203 Hill
203 Hill (in Chinese: 二零三高地 or in Japanese: 二〇三高地) is a high ground located in Lushunkou District, Dalian, Liaoning Province, China. In 1904-1905, one of the fiercest battles was fought between the Japanese and Russian armies in the Siege of Port Arthur, during the Russo-Japanese War.
It is so named because it is 203 metres (666 ft) above sea level.
Maresuke Nogi after the battle used the same Chinese pronunciation to name it the "Mountain Where Your Souls Lie" (in Chinese: 爾靈山; Erlingshan) in his famous poem:[1]
| 爾靈山 | Mountain Where Your Souls Lie (Nireizan) |
|---|---|
| 爾靈山嶮豈難攀 男子功名期克艱 |
Can we say it was easy to climb Nireizan? Was it without difficulty because men sought their honor? |
In 1993, the Japan-China Friendship Exchange Support Association for Children donated 1,300 cherry blossom trees to Dalian City, which were planted at the foot of the South Peak of 203 Hill. Since 1998, the local area began to hold the annual "Cherry Blossom Journey" event. Since 2005, it has been upgraded to Dalian Lushun Cherry Blossom Festival. 203 Highland Cherry Blossom Garden is one of the venues. In April 2009, the 203 Highland New Cherry Blossom Garden was opened. The new Garden covers an area of more than 500,000 square meters and has more than 3700 cherry blossoms of 18 varieties.[2][3]
See also[]
- Dalian
- Lushunkou District
- Russo-Japanese War
- Siege of Port Arthur
- The Battle of Port Arthur
References[]
- ^ ""The Mountain Where Your Souls Lie", a poem by Maresuke Nogi". Archived from the original on 2009-07-28. Retrieved 2009-05-19.
- ^ "旅顺樱花节携春风而来". 大连日报. 新浪网. 2005-04-14.
- ^ "旅顺203高地新樱花园举办樱花节". 滑雪网. 2009-04-27.
External links[]
Coordinates: 38°49′43″N 121°11′36″E / 38.82861°N 121.19333°E
- Dalian
- Russo-Japanese War