Modern Beihai Chamber Of Commerce And Social Changes In Beihai

The Chamber of Commerce is an important non-governmental business organization established by the government from top to bottom on the basis of traditional merchant organizations and in order to adapt to the changes in modern economic development.The Chamber of Commerce is not only an important product of China’s modernization process,but also an important driving force for social change in modern cities,which has been valued by scholars.Founded in 1907 and officially dissolved by the Beihai Federation of Industry and Commerce in 1952,Beihai Chamber of Commerce was accompanied by the construction of modern Beihai City for more than 40 years,and was a witness of the modernization of Beihai City,and an important force for promoting social changes in Beihai City.As a representative of small and medium-sized port cities,Beihai is quite different from first-tier cities such as Shanghai and Guangzhou in terms of economic strength,political status and urban cultural development,so the modern Beihai Chamber of Commerce also has some new presentations.Therefore,on the basis of existing research,this paper focuses on the relationship between modern chambers of commerce and urban local social development,takes the Beihai Chamber of Commerce established in the late Qing Dynasty and New Deal period as the research object,and discusses the role and significance of the chamber of commerce as a grassroots socio-economic organization to local social change by combing the social background of the Beihai Chamber of Commerce,the organizational structure after its establishment and its role in the economic,political and social life of Beihai city.To this end,this paper will be supported by rich archival materials and newspaper materials,combined with old customs reports,Fangzhi ancient books,etc.,and analyze and sort out the commercial development of Beihai in modern times,the process of the establishment of the Beihai Chamber of Commerce and the impact on economic,political and social aspects after the establishment of the Chamber of Commerce,focusing on the role of the establishment of the Chamber of Commerce in urban modernization.The complex social background and special geographical factors of the Republic of China have created a special relationship between the Beihai Chamber of Commerce and local governments and citizens in modern times.With its unique functions,Beihai Chamber of Commerce is active in the business community and the government,playing an irreplaceable role of communication and bridge,and has penetrated into all fields of social life,which has had a decisive impact on the socio-economic and modernization process of Beihai.While actively promoting the development of industrial and commercial economy,Beihai Chamber of Commerce also plays an important role in the field of democratic politics,becoming an important social and political force for urban political democracy,and an important source of the Beihai civil revolutionary movement.In addition,the Beihai Chamber of Commerce has made up for some of the government’s functional vacancies caused by insufficient funds in the social and public spheres,and plays an important role in municipal construction,culture and education,and social and medical care.In short,by focusing on the development history of the modern Beihai Chamber of Commerce,we also hope to sort out the process and dilemma of the modernization of Beihai City through the window of the Chamber of Commerce,and provide historical ideas for the new development of contemporary Beihai City with ancient and modern references.