Utopia University
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Utopia University, known in Chinese as Datong or Tatung University, was a private university in
Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...
. It was established in March 1912 by a group of former Tsinghua faculty members led by Hu Dunfu, and became one of the most reputable private universities in China. After the founding of the
People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
, the
Chinese Communist Party The Communist Party of China (CPC), also translated into English as Chinese Communist Party (CCP), is the founding and One-party state, sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Founded in 1921, the CCP emerged victorious in the ...
government closed Utopia along with many other private universities in 1952. Its departments, faculty members, and students were divided and merged into various universities in Shanghai.


Founding

In April 1911, the American government established Tsinghua College (now
Tsinghua University Tsinghua University (THU) is a public university in Haidian, Beijing, China. It is affiliated with and funded by the Ministry of Education of China. The university is part of Project 211, Project 985, and the Double First-Class Constructio ...
) in
Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...
, using part of indemnity payment made by the
Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing, was a Manchu-led Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China and an early modern empire in East Asia. The last imperial dynasty in Chinese history, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the ...
in the aftermath of the
Boxer Rebellion The Boxer Rebellion, also known as the Boxer Uprising, was an anti-foreign, anti-imperialist, and anti-Christian uprising in North China between 1899 and 1901, towards the end of the Qing dynasty, by the Society of Righteous and Harmonious F ...
. In summer, a group of eleven Chinese faculty members at Tsinghua, most of whom were from the
Jiangnan Jiangnan is a geographic area in China referring to lands immediately to the south of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River, including the southern part of its delta. The region encompasses the city of Shanghai, the southern part of Jiangsu ...
region, established the Lida Society () to promote education in China. Hu Dunfu was the head of the society, and other members included Ping Hailan (), Zhu Xiangwan (), and Gu Yangwu (). In November 1911, the eleven members of Lida resigned from Tsinghua after having a disagreement with the American administrators at the college, and left Beijing for Shanghai. Hu Dunfu, the first dean of Tsinghua who had graduated in mathematics from
Cornell University Cornell University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university based in Ithaca, New York, United States. The university was co-founded by American philanthropist Ezra Cornell and historian and educator Andrew Dickson W ...
, insisted that students of Tsinghua should study more science and engineering, but American teachers, backed by the American ambassador, maintained that they should focus more on the English language and the literature, history and geography of America. They were also angered by the stark contrast in treatment between American and Chinese teachers in Tsinghua; the former were paid nearly ten times as much as the latter, so they were determined to found a university that was academically independent and truly belonged to the Chinese people. In Shanghai, Hu Dunfu was invited by Ma Xiangbo, his former teacher at the Catholic school Collège Saint-Ignace, to be the dean of Fudan Public School (now
Fudan University Fudan University (FDU) is a public university, national public university in Yangpu, Shanghai, Yangpu, Shanghai, China. It is affiliated with the Ministry of Education (China), Ministry of Education and is co-funded with the Shanghai Municipal ...
), which was founded by Ma in 1905. However, Hu soon left Fudan after a student strike at the school. In March 1912, Hu and his colleagues of the Lida Society founded Utopia School () in Nanshi, Shanghai, with Hu as president. The inaugural class had 91 students.


Republican era

In September 1922, Utopia School was certified by the government as a private university, and changed its name to Utopia University. It had 600 students at the time. In the 1920s, Utopia developed into one of the best private universities in China. It was divided into three schools, for literature, science, and business, which were further divided into nine departments. It also established an affiliated secondary school. The campus occupied an area of 90 '' mu'', and had 15 buildings. A 1920s inspection report of six major private universities in Shanghai by the Chinese Ministry of Education praised Utopia and University of Shanghai as the most outstanding. Nationally, Utopia and
Nankai University Nankai University is a public university in Tianjin, China. It is affiliated with the Ministry of Education of China. The university is part of Project 211, Project 985, and the Double First-Class Construction. Nankai University was establ ...
in
Tianjin Tianjin is a direct-administered municipality in North China, northern China on the shore of the Bohai Sea. It is one of the National Central City, nine national central cities, with a total population of 13,866,009 inhabitants at the time of the ...
were considered the best private universities in China. In 1937, the
Second Sino-Japanese War The Second Sino-Japanese War was fought between the Republic of China (1912–1949), Republic of China and the Empire of Japan between 1937 and 1945, following a period of war localized to Manchuria that started in 1931. It is considered part ...
erupted, and the
Imperial Japanese Army The Imperial Japanese Army (IJA; , ''Dai-Nippon Teikoku Rikugun'', "Army of the Greater Japanese Empire") was the principal ground force of the Empire of Japan from 1871 to 1945. It played a central role in Japan’s rapid modernization during th ...
attacked Shanghai in August. During the battle, Japanese bombing destroyed many of Utopia's buildings. After the Japanese occupied the Chinese-held areas of Shanghai, Utopia was forced to relocate to the French Concession. It moved several times between temporary accommodations, until settling down on Xinzha Road in September 1939. By this time, the university and its affiliated high school had 2,000 students. It also established another secondary school. The university expanded further after the Second World War, becoming the largest private university in Shanghai. By 1948, it had more than 2,700 university students, and 2,500 students enrolled at its two secondary schools. It had four schools (the school of engineering had been established in addition to the original three) and fourteen departments. Among Utopia's students, 39 later became academicians of the
Chinese Academy of Sciences The Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS; ) is the national academy for natural sciences and the highest consultancy for science and technology of the People's Republic of China. It is the world's largest research organization, with 106 research i ...
or the
Chinese Academy of Engineering The Chinese Academy of Engineering (CAE, ) is the national academy of the People's Republic of China for engineering. It was established in 1994 and is an institution of the State Council of China. The CAE and the Chinese Academy of Sciences a ...
.


Demise

In 1949, the
Chinese Communist Party The Communist Party of China (CPC), also translated into English as Chinese Communist Party (CCP), is the founding and One-party state, sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Founded in 1921, the CCP emerged victorious in the ...
(CCP) defeated the
Kuomintang The Kuomintang (KMT) is a major political party in the Republic of China (Taiwan). It was the one party state, sole ruling party of the country Republic of China (1912-1949), during its rule from 1927 to 1949 in Mainland China until Retreat ...
government in the
Chinese Civil War The Chinese Civil War was fought between the Kuomintang-led Nationalist government, government of the Republic of China (1912–1949), Republic of China and the forces of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Armed conflict continued intermitt ...
and established the
People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
. In October 1952, the new CCP government closed Utopia along with many other private universities. Its business school was merged into
Shanghai University of Finance and Economics The Shanghai University of Finance and Economics (SUFE) is a public Types of universities and colleges in China#By designated academic emphasis, finance and economics university located in Shanghai, China. The university is affiliated with the ...
, its school of literature became part of the newly established
East China Normal University East China Normal University (ECNU) is a public university in Shanghai, China. It is affiliated with the Ministry of Education (China), Ministry of Education and co-funded with the Shanghai Municipal People's Government. The university is part of ...
, the school of science was merged into Fudan University, and the school of engineering was divided and became part of
Tongji University Tongji University is a public university located in Shanghai, China. It is affiliated with the Ministry of Education of China. The university is part of Project 211, Project 985, and the Double First-Class Construction. Tongji is one of the ...
,
Shanghai Jiao Tong University Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU) is a public university in Shanghai, China. It is affiliated with the Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China, Ministry of Education of China. The university is part of Project 211, Project 98 ...
, and the new East China Institute of Chemical Technology (now East China University of Science and Technology). Utopia's two affiliated secondary schools remained, and are now known as Datong High School and Wusi ( May Fourth) High School. Hu Dunfu, Utopia's founder, went to
Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...
along with the defeated Kuomintang government. He attempted to reestablish Utopia University in Taiwan, but was unsuccessful.


References

{{Universities and colleges in Shanghai , state=collapsed Defunct universities and colleges in Shanghai 1912 establishments in China 1952 disestablishments in China Universities and colleges established in 1912 Educational institutions disestablished in 1952