The Zhabei City History :1843-1937

History of the city zone is a research of special region of a city, deepening urban history by paying attention to space differences within one city. This paper researches the history of a zone of Shanghai named Zhabei during 1843-1937, because it is a very important region of Shanghai and has developed quickly with great changes during these years.Form early 20th century, Zhabei begins its urbanization, and soon became an important zone of Chinese region of Shanghai. Its development is divided into three phrases: starting phase during 1903-1911, thriving phase during 1911-1932, and declining phase during 1932-1937. Zhabei developed in the situation that Shanghai was separated by Chinese region and concession region , and it was supposed to prosper Chinese region of Shanghai while restrict the concession region. So the authorities of concession wanted to annex Zhabei and the authorities of China resisted.Zhabei became an important industrial and commercial center of Shanghai in the first 30 year of the 20th Century by the influence of the concession, but the factories in Zhabei were small and were mostly in possession of Chinese low-down capitalists.The municipal administration of Zhabei was progressed independently in predicament, including the conflict between Chinese and the foreigners, the competition of local elites and government and the problem between Shanghai county and Baoshan county.Zhabei is a region with dense population in Shanghai which mostly occupied by immigrants, pauper and labors, so the community of Zhabei is intervenient between urban and rural.Zhabei had once been under the influence of war ~ domestic and international war, and declined gradually after the war between china and Japan in Shanghai in 1932 and 1937. Zhabei is a special region of Shanghai which is permeated by much contradiction, including the conflict between Chinese and foreigners, the gap between Chinese rural culture and the Western industrial culture, the problem accompany with urbanization and the aftermath of the wars. So Zhabei is distinguished from the other old counties and the concessions in Shanghai.The development of Zhabei tells us the important influence of West and the powerful function of politics in the development of Shanghai city. It also tells us that Shanghai has another face under the prosperous surface. The research of different regions of a great city is helpful to understand the history of the city.