History since 1945

History since 1945

In 1945, the National Government of the Republic of China took back Kulangsu. Then, the multicultural prosperity was resumed to some extent.
In 1949, the People’s Republic of China was founded.

With the reform of the social system, Kulangsu entered a new development period. The population structure was greatly changed. Instead of building villas and western-style houses, which had been the main construction activities on the island, houses and living facilities for ordinary people were built. Construction projects saw a slow increase.

However, the overall layout was not changed too much, especially the spatial structure, basically maintaining the overall appearance at the end of the 1930s and the beginning of the 1940s. The reform and opening-up of China in the 1980s promoted the development of Kulangsu as a scenic spot, which soon became well-known nationwide. A series of new conservation and improvement projects were launched. With the establishment of the scenic spot, the industrial facilities renovated later were basically relocated in other areas outside the island.

In addition, effective environmental improvement and beautification projects were carried out. Over the past 10 years, with increasingly raised awareness of cultural heritage conservation, more and more attention has been paid to the conservation of the overall historical environment on the island, which has become a principle acknowledged and followed by various plans. Therefore, different from most of other areas, there has never been sharp change of the styles and features of the historical international settlement of Kulangsu due to fast urban development.