Shanghai Municipal Council (公共租界工部局)

Shanghai Municipal Council (公共租界工部局; July 11, 1854 - 1943) was an organization of business leaders in Shanghai active from the middle part of the 19th century to the early 20th century. The organization was formed on July 11, 1854, by a group of influential Western businessmen who argued that Shanghai suffered under a lack of proper municipal governance. It laid down land regulations, began assisting in the construction of new roads, established refuse collection, and even initiated taxation. By the late 1860s, Shanghai's official governing body had been practically transferred from the individual concessions to the Shanghai Municipal Council (工部局). The British Consul was the de jure authority in the Settlement, but he had no actual power unless the ratepayers (who voted for the Council) agreed. Instead, he and the other consulates deferred to the Council, which was composed of 9 figures: 5 from the British Settlement, 2 from the American Settlement, and 2 from the Japanese Settlement. No Chinese were permitted to serve on the Council until 1928. By the 1880s, the Council acquired a virtual monopoly over city utilities, controlling gas suppliers, electricity producers, and water companies. Later, in the early 20th century, they also took control of rickshaws, tramways, and regulated opium sales and prostitution. The Council maintained its own police force, fire service, and military reserve, the Shanghai Volunteer Corps (萬國商團). The Municipal Council was disbanded in 1943, during World War II (1939 - 1945) when the Japanese closed all foreign concessions (except the French).