Former Site of the Belgian Consulate

Former Site of the Belgian Consulate

The former site of the Belgian Consulate is a cultural relic protection unit of Tianjin.

The former site of the Belgian Consulate is located at 102-104 Jiefang North Road, Heping District. It is a cultural relic protection unit of Tianjin and is classified as a historically significant building under key protection in the city.

The original Belgian Concession in Tianjin was established in 1902, making it the only Belgian concession in modern China, until it was reclaimed by the Chinese government in 1931. Since Belgium had its own designated area in Tianjin at that time, why was its consulate located in the former British Concession?

Because the original Belgian Concession was situated—adjacent only to the former Russian Concession to the north and cut off by the Haihe River to the southwest—it faced poor transportation and thus saw no large-scale development after its designation. Among the infrastructure development efforts across Tianjin’s various former foreign concessions, Belgium was exceptionally active, almost acting as the “project leader.” After the establishment of the original concessions in Tianjin, during the rule of the British-controlled Provisional Government, Belgium secured the franchise to establish an electric tram and lighting company in Tianjin through competition. The Belgian Electric Tram and Lighting Company (hereafter referred to as “the Belgian Company”) set up its head office in Brussels, Belgium, and was registered in Hong Kong. After its establishment, the Belgian Company first installed electrical wire networks in the former concessions of Austria-Hungary, Italy, Russia, and Belgium, as well as other areas.

At the time, people had limited understanding of electricity and were quite resistant to these new innovations like electric lights and wires. To address this, the Belgian Company hired Chinese managers, installed light bulbs for free in busy districts, reduced electricity rates, and waived meter deposits. As a result, the Belgian Company’s electric lighting business began to take off. When night fell, the city of Tianjin glowed with bright lights, as luminous as daylight, becoming a notable attraction.

In 1905, the Belgian Company began laying tracks on roads built over the foundations of the old city walls. By 1906, the inauguration of the single-track “city-circling” White Tram marked the birth of China’s first public bus line and the starting point of urban public transportation in the country.

By 1912, in just six short years, the Belgian Company had recouped all its investments and earned considerable profits. However, because the original Belgian Concession was remote and transportation was inconvenient, while the company needed to maintain close contact with authorities from various countries for its operations, the Belgian government decided to locate its consulate in the then most bustling and well-connected former British Concession—that is, at the current site of the former Belgian Consulate.

Source: Heping District Culture and Tourism Bureau

Further Reading:

· Fourth Batch of Cultural Relic Protection Units in Tianjin