Why go
This history explains why the old waterfront contains European buildings and why May Fourth carries meaning beyond the name of a square. The port, railway and brewery belonged to the same strategic economy. Reading them together gives a fuller account than admiring the architecture apart from the people and political struggles behind it.
The full story
The Qing government strengthened Qingdao’s coastal defences in 1891. German forces subsequently occupied the area, and the concession established in 1898 lasted until 1914. Qingdao became its administrative centre and a base for Germany’s navy in East Asia. Port works, railway construction and commercial enterprises transformed the area. The railway to Jinan connected the coast with Shandong’s interior, while the brewery opened in 1903. This development also involved the relocation of Chinese residents; the surviving buildings belong to a history of unequal power as well as engineering and design. Japan took Qingdao in 1914. The postwar decision not to restore Chinese control helped trigger the May Fourth Movement. The city returned to Chinese rule in 1922, although Japanese economic influence continued. A second Japanese occupation began in 1938. These changes of control explain why the city’s architectural history cannot be reduced to a single German period.