This list presents the chief administrative leaders of Qingdao since the establishment of the settlement in 1891, including all mayors of Qingdao since the city's formal establishment in 1929. Only individuals who actually served as, or acted as, the highest administrative authority of the Qingdao area are included, together with their periods of service within the urban area of Qingdao. Persons who served solely as heads of the Qingdao municipal organizations of the Kuomintang (KMT) or the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) are not included. Nor does this list discuss or enumerate the de facto rulers of Qingdao during different historical periods.
After the Qing dynasty approved the establishment of defenses at Qingdao in 1891, military and civil affairs of the area were administered by the Commander-in-Chief (Zongbing) of Dengzhou stationed at Qingdao. Following the lease of Qingdao by the German Empire in 1898, the Jiaozhou Bay Governorate was established, and the Governor of Kiautschou served as the chief military and civil authority of the region. After Qingdao was occupied by the Empire of Japan in 1914, the Qingdao Garrison Command was established, with its commander acting as the military and administrative head of the area.
Following the recovery of Qingdao by the Beiyang government in 1922, the city's administration was successively headed by the Commissioner of the Jiaozhou Commercial Port and the Director-General of the Jiaozhou Commercial Port Bureau. After the Nationalist government took over Qingdao in 1929, the Municipality of Qingdao was formally established, and the Mayor of the Qingdao Municipal Government became the city's chief administrative officer.
After the Japanese military occupied Qingdao again in 1938, the Qingdao Public Security Maintenance Association was organized under Japanese sponsorship. In the following year, the Qingdao Special Municipality Office was established and later reorganized as the Qingdao Special Municipal Government, whose chief executive continued to bear the title of mayor. Following the end of the Second Sino-Japanese War in 1945, the Qingdao Municipal Government was restored.
After the People's Liberation Army took control of Qingdao in 1949, the Qingdao Municipal People's Government was established. In 1956 it was reorganized as the Qingdao Municipal People's Committee, while the chief executive continued to hold the title of mayor. During the Cultural Revolution, the Qingdao Revolutionary Committee was established in 1967, and its chairman served as the city's chief administrative authority. The Qingdao Municipal People's Government was re-established in 1980 and has continued to function to the present day.
Zhang Gaoyuan’s garrison period In June 1891, Li Hongzhang, the Viceroy of Zhili, and Zhang Yao, the Governor of Shandong, inspected Jiaozhou Bay by warship and, on 13 June, jointly memorialized the Guangxu Emperor requesting that defenses be established in the area. On 14 June, the Guangxu Emperor issued an imperial edict approving the proposal.
In August 1892, Zhang Gaoyuan, Commander-in-Chief (zongbing) of Dengzhou, led four battalions of the Huai Army from Dengzhou Prefecture to Jiaozhou Bay. He established the Zongbing Yamen at Qingdao Harbor and assumed responsibility for both military and civil administration in the Qingdao area. NamePortraitPlace of birthTime in officeRank and concurrent postsNotes and sourcesZhang GaoyuanAnhui HefeiAugust 1892 – November 14, 1897Second-rank garrison commander of DengzhouAfter the outbreak of the First Sino-Japanese War in July 1894, Zhang Gaoyuan was ordered to lead his troops to Gaiping County in Fengtian Province to participate in the war, and returned to garrison Jiaozhou in the winter of 1895.
German occupation and lease period On 14 November 1897, the German East Asia Squadron of the Imperial German Navy, under the command of Otto von Diederichs, occupied Qingdao during the occupation of Jiaozhou Bay and placed the area under military administration.
On 11 February 1898, Oskar von Truppel, captain of the protected cruiser SMS Prinzess Wilhelm, was temporarily appointed commander of the German forces stationed in Kiautschou. NamePortraitPlace of birthTerm of officeRank and concurrent postsNotes and sourcesOtto von DiederichsMinden, GermanyNovember 14, 1897 – January 1898Rear Admiral, Commander of the East Asia Squadron (Germany)Oskar von TruppelKatzhütte, GermanyFebruary 11, 1898 – April 15, 1898Lieutenant Commander of the Navy; Captain of the protected cruiser SMS Kaiserin AugustaThe Commander of the German forces stationed in Jiaozhou held a temporary appointment.
Governors of Jiaozhou Bay On 6 March 1898, the German Empire and the Qing Empire signed the Jiaozhou Bay Lease Treaty, under which the Qingdao area became a German-leased territory. The Imperial German Navy established the Kiaochow Governorate as the highest administrative institution of the leased territory, and the Governor of Kiaochow exercised military and administrative authority over the territory. On 15 April of the same year, the first Governor of Kiaochow, Carl Ebbe Ludwig Rosendahl, assumed office. NamePortraitPlace of birthTerm of officeRank and concurrent postsNotes and sourcesCarl Ebbe Ludwig RosendahlDenmarkCopenhagenApril 15, 1898 – February 11, 1899Naval CaptainPaul JaeschkeWrocław Germany （now part of Poland）February 1899 – January 27, 1901Naval CaptainAppointed on 10 October 1898 and assumed office in February 1899. Sources differ on his date of arrival, giving 18 February, 19 February, or 20 February. He died while in office.Max Rollmann（acting）Stralsund GermanyJanuary 1901 – June 7, 1901Navy Lieutenant ColonelFormer captain of the SMS Gefion cruiser。Oskar von TruppelKatschott GermanyJune 7, 1901 – May 14, 1911Naval Captain; promoted to Rear Admiral on 3 April 1905, to Vice Admiral on 17 September 1907, and to Admiral on 27 January 1911.Ernst van Semmern（acting）Germany WernigerodeFebruary 11, 1905 – August 21, 1906Naval CaptainActed in the post during Alfred Meyer-Waldeck's leave in Germany; recorded in the Qingdao Gazetteer as “Wangran Meilong”.Alfred Meyer-Waldeck（acting）Saint Petersburg RussiaApril 6, 1909 – April 2, 1910Naval Captain，Chief of Staff of the German forces in the Jiaozhou Bay Leased TerritoryActed in the post during Alfred Meyer-Waldeck's leave in Germany.Wilhelm Höpfner （acting）UnknownMay 1911 – November 1911Naval Captain， Chief of Staff of the German forces in the Jiaozhou Bay Leased TerritoryRecorded in the Qingdao Gazetteer as “Heinaier”. 。Alfred Meyer-WaldeckSaint Petersburg RussiaNovember 22, 1911 – November 7, 1914Naval Captain
First Japanese occupation period After the outbreak of World War I in 1914, Japanese and British forces besieged Qingdao. On 7 November, Governor of Kiaochow Alfred Meyer-Waldeck surrendered with the defending forces, and on 16 November, Japanese forces completed their occupation of the Qingdao area. On 27 November, Emperor Taishō ordered the establishment of the Qingdao Garrison. Kamio Mitsuomi, commander of the 18th Division, the principal Japanese force during the Siege of Tsingtao, was appointed commander of the Qingdao Garrison and exercised authority over both military and civil administration in the occupied territory. The following individuals served as commanders of the Qingdao Garrison.
NamePortraitPlace of birthTerm of officeRank and concurrent postsNotes and referencesKamio MitsuomiJapan, Nagano Prefecture27 November 1914 – 24 May 1915Lieutenant GeneralŌtani KikuzōJapan, Fukui Prefecture24 May 1915 – 6 August 1917Lieutenant General; promoted to General on 16 November 1916Hongō FusatarōJapan, Hyōgo Prefecture6 August 1917 – 10 October 1918Lieutenant General; promoted to General on 2 July 1918Ōshima Ken'ichiJapan, Gifu Prefecture10 October 1918 – May 1919Lieutenant GeneralYui MitsueJapan, Kōchi Prefecture28 May 1919 – 10 December 1922Lieutenant General; promoted to General on 25 November 1919Sovereignty over Qingdao was returned to China on 10 December 1922. The Qingdao Garrison was abolished on 15 December 1922.
Beiyang government period Superintendent of the Jiaozhou Commercial Port On 4 February 1922, the governments of China and Japan signed the Treaty on the Settlement of the Shandong Question, which provided for the return of sovereignty over Qingdao to China. On 10 December of the same year, the Beiyang government formally resumed sovereignty over Qingdao. On the same day, it established the Jiaozhou Commercial Port Superintendent's Office as the highest administrative authority of Qingdao (the Jiaozhou Commercial Port), directly subordinate to the Beiyang government, and appointed the Governor of Shandong Province, Xiong Bingqi, to concurrently serve as Superintendent of the Jiaozhou Commercial Port.
NamePortraitPlace of birthTerm of officeRank and concurrent postsNotes and referencesXiong BingqiShandong, Jining10 December 1922 – April 1924Governor of Shandong ProvinceGao EnhongShandong, PenglaiApril 1924 – 5 November 1924Appointed on 31 March 1924.Wang Hanzhang(acting)Zhili, Qingyuan5 November 1924 – 15 November 1924Brigade Commander of the 10th Brigade, 5th Division, Beiyang Army; Commander of the Qingdao Martial Law HeadquartersWen ShudeShandong, Yidu15 November 1924 – April 1925Commander of the Bohai Fleet
Director-General of the Jiaozhou Commercial Port Bureau In July 1925, Zhang Zongchang, Military Governor of Shandong, reorganized the Jiaozhou Commercial Port Superintendent's Office as the Jiaozhou Commercial Port Bureau and placed it under the jurisdiction of Shandong Province, appointing Zhao Qi as Director-General of the Jiaozhou Commercial Port Bureau.
NamePortraitPlace of birthTerm of officeRank and concurrent postsNotes and referencesZhao QiShandong, Yexian25 July 1925 – 15 April 1929
First period of rule under the Nationalist Government in Nanjing Qingdao Takeover Commissioner In November 1928, the Nationalist Government appointed Chen Zhongfu as Qingdao Takeover Commissioner. After arriving in Qingdao in December, Chen was unable to take over the city because it remained under the control of Japanese garrison forces. On 28 March 1929, the Nationalist Government and Japan signed the Sino-Japanese Jinan Agreement, under which Japan agreed to withdraw its troops. On 4 April, Chen returned to Qingdao. On 13 April, the Japanese Consul-General in Qingdao agreed to the Nationalist Government's takeover of Qingdao. On 15 April, Wu Siyu, Commander of the Qingdao Gendarmerie, arrived in Qingdao with his headquarters and the 2nd Gendarmerie Regiment. On the same day, Chen Zhongfu and the Office of the Qingdao Takeover Commissioner formally took over the city. NamePortraitPlace of birthTerm of officeRank and concurrent postsNotes and referencesChen ZhongfuJiangsu, Wu County15 April 1929 – July 1929
Mayor of the Qingdao (Special) Municipal Government On 20 April 1929, the Nationalist Government declared Qingdao a special municipality directly under the jurisdiction of the Executive Yuan. On 28 June, Ma Fuxiang was appointed mayor of the Qingdao Special Municipality; however, as he did not assume office, Wu Siyu served as acting mayor. On 2 July, the Office of the Qingdao Takeover Commissioner was reorganized as the Qingdao Special Municipal Government. In 1930, the Nationalist Government abolished the Organic Law of Special Municipalities and reclassified special municipalities as municipalities under the Executive Yuan. On 15 September of the same year, the Qingdao Special Municipal Government was renamed the Qingdao Municipal Government.