Donglin Academy facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Donglin Academy |
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| 東林書院 | |
The stone memorial arch in Donglin Academy
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| Location | Wuxi |
| Created | 1606 |
The Donglin Academy (also called the Guishan Academy) was an important old school in Wuxi, China. It was first built in 1111 during the Northern Song dynasty. A wise teacher named Yang Shi taught there. He was a neo-Confucian scholar, which means he studied and taught a special kind of Chinese philosophy. Over time, the school was not used and fell apart.
The name "Donglin" came from the Donglin Temple near Mount Lu. Yang Shi visited that temple and thought it was a great place for teaching. When he finished his studies, he traveled to Wuxi. He saw that the layout of this academy was similar to the Donglin Temple. So, he taught at this site for 18 years. That's how it got its name, "Donglin Academy."
A New Beginning: 1604
In 1604, during the Ming dynasty, a group of important scholars decided to rebuild the Donglin Academy. These scholars included Gu Xiancheng, Gao Panlong, Qian Yiben, An Xifan, and Yu Kongjian. They got money from local rich people and government officials. This rebuilding led to a group called the Donglin movement. These scholars wanted to make the government better.
Destruction and Rebuilding
In 1626, the academy was sadly destroyed. Only a part of its stone memorial arch was left. The school you see today was rebuilt much later. This happened during the Qing dynasty by the Yongzheng and Qianlong emperors. They rebuilt it to gain the support of Chinese scholars living in Wuxi.
The government of the People's Republic of China made improvements to the academy between 1981 and 1982.
