Lunghua Civilian Assembly Center
Encyclopedia
Lunghua Civil Assembly Centre was one of the internment camps eventually established by the Empire of Japan
in Shanghai
for Europe
an and American
citizens, who had anyway been resident under Japanese occupation since December 1941. James Graham Ballard was interned in the camp as an adolescent. His experiences there inspired the book (and subsequent movie) Empire of the Sun
.
and was empty until it was designated as a Civil Assembly Centre. It was then used to intern 1,988 people.
The buildings on the site were built orthogonal to each other. However, the overall site was aligned slightly east of north. Therefore, in the description below, when a building is described as being built east-west it is more accurately described as ENE-WSW and when a building is described as being built north-south, it is more accurately described as SSW-NNE.
The Assembly Hall was the central building. North of it were the single storey wooden buildings A, B and C. These were built parallel to each other, with each having been built east-west and with Building A as the furthest north. South of the Assembly Hall, also built east-west, was the three storey Building F, which was the administration block. South of Building F was the entrance and southeast was the three storey Building E built north-south. East of the Assembly Hall was the three storey Building D built north-south. West of the Assembly Hall and the wooden buildings were two ruined buildings built north-south and further west of the ruined buildings was the two storey Building G built east-west. Northwest of Building G, in the northwest corner of the site, was the single storey Hospital which was built east-west. Between Building G and the Hospital were the five Commandant's Staff Residences arranged around a square with three on the northern edge and two on the western edge. Building G was on the southern edge.
North of the wooden buildings were the two single storey dining rooms (built east-west), and north of each of those was a single storey kitchen. In the northeast corner of the site, north of Building D, were two parallel, single storey buildings built north-south. These were Building H and Building I (or J, the documents differ as to the name of this building). North of these were the single storey shower block (built east-west) and east of the shower block was another single storey building built north-south, Building J (or K, the documents differ as to the name of this building).
The recreation ground contained a football pitch
and was in the area of ground between the Assembly Hall and Building D.
. The Botanical Garden is southwest of Longhua Airport; both of these are clearly identified on satellite images. Satellite images show that there are buildings on the site in the "same" location as the Civil Assembly Centre buildings. The site of the camp is now enclosed by housing, but can be identified by the rectangular area (once Buildings A, B and C) and trees. The turning circle in the drive which is south of Building F, can also be seen.
Buildings A, B and C are no longer there, one of the Staff Residences has been demolished and one of kitchens no longer exists. The ruined building adjacent to the Assembly Hall appears to have been rebuilt the same shape and there are several new buildings built on the site of the other ruined building. There are several new buildings between Building G and the Staff Residences. In addition, there is a road now between Building H and the rest of the site.
Empire of Japan
The Empire of Japan is the name of the state of Japan that existed from the Meiji Restoration on 3 January 1868 to the enactment of the post-World War II Constitution of...
in Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
for Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an and American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
citizens, who had anyway been resident under Japanese occupation since December 1941. James Graham Ballard was interned in the camp as an adolescent. His experiences there inspired the book (and subsequent movie) Empire of the Sun
Empire of the Sun
Empire of the Sun is a 1984 novel by J. G. Ballard which was awarded the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. Like Ballard's earlier short story, "The Dead Time" , it is essentially fiction but draws extensively on Ballard's experiences in World War II...
.
Description
Lunghua Civil Assembly Centre was originally the Kiansu Middle School. It was located on Minghong Road about three miles (5km) from Shanghai Longhua Airport. (Pre-WWII documents use the alternate spellings of Lunghua and Lunghwa; the modern anglicized spelling of the town is Longhua.) The school was damaged in the Second Sino-Japanese WarSecond Sino-Japanese War
The Second Sino-Japanese War was a military conflict fought primarily between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. From 1937 to 1941, China fought Japan with some economic help from Germany , the Soviet Union and the United States...
and was empty until it was designated as a Civil Assembly Centre. It was then used to intern 1,988 people.
"The camp was large, containing seven concrete buildings, three large wooden barracks (originally built as stables by the Japanese), and numerous outbuildings. There were fifty nine dorms and 127 rooms for families."
The buildings on the site were built orthogonal to each other. However, the overall site was aligned slightly east of north. Therefore, in the description below, when a building is described as being built east-west it is more accurately described as ENE-WSW and when a building is described as being built north-south, it is more accurately described as SSW-NNE.
The Assembly Hall was the central building. North of it were the single storey wooden buildings A, B and C. These were built parallel to each other, with each having been built east-west and with Building A as the furthest north. South of the Assembly Hall, also built east-west, was the three storey Building F, which was the administration block. South of Building F was the entrance and southeast was the three storey Building E built north-south. East of the Assembly Hall was the three storey Building D built north-south. West of the Assembly Hall and the wooden buildings were two ruined buildings built north-south and further west of the ruined buildings was the two storey Building G built east-west. Northwest of Building G, in the northwest corner of the site, was the single storey Hospital which was built east-west. Between Building G and the Hospital were the five Commandant's Staff Residences arranged around a square with three on the northern edge and two on the western edge. Building G was on the southern edge.
North of the wooden buildings were the two single storey dining rooms (built east-west), and north of each of those was a single storey kitchen. In the northeast corner of the site, north of Building D, were two parallel, single storey buildings built north-south. These were Building H and Building I (or J, the documents differ as to the name of this building). North of these were the single storey shower block (built east-west) and east of the shower block was another single storey building built north-south, Building J (or K, the documents differ as to the name of this building).
The recreation ground contained a football pitch
Association football pitch
An association football pitch is the playing surface for the game of association football made of turf. Its dimensions and markings are defined by Law 1 of the Laws of the Game, "The Field of Play".All line markings on the pitch form part of the area which they define...
and was in the area of ground between the Assembly Hall and Building D.
Current site
The site of the camp is southwest of the Shanghai Botanical Garden. It is on the corner of Baise Road (百色路) and North Longchuan Road (龙川北路), currently the site of Shanghai High SchoolShanghai High School
Shanghai High School is a top public high school in Shanghai municipality, People's Republic of China. It also has an international division, the Shanghai High School International Division.-Location and Campuses:...
. The Botanical Garden is southwest of Longhua Airport; both of these are clearly identified on satellite images. Satellite images show that there are buildings on the site in the "same" location as the Civil Assembly Centre buildings. The site of the camp is now enclosed by housing, but can be identified by the rectangular area (once Buildings A, B and C) and trees. The turning circle in the drive which is south of Building F, can also be seen.
Buildings A, B and C are no longer there, one of the Staff Residences has been demolished and one of kitchens no longer exists. The ruined building adjacent to the Assembly Hall appears to have been rebuilt the same shape and there are several new buildings built on the site of the other ruined building. There are several new buildings between Building G and the Staff Residences. In addition, there is a road now between Building H and the rest of the site.