Shanghai French Concession

JieEn (1)

The Shanghai French Concession (上海法租界) was a foreign concession in Shanghai, China from 1849 until 1943. The concession came to an end in 1943 when the Vichy French government signed it over to the pro-Japanese puppet government in Nanking.

The Chinese population in the French Concession swelled during the Taiping rebellion , reaching about 500,000 just before the start of the Second Sino-Japanese War. During World War II, Japanese forces initially occupied only the Chinese areas, leaving the foreign concessions alone. Although the French Concession began as a settlement for the French,  residents of the Chinese areas moved into the French Concession in large numbers, reaching 825,342.

This has been a fashionable area for well over a century and is now very developed as well. There are plenty of large buildings, mainly upmarket residential and office towers, quite a few hotels and a number of enormous shopping malls. At the same time, many of the picturesque older buildings — even whole neighbourhoods — have been renovated. There are a huge number of boutiques, galleries, bars and cafes scattered through the area. Due to the fact that it was once a French settlement, it is a beautiful street, quaint and pretty. Houses and shops are all European, with outdoor cafes sprinkled here and there. The serenity you feel amidst the busy and fast-paced Shanghai will make you almost feel you are walking somewhere in Europe.

A few historical buildings in the French Concession is the Sun Yat-sen's Former Residence, Soong Ching Ling's Former Residence and Shanghai Former Provisional Government Site of the Republic of Korea.