe's former residence is located at No. 1, xiaofenqiao, Nanjing. It is the former residence of John H. D. Rabe, chairman of Nanjing international security zone.

Labe's former residence is a small German style building, and Sun Yat Sen's former residence Zhongshan building is located in the South Park of Nanjing University. During the Nanjing Massacre in December 1937, Rabe's residence, including residence and small garden, received and protected more than 600 Chinese refugees.

In December 1996, Rabe's granddaughter, Mrs. Reinhardt, published Rabe's diary in New York, USA. Rabe's former residence came back to people's view. After German President Johannes law visited Nanjing University in 2003, he actively promoted the renovation and reconstruction of his former residence. On December 6, 2005, Nanjing University signed an agreement with the German Consulate General in Shanghai and Siemens company to build "Rabe and international security zone Memorial" and "Rabe international research and Exchange Center for peace and conflict resolution" at the original site of the former residence in addition to renovating the former residence, which is expected to be open to the public free of charge in 2006.

Rabe's former residence

Rabe's former residence is located at No.1 xiaofenqiao, Guangzhou road, Gulou District, Nanjing city. It is also known as the memorial hall of Rabe and international security zone of Nanjing University. It is the former residence of John Rabe, the former chairman of Nanjing international security zone during the Anti Japanese war. It is a small German style building.

After the fall of Nanjing on December 13, 1937, a large number of people flocked to the safe area. At that time, there were 25 refugee shelters in the safe area. Rabe's former residence was one of them. When the number of refugees was the most, there were more than 630 people here.

At the same time, Rabe also recorded the scene in the form of diary. Rabe's diary is more than 2400 pages long, which truly records the atrocities of Japanese invaders in Nanjing Massacre.

In June 2006, Rabe's former residence was announced as a cultural relic protection unit in Jiangsu Province; in 2013, it was approved and announced as the seventh batch of national key cultural relic protection units by the State Council; in 2014, it was announced as the first batch of national anti Japanese War Memorial facilities and sites list; in December 2019, it was announced as "the fourth batch of Chinese 20th century architectural heritage".

Historical evolution

Rabe's former residence is located at No.1, xiaofenqiao, Guangzhou road, Gulou District, Nanjing City, and in the Gulou campus of Nanjing University. During the Nanjing Massacre, John Rabe, the representative of Siemens in Nanjing, saved the lives of tens of thousands of Chinese refugees. At the same time, he also wrote down the scene in the form of daily records, with a diary of more than 2400 pages, which truly recorded the Japanese troops in the Nanjing Massacre The brutality of war.

In the summer of 1932, Rabe and Xie Jinsheng, Dean of the Agricultural College of Jinling University, signed an agreement to rent a house built by the school to Rabe. The Agricultural College rented the western style garden villa built on the campus of Jinling University at No.10 XiaoTaoYuan (now No.1 xiaofanqiao) to Rabe. The Rabe family lived here for seven years.

In August 1937, Japanese planes began to bombard Nanjing. Rabe rushed back to Nanjing from Beidaihe, a summer resort. He personally designed the shelter for refugees in his courtyard, and then led us to rebuild and reinforce the shelter built in early August.

On December 13, 1937, Nanjing city fell. A large number of Chinese are flocking to the safe area, which has 25 refugee shelters. One of them is xiaofenqiao No.1, Rabe's residence, which is known as "Siemens refugee shelter". When the number of refugees is the most, there are more than 630 people here.

In December 1996, Rabe's granddaughter, Mrs. Reinhardt, published Rabe's diary in New York, USA. Rabe's former residence came back to people's view.

After German President Johannes law visited Nanjing University in 2003, he actively promoted the renovation and reconstruction of his former residence.

On December 6, 2005, Nanjing University signed an agreement with the German Consulate General in Shanghai and Siemens company to build "Rabe and international security zone Memorial" and "Rabe international research and Exchange Center for peace and conflict resolution" at the original site of the former residence in addition to renovating the former residence, which will be open to the public free of charge in 2006.

In June 2006, labe's former residence was announced as a cultural relic protection unit in Jiangsu Province.

In 2013, the State Council approved and announced the list of the seventh batch of national key cultural relics protection units, among which the memorial hall of Rabe and international security zone of Nanjing University (former residence of Rabe) was listed.

In 2014, Rabe's former residence was announced as the first batch of national anti Japanese War Memorial facilities and sites.

In December 2019, Rabe's former residence was announced as "the fourth batch of Chinese 20th century architectural heritage".

About the owner

Rabe, John H. D. Rabe (November 23, 1882 - January 5, 1950), was born in Hamburg, Germany in 1882. He was a German businessman born in Hamburg. His father was a captain. When he was 16 years old, his father died of illness. After graduating from junior high school, Rabe stopped his studies and went to make a living in society. In 1909, Rabe came to China, which he had been longing for for for a long time. His fiancee Dora also came to Beijing, where they married. He joined Siemens in Germany and became the manager of Beijing Branch and Tianjin Branch. In November 1931, Rabe came to Nanjing, the capital at that time, to develop business and became the manager of Nanjing Branch. Later, he became a member of the Nazi Party and became the leader of the Nazi party in Nanjing.

Rabe and Xie Jinsheng, Dean of the Agricultural College of Jinling University, signed an agreement that the school will build a house that integrates office and residence for lease to Rabe. The house is located at No.1 xiaofenqiao, Guangzhou road, with a quiet and elegant environment. His career is booming, and the residents around him are friendly and enthusiastic. Rabe is very happy to work and live here.

7、 The gunfire of the 7th incident broke Rabe's peaceful life. In August 1937, the Japanese began to bombard Nanjing. Rabe is on vacation in Beidaihe, and he comes back all night. He built an air raid shelter in the yard for the servants and nearby residents. In November, he and some Westerners set up a safe area, hoping to provide a shelter for refugees at the most dangerous time of the fall of Nanjing. He was pushed to be the chairman of the safe zone, and Rabe understood how heavy his burden was. "I should not hesitate to be the chairman," he said. The best youth of my life has been spent happily in this country. All my children and grandchildren were born here. My career has been successful here, and I have always been well treated by the Chinese people. " There are 25 refugee shelters in the safe area, gathering nearly 300000 refugees.

As the "executive mayor" in the extraordinary period, Rabe is facing difficulties like thousands of mountains. He used his Nazi identity to fight wits and bravery with the Japanese army, and repeatedly negotiated and protested with the Japanese consulate to prevent the wanton invasion and massacre of the Japanese army. He set his rented yard as a "Siemens" refugee shelter, and took in more than 600 nearby residents. Ding Yongqing, zongyouqin, and Li Shizhen were all protected by Rabe here in those years. He wrote his famous works here Rabe's diary records more than 500 massacres of Japanese atrocities. He led his members to seek international assistance, raise funds, and buy food and medicine. In particular, after going through hardships, he brought broad beans from Shanghai, which can prevent beriberi spreading. The refugees worshipped him and called him a living Bodhisattva.

In order to pay homage to Rabe, pastor McCallum specially composed a chorus of Nanjing refugees, in which there is bitterness hidden in the humorous lyrics: we want faba beans for breakfast, we want faba beans for lunch In February 1938, Rabe returned to Germany at the request of Siemens headquarters. He took Wang Guanghan, a Chinese pilot who was recovering from injuries in his home, to Shanghai as his servant and escorted him to Hong Kong. After his return to Germany, Rabe made five reports in Berlin, exposing the Japanese atrocities in Nanjing with indignation. He showed a film of Japanese atrocities by Pastor John Maggie, chairman of Nanjing Red Cross Society. He also sent an atrocity report to Adolf Hitler himself and Herman Goering, expecting Germany to come forward as soon as possible to stop the inhumane atrocity of its ally Japan. For this reason, he was persecuted by the Gestapo. After the Second World War, Rabe was treated unfairly because of his Nazi status. In his most depressed days, on the verge of starvation, the villagers in Nanjing did not abandon him! From Nanjing's fund-raising, food packages seem to fall from the sky, so that he rekindled the courage of life. In his later years, Rabe was haunted by the homesickness of Nanjing.

In 1950, Rabe died of a stroke in Berlin. After the end of the Second World War, Rabe was arrested by the Soviet Union and Britain for being a Nazi. After meeting Marshal Zhukov and confirming that he had made no mistakes, he was de nazized and released by the allies in June 1946, and his life was very poor. Song Meiling soon found out the whereabouts of the Rabe family. She hoped that Rabe could attend the Tokyo trial as a witness of the Nanjing Massacre, but she politely refused. In view of his achievements in Nanjing, he received donations from the citizens of Nanjing and monthly money and food aid from the national government. His family was able to survive the material shortage after the war, including the hard days of the Soviet blockade of West Berlin. This kind of assistance continued to the civil affairs

Chinese PinYin : La Bei Gu Ju