Abstract: The history of fossil Filicopsida investigation in China can be divided into three stages: (1) The stage of primarily studies on fossil ferns (1930-1949). Chinese palaeobotanists, instead of foreigners, began to study fossil plants including ferns in China. (2) The stage of morphological description of fossil ferns (1950-1989), during which a great number of megafossils of Filicopsida were found from all over China in various geological ages and described morphologically. Some important research works were published in the 1980''s and some dealt with the anatomic features of fossil ferns. (3) The stage of anatomic and reproductive researches on fossil ferns (1990-), with studies focusing mainly on the taxonomic, anatomic and reproductive aspects. The microstructures and ultrastructures of the rhizomes, stems and especially the reproductive organs are examined under a scanning electron microscope and a transmission electron microscope. The present paper is a brief review of the main progress of the investigation on the fossil Filicopsida in China during the past 70 years.