This residence is in the middle of a large courtyard surrounded by high walls. Tall trees form an effective second wall in the courtyard interior. When you walk onto the property you will be able to see a small ribbon-like stream. It is said that when the courtyard was built, there was a Venetian statue have disappeared. Built in 1905, this refined and secluded house was originally the residence of the French Concession’s Chamber of Industry Director. Sitting on the green lawn, this white palatial structure looks a lot like the White House in Washington, DC. Many locals like to refer to it as the “Little White House”.
The high-powered general director’s mansion was constructed on Fengyang road, originally known as Route Pichon. Route Pichon was one kilometer long road situated in what was then a remote stretches of Shanghai. Surrounded on all sides by farmland and rivers, this was not where the action was, and indeed, the mansion was supposedly situated here in order to help the general director find some peace and quiet outside the bustling streets of urban Shanghai. It was also said that the director feared trouble in the French Concession, and hid here in Shanghai’s safer outlying regions. Safety in the French Concession was a valid concern considering the huge disturbances that occurred there during the 1870’s and 1880’s.
It took a total of five years to build the mansion, and its design reveals the French spirit of art and romance. At once dignified and ornate, careful and artistic, the grand main building is fronted by a large artistic French yard. The doors and windows have ornately carved relief sculptures, and lobby’s floor and ceiling are covered with marble finishing. Exquisite sculptures also decorate the ceiling. Today, the building is occupied by the Shanghai Museum of Arts and Crafts. You can admire the museum displays and beautiful residential architecture at the same time.
Now part of the ShanghaiMusicConservatoryMiddle School, the building at 9 Dongping road was once home to two of the most famous people in the world---Chiang Kaishek and Song Meiling. When the couple was married in 1927, Song Meiling’s older brother, Song Ziwen, bought this building for his sister and Chiang as a wedding present. When the newlyweds returned to Shanghai from their honeymoon in Hangzhou and MoganMountain, they moved into this property, making it their long-term residence. Chiang Kai-shek owned many properties in Shanghai, but this one was his favorite. He carved the characters for the word ailu(“love cottage” in Chinese) in the ornamental hill outside, and you can still see them there today. Chiang was always on the move, rushing from one place to another. Song Meiling often traveled at her husband’s side, but, nevertheless, was able to spend more time at their home.
The ConservatoryMiddle School does not have a large campus, and Ailu is easy to find next to the school’s main gate. The house looks older than ever, and the hanging vines are flourishing. Dark red-colored flat tiles on the roof are extremely well preserved, and the black, white, and yellow cobblestones in the wall are as beautiful as before. Music only adds to the spirit of this little house, and you can hear the sound of string instruments reverberating here all day long. A practice studio now occupies the house’s first floor and the other rooms have been converted into classrooms. The structure still preserves a secret escape route that, in special circumstances, can be used to escape to the outside. But if you ask the guards around the building, they will not be able to tell you where the secret stairwell is.
9) The Marshall Residence—(The Taiyuan Villa)
Most people fall in love with the Marshal Residence at the first sight. Today, you can still hear people mention how this elegant building so finely reflected General George Marshall’s graceful disposition, and how the building and the man were both equally unforgettable.
On December 20, 1945, General Marshall took a specially chartered plane to Shanghai and moved into this house on 160 Taiyuan roads.
Passing through the dark green iron gates and following the tortuous small path into the rounds, you will come upon this romantic French Renaissance-style villa. Its simple clean lines and gentle brownish-yellow and grey powder colors give this house a warm and comfortable feel. The villa architecture is graceful and elegant; its four-sloped rooftops are covered in green tile, and five Napoleon helmet-styled windows mark the meeting point between the roofing and the eaves. Directly under the eaves lies a succession of white brackets. The ground level porch is supported by three classical Greek Doric columns, and an open-aired balcony sits on top.
In its former life, this was an independent garden villa belonging to the French colonials. In 1940 the property was sold to the son of Cen Chunxuan, the viceroy of Guangzhou and Guangxi under Wang Jingwei. After World War 2 the property was taken over as “illegal property”, and in 1953 it was turned into a VIP Hotel used exclusively in entertaining foreign dignitaries. Today, the villa is part of Rui Jin Guest House and known as the Taiyuan Villa.
General Marshall’s Mission to China: Anyone familiar with General Marshall’s visit to China. On November 27, 1945 American president Harry Truman allowed Patrick Hurley to resign from his post as Ambassador to China. On December 20, he sent army general chief of staff, George Catlett Marshall, as the president’s special envoy to China to help mediate the military conflict between the communists and the nationalists, and help Chiang Kaishek speed deployment of the Civil War. On the 22nd, Marshall arrived in Chongqing and on the 27th negotiations between the Communists and Nationalists resumed. On January fifth 1946, an agreement was reached called the “Agreement On Ending Internal Military Conflict”. Marshall eventually returned to the United States, frustrated by what he saw as a hopeless attempt to compromise between both parties.
MAP OF FORMER FRENCH CONCESSION AREA IN SHANGHAI
