Former Residence of Cao Rulin

Former Residence of Cao Rulin

The former residence of Cao Rulin is a cultural tourism attraction.

The former residence of Cao Rulin is located at No. 108 Shanxi Road, Heping District. Covering an area of two mu, it is a three-story red-brick small Western-style building with a brick-and-wood structure, designed by architect Shen Liyuan, who was a student in Italy. It has a basement and features numerous Romanesque carvings and sculptures. The hallways and ceilings inside are adorned with plaster decorations and wainscoting, while the doors and windows are finely carved with woodwork. Upon entering the main building, on the left side of the hallway there is a dressing table with a glass-brick mirror in the middle and coat racks on both sides. At the far end of the hallway stands a large grandfather clock and a over-one-foot-tall bronze figure wearing a long coat, holding a lantern. The first floor houses a dining room, a living room, and a small dance hall. The second and third floors contain private spaces such as bedrooms and studies. The residence has both front and back yards. The front yard includes a guard room, a Buddhist shrine, a garage, a kitchen, and other facilities, all single-story buildings. After being dismissed from his post in 1919, Cao Rulin lived here. This residence is now used as residential housing and is listed as an immovable cultural relic in Tianjin that has not yet been officially designated as a protected heritage site.

Cao Rulin (1877–1966), originally from Zhejiang, was a high-ranking official in the early years of the Republic of China and the leader of the New Communications Clique. He was born in 1877 in Shanghai. In his childhood, he studied at a traditional private school before attending the Hanyang Railway School. He later studied law and politics at Waseda University in Japan. During the May Fourth Movement, his residence was tragically burned down. During the Anti-Japanese War, Cao Rulin refused to cooperate with the Japanese and declined the position of Prime Minister of the puppet government. Later, although he was nominally given honorary titles such as Supreme Advisor of the Provisional Government of North China and Consultant of the North China Political Council, he did not actively assist the Japanese and managed to preserve his integrity in his later years.

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