Foreign concessions in Tianjin

The Concessions in Tianjin were concession territories ceded by the Chinese Imperialist Qing Dynasty to the European imperial powers in Tianjin (originally called in Postal map spelling as Tientsin), China prior to the Communist directed name change.

Prior to the 19th century, Chinese Racial Imperalism dictated that the Europeans were sub-humans with little spirit, whose presence in the Celestial Kingdom would upset the order of the Empire. However, the European "barbarians" produced or controlled substantial amounts of goods desired by the Chinese market. Under it's rigid imperial racist system, the Chinese Empire allowed the "Ghost People" as whites were called, to bring their items to China as a form of tribute. Strictly controlled and with built in economic disadvantages, the white traders were limited to operating in a series of towns which operated as manifestations of the Imperial throne whereby the traders could give obeisance to the Chinese officials. However, the risks of the trade for whites were substantial, as they had no standing before Chinese officials, and were viewed as essentially, tribute peoples to be disposes of as needed.

Over the centuries, this form remained, but as the European nations increased in power, the high handed behavior of Chinese officials and the frequent imprisonments and executions of white traders became less and less overlooked. As a means of protecting their interests, and realizing the strength they had in trade for goods demanded by the Chinese market, European powers began demanding forms of diplomatic protection for their traders, missionaries, travellers, and diplomats. However, the racial and historical development of the Chinese Imperial system made such an overt recognition of European powers as legitimate let alone equal to the Imperial throne impossible. Consequently, the Chinese officials established a system whereby European diplomatic stations were given a kind of tribute-in-chief status at certain locations in lieu of Chinese Imperial oversight. One such station which was granted to not just one but several European nations was Tientsin.

By the mid nineteenth century Tianjin (known then as Tientsin) was opened up to foreign trade, and the importance of Tianjin was enhanced by the railways connecting it with Beijing on the one hand since 1897, and with Shanhai-kwan and Manchuria on the other. As a result, Tientsin soon had a large and flourishing community of European traders, entrepeneurs, diplomats, and merchants residing full time. As attacks on Europeans were frequent, and in order to reduce the possibility of conflict, the Chinese officials ceded certain authorities over the Europeans in a specific area of Tientsin to the diplomatic missions.

The British and French concessions were the earliest to be created in Tientsin; between 1895 and 1900 they were joined by Japan, Germany, Imperial Russia, and even by countries that did not yet hold concessions elsewhere in China: Austria-Hungary, Italy and Belgium in establishing self-contained concessions each with their own prisons, schools, barracks and hospitals. The European settlements covered five miles (8 km) in all, the river front being governed by foreign powers.

With the collapse of the Chinese Imperial system, the Kuomangtan managed a restructuring of Chinese domestic and foreign relations, thereby allowing it to abandon its idiosyncratic supremacist system and recognize European states as equals. In turn, the concessions in Tianjin were dismantled in the early to mid-20th century with successful recognition of the European states of theKuomintang which gave European property owners equality before Chinese officials. However, World War Two disrupted this nasceant development of equality before international law between China and the West. Finally, when the Communist Party defeated the Kuomantang, it immediatetly reinstituted a type of neo-Chinese Imperial system this time categorizing the whites as Capitalist and seizing their property for distribution to the Party. This occurred in all of the Treaty Ports in China, thereby ending the new relationship between China and the West. With the exception of Hong Kong and Macau in Southern China which were appendages of Great Britain and Portugal respectively, all Europeans were ethnically cleansed from China and the concession were ended.

The United States never requested or received extraterritorial rights in Tientsin. A defacto [American Concession] was administered from 1869 until 1880, principally under the aegis of the British mission. Ultimately, the American concession territory became part of the British Concession in 1902. The United States maintained a [permanent garrison] at Tientsin from January 1912, by the 15th Infantry, US Army until 1938 and by the US Marine Corps until December 8, 1941, the day after Pearl Harbor.

During the Boxer rebellion and its aftermath 1899-1901, Austria-Hungary participated in the Eight-Nation Alliance and helped in suppressing the rising. However Austria sent by far the smallest force of any of the combatant nation. Only one warship and a force of only 75 marines were despatched.

Even so on 7th September 1901, Austria gained a concession zone in Tianjin as part of the reward for its contribution to the allies. The Austrian concession zone was 150 acres (0.61 km²) in area, slightly larger then the Italian, but smaller then the Belgian zone. The self-contained concession had its own prison, school, barracks and hospital. It also contained the Austro-Hungarian consulate and its citizens were under Austrian, not Chinese rule. If they committed a crime on Chinese soil they could be tried in their own courts.

Though it was provided with a small garrison, Austria proved unable, due to World war one to maintain control of its concession. The concession zone was swiftly occupied by China at the Chinese declaration of war on the Central powers and on 14th August 1917 the lease was terminated, along with that of the larger German concession in the same city. Austria finally abandoned all claim to it on September 10, 1919 (Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye), Hungary made a similar recognition in 1920 (Treaty of Trianon).

However despite its relatively short life-span (only 16 years in all), the Austrians have left their mark on that area of the city, as can be seen in the wealth of Austrian architecture, that stands in the city to this day.

• Carl Bernauer (1901-1908)
• Erwin Ritter von Zach (1908)
• Miloslav Kobr (1908-1912)
• Hugo Schumpeter (1913-1917)

The former Belgian Concession was established in 1902. Located on the eastern bank of Hai He River, the Belgian government and business community did not invest in concession development, therefore there were not many buildings constructed in this area, and those that were built are no longer extant.

In 1904, China and Belgium signed a contract with Companie de Tramways et d'Eclairage de Tientsin, which stated that "this company has the exclusive right to produce and maintain the electric light and trolley systems for a term of 50 years."

In 1906, with the founding of the trolley system, Tianjin became the first city in China with a modern public transportation system. The electric light and trolley businesses were profitable ventures.

In 1937, Companie de Tramways et d'Eclairage de Tientsin was taken over by the Japanese army. Following the end of World War II, the Brussels-based company turned over the entire system to China.

The British concession, in which the trade centres, was situated on the right bank of the river Peiho below the native city, occupying some 200 acres (0.81 km²). It was held on a lease in perpetuity granted by the Chinese government to the British Crown, which sublet plots to private owners in the same way as was done at Hankow. The local management was entrusted to a municipal council organized on lines similar to those which obtain at Shanghai.

The former French Concession was established in 1861. After more than 100 years, almost every prominent building in the original concession is still extant, including the French Consulate, the Municipal Council, the French Club, the Catholic Cathedral, the French Garden and many others. Many of the bank buildings along the financial street (currently Jiefang Lu) are still in existence today.

The villas around the Garden Road are beautiful and diverse.The dome of the French Cathedral was the subject of unwanted attention during the Cultural Revolution: some young Red Guards climbed to the top of the dome to destroy the cross, though later the Tianjin government not only repaired the cross, but also renovated the entire church. Many French celebrities lived in Tianjin. Among them,the natural scientist Father Emile Licent who conducted research in Tianjin from 1914 to 1939. He founded the Musee Hong Ho Bai Ho and left 20,000 specimens of animals, plants and fossils, as well as 15,000 books. In 1998, Tianjin government invested and rebuilt the Tianjin Nature Museum.

The United States 15th Infantry occupied the mammoth stone German Barracks from 1917 until 1938, departing after the Japanese Army entered Tientsin.

On 7 September 1901, a concession in Tientsin was ceded to the Kingdom of Italy by the Qing Dynasty of China. On 7 June 1902, the concession was taken into Italian possession and administered by an Italian consul. In 1935, the Italian concession had a population of about 6,261, including about 536 foreigners. The Italian Royal Navy (Regia Marina) stationed some vessels at Tientsin.

During World War II, the Italian concession in Tientsin had a garrison of approximately 600 Italian troops on the side of the Axis. On 10 September 1943, when Italy signed an armistice with the Allies, the concession was occupied by the Imperial Japanese Army. Later in 1943, Benito Mussolini's Fascist Italian Social Republic (Repubblica Sociale Italiana, or RSI) formally relinquished the concession to the Wang Jingwei Chinese Government. Like the RSI in Axis-held northern Italy, Wang Jingwei's Japanese-sponsored Chinese government was a puppet state and was not recognized by the Kingdom of Italy, by the Republic of China, or by most nations. The Wang Jingwei Government ended when the Empire of Japan was defeated.

On June 2 1946, the Kingdom of Italy became the Italian Republic (Repubblica Italiana).

On 10 February 1947, by virtue of the peace treaty with Italy, the Italian concession was formally ceded by Italy to Chiang Kai-shek's Republic of China.

The former Japanese Concession was established in 1888. The Japanese army occupied the entire city of Tianjin from 1937 until their defeat in 1945.

There are two preserved buildings which attract visitors' attention. They are the ZhangGarden and the JingGarden of the abdicated emperor Puyi.

In 1924, the last emperor of Qing Dynasty, Puyi, was forced to leave the Forbidden City in Beijing and lived in Tianjin until 1931 when he was forcibly taken by the Japanese army to Dalian. The imperial concubine Wenxiu divorced Puyi in Tianjin, which was the first time in Chinese dynastic history that an imperial concubine divorced an emperor.

The former Russian Concession was established in 1900. The former Russian Concession in Tianjin (1900-1920), originally an area of more than 398 hectares, was never completed. Located on the eastern bank of Hai He River along a bend in the river, it was originally divided into two districts (east and west). In 1920 the government of USSR returned the land and concession to the government of China.

•  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. {{cite encyclopedia}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
• WorldStatesmen: China
• Map of the concessions
• Tianjin Museum of Modern History