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THE SHANGHAI MUNICIPAL COUNCIL,
1850-1865:
SOME BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES
Introductory remarks
J.H. HAAN
In a former article* I gave an analysis of the administrative structure that developed in the International Settlement of Shanghai during the nineteenth century. Appended to that article was a list of Municipal Council members for the period 1850-1865.
Here I intend to give some biographical details about those members, not only with regard to their commercial positions, but still more to show in which other organisations they were active. This may serve as an indication of the social ambitions of the Council members.
From the data I have been able to assemble it will appear that in this respect some were far more active than others, but that most in some way or another devoted themselves to public tasks other than the purely political one for which they had been chosen by the landrenters.
The organisations, committees, etc., in which they participated may broadly be divided into two categories: those that were of a political nature and those that were of a more social nature.
1. Political Committees
As from 1862 a number of committees were appointed by Public Meetings of Landrenters, mostly in order to devise methods to improve the effectiveness of Municipal Council rule.
* JHKBRAS, Vol. 22 (1982) p. 31 “Origin and Development of the Political System in the Shanghai International Settlement”