Former Site of the Mixed Court of the Shanghai International Settlement

Former Site of the Mixed Court of the Shanghai International Settlement

The former site of the Mixed Court of the Shanghai International Settlement is a protected cultural heritage site of Shanghai.

Former Site of the Mixed Court of the Shanghai International Settlement

Located at No. 191 Zhejiang North Road, it was originally built in 1899 during the Guangxu reign of the Qing Dynasty. It once served as the Mixed Court (also known as the Joint Tribunal) in the late Qing period, and later as the First Special District Local Court of Jiangsu-Shanghai and the Second Branch of the Jiangsu High Court during the Republican era. On August 11, 1949, Shanghai Mayor Chen Yi proclaimed the establishment of the Shanghai People's Court here (at No. 191 Zhejiang North Road).

No. 191 Zhejiang North Road has witnessed three distinctly different and significant historical periods.

1. The establishment of consular jurisdiction and the Mixed Court system in the concession during the late Qing period is historical evidence of China’s prolonged semi-colonial status and partial loss of judicial sovereignty after the Opium Wars, reflecting the judicial privileges foreign powers held in China. The Mixed Court system differed from the traditional “yamen” (official court) system of feudal China. As the judicial body within the Shanghai International Settlement, it was more influenced by Western legal systems, embodying a blend of Chinese and Western judicial cultures.

2. After the May Thirtieth Incident in 1925, public demands to reclaim consular jurisdiction and abolish the Mixed Court grew stronger. In early 1927, the then Nationalist Government abolished the Mixed Court and established the Provisional Court of the Shanghai International Settlement with an appeals function on the original site, which was later renamed the First Special District Local Court of Jiangsu-Shanghai.

3. Until the founding of New China in 1949, this site also witnessed the establishment of the Shanghai People's Court.

“Many cases tried here have had a significant impact on modern and contemporary Chinese history, revolutionary history, and legal history. According to preliminary information: in the late Qing period, the Mixed Court tried the first trademark dispute case in modern Shanghai—the ‘Xiang?’ soap counterfeiting the ‘Xiangmao’ case—and handled cases involving democratic revolutionaries such as Zhang Taiyan, Zou Rong, Huang Xing, and Chen Tianhua. During the Republican period, it tried cases involving Zhang Jingwu, editor of the China New Daily, Shao Lizi, editor of the Republican Daily, the masterminds of the May Thirtieth Incident, and the first trial of Hanjian (traitor) criminals such as Ling Guangyan after the victory of the Anti-Japanese War. A number of veteran revolutionaries and predecessors were also imprisoned and tried here. After the liberation of Shanghai, major criminal cases and those that had a significant social impact were tried here, such as the case of spy Ye Danqiu who murdered underground radio operators of the Chinese Communist Party, the case of spy Su Lingge who was behind the bloody incidents involving the magazines Wen Cui and Yan Tong, and the case of Wang Kangnian, manager of the private Dakang West Pharmacy, who swindled the Chinese People's Volunteer Army during the Korean War.”

“In a sense, the history of local trials and courts in Shanghai is also a microcosm of the development of China’s legal system. This building was once known as the ‘Far East’s No. 1 Court,’ featuring characteristics of both traditional Chinese yamen and modern Western courts. Excavating and organizing the judicial events that took place at the former site of No. 191 Zhejiang North Road holds positive significance. It serves as a vivid and authentic educational resource for promoting patriotism, as well as for historical and legal education.” However, No. 191 Zhejiang North Road has now been included in the old city redevelopment area of Zhabei District, with the surrounding region planned as an administrative and cultural center. Municipal People’s Congress representative Shen Zhixian called in a written opinion for greater efforts in protecting and utilizing historically and culturally significant sites during Shanghai’s cultural development. Relevant authorities are urged to establish the Shanghai Court Museum on the site as part of the redevelopment plan. As a public cultural facility, the museum would primarily serve functions related to legal education, judicial cultural exchange, while also accommodating tourism and other supplementary roles.

On April 4, 2014, the Shanghai Municipal People’s Government officially designated and announced the former site of the Mixed Court of the Shanghai International Settlement as a protected cultural heritage site of Shanghai (Hu Fu Fa [2014] No. 29).