Isabella Jackson is Assistant Professor in Chinese History at Trinity College Dublin, having previously held positions at the Universities of Oxford and Aberdeen. She has published her research in Modern Asian Studies and in edited collections on Chinese treaty ports, Britain and China, the Scottish experience in Asia and the 'habitable city' in China.

• List of figures; Acknowledgements; Note on the text; Introduction: the transnational colonialism of the Shanghai Municipal Council; 1. Funding transnational colonialism; 2. Electing and serving: the municipal councillors and staff; 3. Policing and conflict in Shanghai; 4. Public health and hygiene; 5. Industry, welfare and social reform; Epilogue. Dismantling and remembering transnational colonialism; Bibliography; Index.

'Isabella Jackson has written a superb study of one of the most important cities in both Chinese history and British imperial history. Her meticulous study of the way that colonial and sovereign China interacted shows the complexity of the interaction between foreign and Chinese during the Republican era. This book is a major achievement.' Rana Mitter, University of Oxford