Gude Temple traces its origins to 1877 (the third year of the Guangxu reign of the Qing Dynasty), when monk Longchang established a modest thatched cottage named "Gude Maopeng" on what was then a slope at the eastern section of today's Jiefang Avenue and northern Huangpu Road in Hankou.
Gude Temple is distinguished by its rare fusion of Eurasian religious architectural features among Chinese Buddhist temples. Alongside Guiyuan Temple, Baotong Temple, and Lianxi Temple, it constitutes Wuhan's "Four Great Buddhist Monasteries".
The temple's core structure, Yuanton Treasure Hall, incorporates Romanesque architectural elements in its framework. The cloister-style ambulatory with square columns between interior and exterior walls, along with its round and lancet windows on the facade, reflect Christian church architectural styles.
The nine pagoda finials at Gude Temple resemble both weathervanes and crosses, standing as a unique example in China's pagoda cultural heritage. The temple also enshrines a Four-faced Buddha invited from Thailand, with each face symbolizing compassion, benevolence, universal love, and justice respectively.
