People's Square is a large

public square A town square (or square, plaza, public square, city square, urban square, or ''piazza'') is an open public space, commonly found in the heart of a traditional town but not necessarily a true geometric square, used for community gatherings. ...

in the Huangpu District of

Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flowin ...

. It is south of Nanjing Road (West) and north of

Huaihai Road Huaihai Road or Huaihai Lu (; Shanghainese: ''Wahae Lu'') is a road in Shanghai, China. The central section of Huaihai Road is one of the two major shopping streets in central Shanghai; the other is Nanjing Road. Compared with the more touristy N ...

(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, 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. 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 Chinese Civil War was fought between the Kuomintang-led government of the Republic of China and forces of the Chinese Communist Party, continuing intermittently since 1 August 1927 until 7 December 1949 with a Communist victory on main ...

, 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, ...

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 The Shanghai Grand Theater () is a complex located at the intersection of Central Boulevard and Huangpi Road South in the northern part of the People's Square in the Huangpu District of Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronun ...

and the Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Hall. Other parts of the race course still remain. The clubhouse buildings became the

Shanghai Art Museum The Shanghai Art Museum () was an art museum in the city of Shanghai, China. In October 2012, the museum was rebranded as the China Art Museum when it moved to the China pavilion at Expo 2010 on the former Shanghai Expo 2010 lands. The Shang ...

, 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 * K11, formerly known as the Hong Kong New World Tower * Municipal government headquarters * Nanjing Road *

Park Hotel Shanghai Park Hotel (), historically the Shanghai Joint Savings Society Building, is an Art Deco hotel on Nanjing Road West, Shanghai, China. It was the tallest building in Asia from its completion in 1934 to 1963. History The Shanghai Joint Savings So ...

(tallest building in Asia, 1934–1952) * People's Park *

Radisson Blu Hotel Shanghai New World The Radisson Blu Hotel Shanghai New World, also known as Radisson Hotel Shanghai New World or Radisson New World Hotel, is a hotel located at 88 Nanjing Road West (南京路88号), across from People's Park, in Shanghai's Huangpu District, in C ...

Raffles City Shanghai Raffles City Shanghai () is a skyscraper in Shanghai, China. It is 222 m high, has 49 stories and was completed in 2003. Its base contains a shopping mall, with the tower devoted to office space. See also * List of tallest buildings in Shangha ...

Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Center 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 ...

Shimao International Plaza Shimao International Plaza () is a tall skyscraper of 60 stories in Shanghai's Huangpu District. It was completed in 2006 under the design of '' Ingenhoven, Overdiek und Partner'', ''East China Architecture'' and ''Design Institute''. Shimao ...

Tomorrow Square Tomorrow Square () is the eighth-tallest building in Shanghai, China. It is located in Huangpu District, Puxi, close to People's Square. It is about 285 m (934 ft) tall and has 63 floors. This multi-purpose building contains a 342-r ...

* Madame Tussauds Shanghai 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 Shang ...

's People's Square Subway Station is an interchange among the subway's Line 1, Line 2, and Line 8. Several bus stops also ring the north and south sides of the square.

References

External links

Apr. 2007Sept. 2007Oct. 2007Jan. 2008

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videos {{Coord, 31.229564, N, 121.47438, E, display=title Squares in Shanghai Tourist attractions in Shanghai Huangpu District, Shanghai