The Shanghai French concession is an alluring hotchpotch of European architecture scattered throughout a maze of narrow tree lined streets. Ornate cast iron railings, boutique shops, and chic bars pay homage to its former glory. In 1842, after the British set up shop along the banks of the Huangpu River, there was a scramble from other nations to follow. The French concession was established in 1849.
Initially the French participated with the other foreign nationals, but in 1862, they created their very own de facto sovereign state. Between the years of 1900 and 1914 it was expanded, absorbing greater numbers of foreign nationals who became known as Shanghailanders. Many British and Americans chose to build spacious residences in its newer western section. In the wake of the Russian Revolution nearly seven thousand Russians arrived and made the French concession their home. They owned most of the shops on Avenue Joffe, the main commercial street, (today’s Huaihai Road). Two Russian Orthodox churches remain today. By the 1930s the concession which dominated the central, south and western part of urban Shanghai was also renowned as a center for brothels, gambling, and opium. Various political upheavals led to more Chinese leftist artists and intellectuals moving into the area. By the time of the Japanese occupation in 1937 over 800,000 Chinese lived in the French concession.
After the war most Shanghailanders fled. Despite the handover and subsequent communist takeover in 1949, the French concession remained largely unchanged until the 1980s when unregulated development started to carve up various neighborhoods. Building regulations have since been tightened and the area retains much of its original charm.