Since Taibo came to this area in 1147 BC to teach rites and teach farming, Yuhuatai has a history of more than 3,000 years. Since King Gou Jian of Yue built "Yue City" in 472 BC, the Yuhuatai area has become a good place for hiking in the south of the Yangtze River. During the Three Kingdoms period, the hillock was also called Shizigang, Agate Hill and Jubao Mountain because of the colorful stones all over it. During the period of Emperor Wu of Liang Dynasty in the Southern Dynasties, Buddhism was very popular. Master Yunguang, an eminent monk, often set up an altar on the top of the mountain behind the Gaozuo Temple here to give lectures. More than 500 monks sat and listened. The lectures were wonderful and captivating. The occasion was unprecedented. According to legend, this incident moved the Buddha, and the flowers fell like rain, turning into gorgeous stones everywhere. This is how the Yuhuatai got its name. During the Ming and Qing dynasties, "Yuhua Shuo" and "Mumo Fenggao" in the scenic area were listed as one of the "Eighteen Scenic Spots of Jinling" and the "Forty-eight Scenic Spots of Jinling" respectively.
In the three thousand years of history of Yuhuatai, many ancient sages and people with lofty ideals have performed magnificent lives here, leaving behind rich historical and cultural heritage. Li Bai, Wang Anshi, Lu You, Zhu Yuanzhang, Kangxi, Qianlong, Lu Xun, Tian Han, Guo Moruo and Liu Haisu all left beautiful poems about Yuhuatai. "There are four hundred and eighty temples in the Southern Dynasties, so many towers are in the mist and rain", "Snow reflects the purple on the mountain eyebrows, and the tops of the trees are rounded when the smoke disappears". These wonderful poems are a vivid portrayal of the cultural landscape and natural scenery of Yuhuatai in history.
The Kaozuo Temple, which was very prosperous in the Southern Dynasties, was abandoned in the early years of Hongwu, and most of the subsequent buildings were destroyed by fire. During the Guiyou period of Jingtai (1453), Hu Ying, the Minister of Rites, came to offer incense. The temple still existed in scale, but it was in a dilapidated state. During the Chenghua period, the monk Zhaotang raised money to repair it. In the twelfth month of the Wushen year of Hongzhi (1488), the restoration and expansion work was officially started. It was completed in October of the Bingchen year (1496). There are two main halls, as well as the east chamber, west hall, bell and drum tower, kitchen and other buildings. Behind the temple is the ancient rain flower terrace.
In the Yuhuatai Scenic Area, there is a famous scenic spot in history, the "Second Spring in the South of the Yangtze River". It was originally called Yuhua Spring, and was also called Yongning Spring in ancient times. The spring has two holes, and the water is 1 meter above the ground. It is clear and sweet, with excellent color and taste. The famous patriotic poet Lu You of the Southern Song Dynasty passed through Jiankang when he was working in Sichuan. He visited the Yuhuatai and made tea with the spring water. He praised it and called it the second spring, ranking first among the famous springs in Jinling. . In the Ming Dynasty, Zhao Qian inscribed a plaque for the Second Spring. The word "Jiangnan" and later the word "Di" were added by later generations. The "Second Spring in Jiangnan" engraved on the marble was inscribed by the famous contemporary calligrapher Xiao Xian. Above the Second Spring in Jiangnan is the century-old "Erquan Teahouse". The original tea house building was a wooden structure, which had been eroded by termites for many years and had become a dangerous building. With the continuous development and utilization of tourism resources in Yuhuatai Scenic Area, in order to expand the cultural characteristics of Yuhuatai Scenic Area, in 2001, Yuhuatai Scenic Area implemented an overall renovation of Erquan Teahouse.
Because Yuhuatai is a commanding height in the south of Nanjing, it has become a battleground for military strategists of all ages. Mei Yi, the prefect of Yuzhang in the Eastern Jin Dynasty, resisted foreign invasions here, and the Jin soldiers invaded in the Southern Song Dynasty. Yue Fei, the famous anti-Jin general, attacked the Jin soldiers here. After that, the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom defended Tianjing, the Revolution of 1911 defeated the Qing soldiers, and the "Capital Defense Battle" of the Anti-Japanese War, There have been beacon fires here, and Yuhuatai has gradually become deserted.
After 1927, Yuhuatai became the execution ground for the Kuomintang rulers to massacre communists and revolutionary patriots. After the founding of New China, the party and government decided to build a martyrs cemetery here.
The construction of the scenic spot can be divided into three periods. From 1949 to 1979, in accordance with the policy of "greening first, construction later", large-scale greening and afforestation work was mainly carried out; from the late 1970s to the mid-1990s, large-scale memorial buildings were successively built throughout the country. On the 1,500-meter-long central axis, from north to south, the sculptures of the martyrs, the Martyrs Monument, the Reflecting Pool, the Memorial Bridge, the Memorial Hall, the Loyal Soul Pavilion, etc. are unfolded in sequence. At the 20th Congress of the International Association of Architects held in Beijing in 1999, this group of ingenious memorial buildings won the "Artistic Creation Achievement Award".
Since the mid-1990s, large-scale construction of scenic spots has been carried out. Qianlong Imperial Monument, Erzhong Temple, Mumo Pavilion, Muxi Garden, Yiyuan and other scenic spots have been restored and built. The Yuhua Stone Museum and Jiangsu Province National Security Education Exhibition have been newly built. The museum has successively completed the construction of the New Democratic Revolution Martyrs Memorial Area, the Scenic and Historic Site Area, the Yuhua Stone Cultural Area, the Yuhua Tea Cultural Area, as well as the construction of the recreational activity area and the ecological dense forest area.
Today, Yuhuatai is a nationally unique monumental scenic spot that relies on natural mountains and forests, focuses on red tourism, and integrates natural scenery and cultural landscapes.