Xiaozhan Military Training Base — A Glimpse of the Modern Military History of China

Xiaozhan Military Training Base, open to the public in 2008, offers a glimpse of the modern military history of China. Important historic buildings were restored in the base according to historical records. A scenic area and a military museum were also built to demonstrate the turbulent history with modern techniques, historic relics, images and multimedia technology. By April 2015, Xiaozhan Military Training Base received over 400,000 visitors. In collaboration with nongovernmental relics collection and research institutions like Quanshengge, Xiaozhan Military Training Base has attracted characteristic relics collectors to establish their private museums, so as to jointly develop cultural industry and highlight the historical and cultural heritage of Xiaozhan. A multimedia demonstration hall was built, where historical movies about military training were shown to visitors to give them a vivid impression of that period of history. More than 10,000 pictures constitute a distinctive feature of the base. Xiaozhan Town in Jinnan District, Tianjin used to be a military base at the end of Qing Dynasty. It witnessed the shift from cold weapons to hot weapons in Chinese army, as well as the establishment of the first modern army of China. Xiaozhan Town was prosperous for military training, and is known for its rice production. The museum not only demonstrates the military history of modern China, but also highlights Xiaozhan rice culture. It has become an attraction for visitors eager to know more about the history of Tianjin and China.