Shanghai International Settlement

Shanghai International Settlement
上海公共租界
International Settlement
1863–1941/1943
Flag of Shanghai International Settlement
Flag of the Shanghai Municipality before World War I
Seal of the Shanghai Municipality before World War I of Shanghai International Settlement
Seal of the Shanghai Municipality before World War I

Location of Shanghai International Settlement (in red) relative to the French Concession (faded yellow) and the Chinese zone (gray)
DemonymShanghailander Shanghainese people
Area 
• 1925
22.59 km2 (8.72 sq mi)
Population 
• 1910
501,561
• 1925
1,137,298
Government
 • MottoOmnia Juncta in Uno (Latin)
"All Joined into One"
History 
• Established
1863
• Disestablished
1941/1943
Preceded by
Succeeded by
British Concession (Shanghai)
American Concession (Shanghai)
Reorganized National Government of the Republic of China
Today part of China
Nanking Road, Shanghai, within the International Settlement.
1935 map of Shanghai showing the International Settlement with its boundary marked "settlement boundary", as well as the French Concession with an unlabelled boundary also marked.
Shanghai International Settlement
Chinese上海公共租界
Literal meaningShanghai communal concession territories
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinShànghǎi Gōnggòng Zūjiè
Wade–GilesShang-hai Kung-kung Tsu-chieh
Wu
Shanghainese
Romanization
Zånhae Konkun Tsyga

The Shanghai International Settlement (Chinese: 上海公共租界) originated from the 1863 merger of the British and American enclaves in Shanghai, in which British and American citizens would enjoy extraterritoriality and consular jurisdiction under the terms of unequal treaties agreed by both parties. These treaties were abrogated in 1943.

The British settlements were established following the victory of the British in the First Opium War (1839–1842). Under the terms of the Treaty of Nanking, the five treaty ports including Shanghai were opened to foreign merchants, overturning the monopoly then held by the southern port of Canton (Guangzhou) under the Canton System. The British also established a base on Hong Kong. American and French involvement followed closely on the heels of the British and their enclaves were established north and south, respectively, of the British area.

Unlike the colonies of Hong Kong and Macau, where the United Kingdom and Portugal enjoyed full sovereignty in perpetuity, the foreign concessions in China remained under Chinese sovereignty. In 1854, the three countries created the Shanghai Municipal Council (SMC) to serve all their interests, but, in 1862, the French concession dropped out of the arrangement. The following year the British and American settlements formally united to create the Shanghai International Settlement. As more foreign powers entered into treaty relations with China, their nationals also became part of the administration of the settlement. The number of treaty powers had climbed to a high of 19 by 1918 but was down to 14 by the 1930s: the United Kingdom, the United States, Japan, France, Italy, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, the Netherlands, Spain, Portugal, Peru, Mexico, and Switzerland.

Nonetheless, the SMC remained a predominantly British affair until the growth of Japan's involvement in the late 1930s. The international character of the Settlement was reflected in the flag and seal of the Municipal Council, which featured the flags of several countries.[note 1]

The international settlement came to an abrupt end in December 1941 when Japanese troops stormed in immediately following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. In early 1943, new treaties signed formally ended the extraterritorial privileges of Americans and Britons, although its terms were not met until the recovery of Shanghai following Japan's 1945 surrender. The French later surrendered their privileges in a separate agreement in February 1946.

It was one of two Chinese international settlements, along with Gulangyu International Settlement.
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