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China - Kiautschou
The Jiaozhou Bay was a 552km² German colonial Concession, which existed from 1898 to 1914. It was in the imperial province of Shang-tung, situated on the southern coast of the Shandong Peninsula in northern China. The Chinese name Jiaozhou, also rendered as Qingdao or Tsingtao, used to be westernized as Kiaochow, Kiauchau or Kaio-Chau in English and Kiautschou in German.
History of the colony
Already in 1860 a Prussian expedition fleet arrived in Asia and explored the region around the Jiaozhou Bay. In the following year a Chinese-Prussian trade contract was signed. After his journeys to China between 1868 and 1871 Freiherr Ferdinand von Richthofen recommended the Bay of Jiaozhou as possible German naval base. When on 1 November 1897 two German missionaries of the Steyler Mission, which was protected by the German Empire since 1890, were murdered in China, Kaiser Wilhelm II used this as a good pretext to occupy the Bay. On November 14 German naval infantry landed on the strands and occupied the area without a fight. China tried futilely to obtain a withdrawal of the troops. On November 20 began the German-Chinese negotiations, which resulted in the settlement of the missionary incident on 15 January 1898.
A few months later, on March 6, the German Empire leased the Bay for 99 years from the Chinese government. Only six weeks later the area was officially put under German "protection", opening the treaty port on 1 July 1899. To that time the region was populated by approx. 83.000 inhabitants. The "Gouvernement Kiautschou" remained part of China under imperial sovereignty, but for the duration of the lease turned into a German Schutzgebiet (possession). Moreover the Chinese government gave the German Empire concessions for the construction of two railway lines and the mining of local coal deposits.
Because of the importance, which the protectorate should have for the reputation of the German navy, it was put under the supervision of the Imperial naval office (Reichsmarineamt). At the top of the colony stood the governor. The governor was head of the military and the civil administration within the colony. As Jiaozhou should serve above all the propaganda of the fleet, the Germans set great store by the economic (and later) cultural developments. Germany lost the colony as a result of World War 1.
Deutsch-Asiatische Bank
The Deutsch-Asiatische Bank (German-Asiatic Bank) was founded 1898 in Tsingtao. It was created by 13 German banks to help the economic development in China. The bank open branches in many chinese towns. In 1906 it acquired the right to issue banknotes and started to give out banknotes in 1907. The bills were issued in Dollar and Tael, whereby 1 Dollar = 0.72 tael = 1.75 Mark. Due to the start of the war the issues from 1914 were not given out anymore.
10 Dollar 1907
This note was issued by Deutsch-Ostafrikanische Bank. It is dated 1 March 1907 and was given out in Peking.
(Ro 1030)
5 Tael 1907
This note was issued by Deutsch-Ostafrikanische Bank. It is dated 1 March 1907 and was given out in Peking.
(Ro 1034)
20 Tael 1907
This note was issued by Deutsch-Ostafrikanische Bank. It is dated 1 March 1907 and was given out in Peking.
(Ro 1036)
100 Dollar 1914
This note was issued by Deutsch-Ostafrikanische Bank. It is dated 1 March 1907 and was given out in Peking.
(Ro 1038)
1 Dollar 1907
This note was issued by Deutsch-Ostafrikanische Bank. It is dated 1 March 1907 and was given out in Shanghai.
(Ro 1039)
5 Dollar 1907
This note was issued by Deutsch-Ostafrikanische Bank. It is dated 1 March 1907 and was given out in Shanghai.
(Ro 1040)
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