Consulates of different countries in Harbin in the first third of the 20th century

The subject of the article is the buildings of consular offices in Harbin (Northeast China). The object of the study is the consular offices and their urban planning in the city structure. The author examines and analyzes consular offices of different countries that opened their offices during the late nineteenth and first half of the twentieth century. In the course of the study, the position of the objects was analyzed and their characteristic features of location were revealed. The study is aimed at identifying the facilities where consulates of different countries were located and analyzing the criteria for choosing facilities for the placement of consulates in them. The boundaries of the study are determined by the period of the late XIX – mid XX century. The scientific novelty of the article is determined by the collection and systematization of materials from field surveys (2023), the systematization of historical and archival materials. The article examines the history of the emergence and development of consular institutions in the city of Harbin. Attention is paid to the reasons for the appearance of these institutions and the principles of their placement in the city. Attention is drawn to how the location of the consular buildings depended on urban development and their importance. The architectural appearance of some notable consular sites is also briefly analyzed. The research is based on empirical methods, including observation and examination. Thanks to the cartographic analysis, it was possible to determine the location of consular offices in urban areas. In addition, a genetic approach was applied, which helped to identify the features and connections of consular institutions in a historical context. The main conclusions of the study are that consular offices were important objects for the formation of the compositional structure of the city. The architecture of the consular buildings reflected the stylistics of different countries, filled the cities with stylistic flavor, and increased the level of landscaping of the territories adjacent to these buildings. The study of the principles of the development of consular institutions in the context of the European architectural heritage of that period is of great interest, especially given the growing interest in identifying and preserving Russian cultural heritage. Consular institutions, in addition to their administrative and political role, had cultural and historical value. Therefore, the analysis of these institutions in terms of their importance for the development of relations between states, as well as their architectural features, allows not only to assess their political, but also their architectural value.

consulate, architecture, history, urban planning regulations, territory, project, railway, master plan, dominant, engineers