Canidrome (Shanghai)
Encyclopedia
Luwan District
Luwan District was a district located in central Shanghai, China until its merger with Huangpu District, Shanghai in June 2011. It had an area of 8.05 km² and population of 350,000 as of 2001.- Location :...
, in the former French Concession of Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
. The area began as the Canidrome , a stadium structure originally built for greyhound racing
Greyhound racing
Greyhound racing is the sport of racing greyhounds. The dogs chase a lure on a track until they arrive at the finish line. The one that arrives first is the winner....
in 1928.
The clubhouse and racetrack became a multi-purpose entertainment venue, but became a place for political rallies after the founding of the People's Republic of China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
and a mass execution facility. Later it became a theatre and exhibition space before it was demolished in 2006. The original Canidrome grandstand was demolished as part of the reconstruction of the precinct to become a park incorporating various cultural venues.
Location
The Canidrome was located on the rue Lafayette, which is today known as Central Fuxing Road. . It occupies a large portion of the street block formed by what are today Jianguo Road, Shaanxi Road, Fuxing Road, and Maoming Road.Name
Canis
Canis is a genus containing 7 to 10 extant species, including dogs, wolves, coyotes, and jackals, and many extinct species.-Wolves, dogs and dingos:Wolves, dogs and dingos are subspecies of Canis lupus...
, dog, and drome, race course. The Chinese name, Yiyuan Paigouchang, means "Yi Garden dog racing track", where "Yi" literally means leisure. The Canidrome has also been labeled the Rendezvous for Shanghai's Elite.
After 1949, greyhound racing, like other forms of gambling, was banned by the Communist party, and the precinct's name was changed to the Shanghai Cultural Plaza.
Pre-1949
The stadium was built in 1928 and could seat 50,000 spectators. It was the largest of the three stadiums built at the time to house animal racing. It was largely financed by Henry E. Morris, Jr., proprietor of the North China Daily NewsNorth China Daily News
North China Daily News was an English-language newspaper in Shanghai, China, called the most influential foreign newspaper of its time.The paper was founded as the weekly North-China Herald and was first published on 3 August 1850. Its founder, British auctioneer Henry Shearman , died in 1856...
.
In the 1920s and 30s, the Canidrome was mostly a facility limited to Westerners. The Canidrome ballroom was where the American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Buck Clayton
Buck Clayton
Buck Clayton was an American jazz trumpet player who was a leading member of Count Basie’s "Old Testament" orchestra and a leader of mainstream-oriented jam session recordings in the 1950s. His principal influence was Louis Armstrong...
and his band performed. The Chinese discrimination mostly came about from the effects of the Treaty of the Bogue
Treaty of the Bogue
The Treaty of the Bogue was an agreement between China and the United Kingdom, which was concluded in October 1843 in order to supplement the previous Treaty of Nanking...
.
The Canidrome also served as a sporting venue. On March 15, 1941 a soccer game between the Shanghai Municipal Police and the Chinese team turned into a riot in the Canidrome, and cause 20,000 Chinese spectators to flood the field. As many as 30 people were injured in the game riot.
Mass execution facility
The People's Liberation ArmyPeople's Liberation Army
The People's Liberation Army is the unified military organization of all land, sea, strategic missile and air forces of the People's Republic of China. The PLA was established on August 1, 1927 — celebrated annually as "PLA Day" — as the military arm of the Communist Party of China...
marched into Shanghai in May 1949. Public trial meetings held in the Canidrome was referred to as "The Shanghai Enlarged Joint Meeting of People's Representatives' Conference". The Canidrome and the separate Shanghai Race Course were places where mass executions took place in the hands of the Communist Party
Communist Party of China
The Communist Party of China , also known as the Chinese Communist Party , is the founding and ruling political party of the People's Republic of China...
, killing hundreds each day.
In April 1951 more than 3,000 people were arrested and herded to the stadium. Among those arrested was Green Gang
Green Gang
The Green Gang was a Chinese criminal organization that operated in Shanghai in the early 20th century.-Origins:It was a secret society established originally by Fong Toh-tak of Shaolin Monastery to protect the Han Chinese who were oppressed by the Manchu rulers of the Qing Dynasty, and to restore...
leader Huang Jinrong. On May 1 for example, 500 executions were announced.
The city police, helped by Communist political police, in a single night arrested an estimated 24,000 Chinese, and dragged them off to concentration camps in Shanghai's outskirts. Among the arrested were former Kuomintang
Kuomintang
The Kuomintang of China , sometimes romanized as Guomindang via the Pinyin transcription system or GMD for short, and translated as the Chinese Nationalist Party is a founding and ruling political party of the Republic of China . Its guiding ideology is the Three Principles of the People, espoused...
officials, school-teachers, Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
churchmen, non-Communist union leaders, property owners, newspaper workers, factory managers, and students. The executions were selected by a committee of 24 Communist-appointed "civic leaders". The Xinhua News Agency
Xinhua News Agency
The Xinhua News Agency is the official press agency of the government of the People's Republic of China and the biggest center for collecting information and press conferences in the PRC. It is the largest news agency in the PRC, ahead of the China News Service...
reported that Shanghai high-school students marched beside the prisoners on their way to execution beating gongs and drums, and chanting: "Kill nice! Kill them well! Kill all of them!". At the time 10,000 people gathered and demanded the death of the accused in a unanimous roar.
Reconstruction
After banning greyhound racing and other forms of gambling, the Communist government re-constructed the Canidrome. Additional buildings gradually turned the entire race-course into an indoor venue. The existing grandstand, including its auditorium, was retained. During the Cultural RevolutionCultural Revolution
The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, commonly known as the Cultural Revolution , was a socio-political movement that took place in the People's Republic of China from 1966 through 1976...
, the Cultural Plaza became a venue for public meetings, where Red Guards and other agitators denounced "class enemies" and figures of authority.
1976-1980s
For the 20 years after the end of the Cultural Revolution, the Cultural Plaza served a number of purposes. Its auditorium was used as performance space for films and theatre. It was also used as a conference venue, often housing political conferences and meetings. Beginning from the 1980s, the Shanghai Municipal Government began discussing the redevelopment of the Cultural Plaza precinct. Decades of neglect had left the buildings in the precinct in need of repair. Construction in the precinct since 1949 had lacked overall planning. Its former role as a space for political meetings had diminished in significance, while its role as a performance space had been superseded by newer or better facilities.Redevelopment
The large, covered space built over the former Canidrome also served as a versatile exhibition space. In 1997, this area became the location of the Shanghai Flower Market.In 2003, a series of international design competitions were held. A plan was adopted to rebuild the precinct as a park. Certain elements of the original structures will be retained, including the long-span space frame structure over the auditorium, which was, at the time of its construction, the longest such span in the Far East
Far East
The Far East is an English term mostly describing East Asia and Southeast Asia, with South Asia sometimes also included for economic and cultural reasons.The term came into use in European geopolitical discourse in the 19th century,...
.
The original grandstand, along with most of the other structures in the precinct, was demolished in 2005.