People's Square is a large public square in the

Huangpu District Huangpu, also formerly romanized Whangpoo or Whang-Po, may refer to: * Huangpu District, Shanghai, China ** Huangpu River, in Shanghai, China * Huangpu District, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China ** Huangpu Military Academy, in Guangzhou, China * Pazhou ...

of Shanghai. It is south of Nanjing Road (West) and north of Huaihai Road (East). People's Square is the site of Shanghai's municipal government headquarters building and the standard reference point for measurement of distance of almost all highways in the Shanghai municipality is set in the north of the square, near the fountain. Race Couse in Shanghai 1912

History

Prior to 1949 and the

establishment of the People's Republic of China The founding of the People's Republic of China was formally proclaimed by Mao Zedong, the Chairman of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), on October 1, 1949, at 3:00 pm in Tiananmen Square in Peking, now Beijing (formerly Beiping), the new ca ...

, what is now People's Square was a course for

horse racing Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic p ...

owned by the

Shanghai Race Club The Shanghai Race Club was a horse racing club located in Shanghai, China. The Club was based at the Shanghai Racecourse (), and the two names are often used interchangeably. Originally the Race Committee of the International Recreation Club, the ...

. Gambling and horse racing ceased during World War II and was not permitted to re-commence by the

Republic of China Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the northeast ...

government after the war. After the Chinese Civil War, the new

Communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...

government continued the ban and, when the club ran into financial difficulties, took over the grounds and a part of the race course became People's Square, which included a large avenue and spectator stands for use during parades. In the 1990s, major changes were made to the square. The Shanghai Municipal Government was moved here from the former HSBC Building on the Bund, also the

Shanghai Museum The Shanghai Museum is a museum of ancient Chinese art, situated on the People's Square in the Huangpu District, Shanghai, Huangpu District of Shanghai, China. Rebuilt at its current location in 1996, it is considered one of China's first world-c ...

was moved here from its previous site in a former office building. More recent additions include the Shanghai Grand Theatre and the

Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Hall The Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Center () is located on People's Square, Shanghai, adjacent to the municipal government building. The Exhibition Center is a six-story building, with two basement levels, which displays Shanghai's urban plan ...

. Other parts of the race course still remain. The clubhouse buildings became the Shanghai Art Museum, while part of the race track became People's Park, a public park.

Landmarks

Well-known landmarks and tourist attractions surrounding the square include: *

Grand Cinema ''Grand Cinema'' is a 1989 Iranian comedy film directed by Hassan Hedayat. It was entered into the 16th Moscow International Film Festival. Cast * Ebrahim Abadi * Akbar Abdi * Fereydoon Aboo Zia * Morteza Ahmadi * Hosein Amirfazli * Mahmoud ...

* K11, formerly known as the Hong Kong New World Tower * Municipal government headquarters * Nanjing Road * Park Hotel Shanghai (tallest building in Asia, 1934–1952) * People's Park * Radisson Blu Hotel Shanghai New World * Raffles City Shanghai * Shanghai Grand Theatre *

* Shanghai Art Museum * Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Center * Shimao International Plaza * Tomorrow Square *

Madame Tussauds Shanghai Madame Tussauds Shanghai (上海杜莎夫人臘像館) is a wax museum located on the 10th floor of the New World Department Store, Nanjing Xi Road, Shanghai, China. Opened May 1, 2006 it was the second Madame Tussauds museum to open in Asia after ...

The

is in a prominent central position in the square, with large fountains immediately to the north.

Transportation

The

Shanghai Metro The Shanghai Metro (; Shanghainese: ''Zaon6he5 Di6thiq7'') is a rapid transit system in Shanghai, operating urban and suburban transit services to 14 of its 16 municipal districts and to Kunshan, Jiangsu Province. Served as a part of Shangha ...

's People's Square Subway Station is an interchange among the subway's

Line 1 Line 1 or 1 line may refer to: Public transport Africa * Line 1 (Algiers Metro), Algeria * Cairo Metro Line 1, Egypt Asia China * Line 1 (Beijing Subway) * Line 1 (Changchun Rail Transit) * Line 1 (Changsha Metro) * Line 1 (Changzhou Metro) * L ...

Line 2 Line 2 or 2 Line may refer to: Public transport Americas *2 (New York City Subway service), a rapid transit service in the A Division of the New York City Subway *2 Line (Sound Transit), a light rail line in Seattle, Washington *Line 2 Bloor–Dan ...

, and Line 8. Several bus stops also ring the north and south sides of the square.

References

External links

Apr. 2007Sept. 2007Oct. 2007Jan. 2008
YouTube videos {{Coord, 31.229564, N, 121.47438, E, display=title Squares in Shanghai Tourist attractions in Shanghai Huangpu District, Shanghai

History

Landmarks

Transportation

See also

References

External links