Kiautschou Bay Leased Territory
The Kiautschou Bay Leased Territory[a] was a German leased territory in Imperial and Early Republican China from 1898 to 1914. Covering an area of 552 km2 (213 sq mi), it centered on Kiautschou Bay (Jiaozhou Bay) on the southern coast of the Shandong Peninsula. The administrative center was at Tsingtau (Qingdao). It was operated by the East Asia Squadron of the Imperial German Navy. The Russian Empire resented the German move as an infringement on Russian ambitions in the region.
Kiautschou Bay Leased Territory膠州灣租借地 (Chinese)
552 km2 (213 sq mi)
- 165,000 Chinese
- 3,896 Europeans (3,806 German)[1]
Carl Rosendahl (first)
Alfred Meyer-Waldeck (last)
6 March 1898
7 November 1914
10 December 1922
膠州灣租借地
胶州湾租借地
Jiāozhōu Wān Zūjièdì
Jiāozhōu Wān Zūjièdì
gaau1 zau1 waan1
Kiautschou Bucht
Background of German expansion in China[edit]
Germany was a relative latecomer to the imperialistic scramble for colonies across the globe. A German colony in China was envisioned as a two-fold enterprise: as a coaling station to support a global naval presence, and because it was felt that a German colonial empire would support the economy in the mother country. Densely populated China was viewed as a potential market to be exploited, with thinkers such as Max Weber demanding an active colonial policy from the government. In particular, the opening of China was made a high priority, because it was thought to be the most important non-European market in the world.
However, a global policy (Weltpolitik) without global military influence appeared impracticable, so, assessing that Britain's great strength came from its navy, the Germans began to build one, too. This fleet was supposed to serve German interests during peace through gunboat diplomacy, and in times of war, through commerce raiding, to protect German trade routes and disrupt hostile ones. Imitating Britain, a network of global naval bases was a key requirement for this intention.
Again, intending to directly copy Britain, the acquisition of a harbor in China was, from the start, intended to be a model colony: all installations, the administration, the surrounding infrastructure, and the utilization thereof were to show the Chinese, the German nation itself, and other colonial powers, an effective colonial policy.
Language[edit]
The local language was the Qingdao dialect of Jiaoliao Mandarin. A German pidgin, known as Kiautschou German pidgin, developed as well.