Very little is known about when the temple was first built, only that the complex was developed during the Ming Dynasty and underwent several renovations and expansions during the Qing Dynasty. It is now made up of halls, temples, pavilions and the Great General Guanyu's Tomb. Some valuable stone tablets with calligraphy are also found here. The place is very popular among the locals who worship the general by buing sticks of incense.
The Guanlin Temple was built to commemorate the great General Guanyu of the State of Shu during the Three Kingdoms Period. In the famous Romance of Three Kingdoms, the Shu General Guanyu was defeated, captured, and then executed by Sunquan, the ruler of the State of Wu. Fearing revenge from Guanyu's blood brother Liubei who was the ruler of the State of Shu, Sunquan ordered Guanyu's head to be sent to the ruler of Wei, named Caocao, in an attempt to deflect the responsibility for the death. Caocao, however, was an admirer of Guan's loyalty and bravery. He ordered a body to be carved out of wood to accompany the head before Guanyu was buried.
