Historical and Cultural Values of the Modern Historic Parks in Tianjin - the British Concession

Abstract

This paper takes the British concession in Tianjin as an example, trying to clarify the historical and cultural values of the first parks. The first park, Victoria Park, was built as a memorial facility. It received many visitors including Chinese, with numerous outdoor concerts providing the citizens with great enjoyment. Although there were conflicts between the Chinese and British, objectively, it greatly improved Tianjin′s landscape and provided a much healthier environment. The other parks in the British Extra Rural Extension were endowed with specific roles in creating an ideal city with light, air and spaces for recreation. The planning theories behind these parks pushed the modernizing process of Chinese cities. Besides, the parks brought new materials and new styles to Chinese traditional gardens, so they have high historical, cultural and academic value. Therefore, we suggest the government carry out a basic investigation and create a database of modern parks. The value of a park should be evaluated from both an urban planning aspect and the park itself. As for park conservation, the natural landform, spatial structure, visual organization, building, entrance space, wall, pavement, plants and relationship with its surroundings needs to be well evaluated.