page_title: Nanjing Road
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Nanjing Road / History
caption_attribution_description: English: Nanjing Road during Xinhai Revolution中文（简体）‎: "上海庆祝民国改元"
context_page_description: Nanjing Road is a road in Shanghai. The eastern part of Nanjing Road is the main shopping streets of Shanghai, China, and is one of the world's busiest shopping streets along with Fifth Avenue and Times Square. The street is named after the city of Nanjing, capital of Jiangsu neighbouring Shanghai. Today's Nanjing Road comprises two sections, Nanjing Road East and Nanjing Road West.
  In some contexts, "Nanjing Road" refers only to what was pre-1945 Nanjing Road, today's Nanjing Road East, which is largely pedestrianised. Before the adoption of the pinyin romanisation in the 1950s, its name was rendered as Nanking Road in English. The former Nanking Road lay entirely within the Shanghai International Settlement. Today's Nanjing Road West was formerly Bubbling Well Road, an extra-settlement road built by concession authorities outside the concession proper. The two roads met on the northern edge of the Shanghai Race Club.
context_section_description: The History of Nanjing Road can be traced back to the year 1845. At that time it was called "Park Lane", which stretched from the Bund to He'nan Road. In 1854, it was extended to Zhejiang Road, and eight years later, once more extended to Xizang Road. In 1862, it was named formally "Nanking Road" by the Municipal Council, which administered the International Settlement. In Chinese it was usually referred to as the Main Road (大马路). Around 1930 it was a bustling street with at least one reported casino (probably at nr. 181). In 1943 the International Settlement was annulled, and after World War 2 the government changed its name from Nanking Road to "East Nanjing Road", meanwhile they also renamed the former Bubbling Well Road "West Nanjing Road", and the general name of the two roads became "Nanjing Road", comprising five kilometres total length.
  At the beginning of the 20th century, eight big department stores were established along the street. A series of franchised stores were also set up at that time.
  On 23 August 1937 a bomb was dropped on Nanjing Road by a Chinese plane in an attempt to lighten its load while being pursued by Japanese planes. The bomb hit two department stores, killing 612 people and injuring another 482.
  In 2000, as a part of the development plan held by the local government, Nanjing Road was renovated to be a characteristic pedestrian street. The width is about 28 meters and the total length is 1,200 meters, which extends from Middle He'nan Road to Middle Xizang Road.
  In 2007, the Jing'an and Huangpu governments agreed to coordinate their policy to enhance the development of Nanjing Road, through a unique launching of a committee.  This agreement followed a request by the committee of Champs-Elysees in the perspective of a friendship agreement between both famous streets.
caption: Nanjing Road after the 1911 Chinese Revolution full of the Five Races Under One Union Flags then used by the revolutionaries
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