The idyllic charm of historic Sinan Road
Shanghai's Sinan Road was once known as "Little Swiss" for its idyllic complex of villas and chinar trees.
It is a narrow, 13 or 14-meter-wide road that runs from Qinhai Road to Taikang Road and is less than 1.5 kilometers long.
It was previously named "Rue Massenet" after Jules Massenet, a French musician who rose to prominence in the late 1800s and early 1900s for his opera and dance drama works.
The social upheavals of the 1850s, typified by the Small-Sword Society Uprising (1853) and the eastward expansion of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom (1860), brought a considerable number of displaced individuals into Shanghai.
Its well-off concession regions recognized the market demand and built some European-style row houses and shikumen-style architecture.
In the 1920s and 1930s, there was another round of construction activity.
The French were the first to use modern urban planning in Shanghai, issuing urban rebuilding plans on Rue Massenet between March 1920 and November 1938.
When the Massenet neighborhood was completed, it was like a fairytale hamlet set against bustling urban life, attracting a huge number of international and upper-class residents.
The Russians made up the majority of the foreign residents, followed by the French and Vietnamese.
They self-funded the construction of Shanghai's first permanent Orthodox church, the Saint Nicolas Church at 16 Rue Corneille, now Gaolan Road, in the Massenet block, for their faithful worshippers.
The Russians were displaced, which France attributed to the country's fulfillment of its promise under the France-Russia Alliance as well as the subsequent political upheaval, and were treated favorably in Shanghai.
Sinan Books Poetry Store is now located at 16 Gaolan Road, where Saint Nicolas Church once stood.
Red isles
A bird's-eye view from a high-rise at adjacent Ruijin Hospital reveals red-tiled homes interspersed among billowing green waves of trees, resembling red isles. There are around 100 European-style villas along Sinan Road.
On 51-95 Sinan Road, there are 23 French rural-style residences. Built between 1922 and 1925, they span a total area of 22,000 square meters. The majority of them are three-story structures, with six being four-story.
Their styles are reminiscent of the villas that were popular in France during the 1910s and 1940s and are still found in northeastern France today.
Never garishly decorated, the villas featured a mansard roof with red tiles, fair brick masonry with chiseled concrete, and cobblestones. Their windows were outfitted with green blinds. Their expansive front gardens were often planted with poplar, willow, and holly trees, with a well-trimmed meadow in the center.
In February 1994, the complex was classified as a historic preservation architecture in Shanghai, known as the "Yipin Village," in honor of the Credit Foncier Co, which created, designed, built, and managed the villas.
Some structures have a diverse appeal. The Spanish villa style is on 41 Sinan Road, which is now the Shanghai Research Institute of Culture and History, and 7 Xiangshan Road, which was Sun Yet-sen's mansion.
7 Xiangshan Road, formerly 29 Rue Moliere, is a European villa that a group of Canadian Chinese bought as a gift for Sun. He moved in with his wife in June 1918. The house allowed the couple to focus on their revolutionary work while still providing a steady family life. After Sun died in 1925, his wife, Soong Ching Ling (1893–1981), stayed here until 1937.
The 88, 90, 92, 94, 96, and 98 Rue Massenet belonged to a historic figure with extraordinary experiences and his nephew.
Zhang Jingjiang (1877–1951) was a savvy merchant and politician from Shanghai. He was born into a late Qing Dynasty (1644–1911) salt merchant family.
He supported Sun's revolution and served as a mentor and benefactor to Chiang Kai-shek (1887–1975).
His social connections in overseas France were equally productive, as he supported a teahouse and cultural salon where he met the legendary cultural celebrity and educator Cai Yuanpei (1868–1940) and formed the World Society to foster cross-country cultural interchange.
After becoming completely paralyzed at a young age, he became obsessed with motor racing. According to one account, his performance appraisal for his driver was to arrive at the then-North Shanghai Railway Station from Rue Massenet in 10 minutes.
He became disillusioned as Chiang began to marginalize him. He eventually fled Shanghai before China's War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression (1931–1945).
Late Premier Zhou Enlai''s former residence was at 107 Rue Massenet, which is now 73 Sinan Road.
The old mansion, or Zhou Gong Guan (周公館), is a stylish French-style building with an exquisite garden surrounded by bamboo gates.
In 1946, it was the Chinese Communist Party delegation's office in Shanghai.
It is a four-story villa. The ground floor housed a janitor's room, kitchen, and garage. Premier Zhou Enlai (1898–1976) and his wife Deng Yingchao (1904–1992) lived on the first floor, which included their bedroom, office, sitting room, and dining room. The second and third levels served as bedrooms, offices, and dormitories for the delegation's other officers and staff.
After China won the war against Japanese aggression in August 1945, the Communist Party dispatched a team to Shanghai, China's largest economic and industrial center at the time, for coordination and a chance to peacefully establish a new China.
The French Park, now Fuxing Park, was located east of Rue Massenet, with the central entrance opening at 105 Yandang Road.
Since 1914, the park has been known for its chrysanthemum exhibitions, a flower revered in China for its depiction of a hermit's existence.
"Whenever I strolled down Rue Massenet, I was reminded of Jules Massenet's operas 'Le Roi de Lahore' and 'Werther.' As I strolled toward Rue Corneille at sunset, it appeared that the tragedies of Le Cid and Horace were playing out on my left side," wrote Zeng Bu (1872–1935), a Shanghai-based French literature enthusiast.
"And when I sauntered toward Rue Moliere, the sarcastic mockery of Tartuffe or Misanthrope would echo from my right."
Saint Nicolas Church 尼古拉斯教堂
Address: 16 Gaolan Road
皋蘭路16號
The former residence of Sun Yet-sen 孫中山故居
Address: 7 Xiangshan Road
香山路7號
Late Premier Zhou Enlai's former residence 周公館
Address: 73 Sinan Road
思南路73號
Fuxing Park (French Park) 復興公園（原法國公園）
Address: 105 Yandang Road
雁蕩路105號
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