JEWISH TOUR-Peace Hotel

Peace Hotel:  Many of Shanghai's coveted landmark structures were established under the thriving business empires created by the city's most successful Jewish families. The Sassoon family, Sephardic Jews of British decent who immigrated to Shanghai from Iraq, was among the city's most prominent entrepreneurial developers. Dominating the business and real-estate sectors of both Hong Kong and Shanghai, the Sassoon’s were credited with building a number of high-rise structures that continue to define Shanghai's architectural landscape today.

Situated at Number 20 on The Bund, the north building of the Peace Hotel, also known as the Sassoon House, was the first high-rise structure to be commissioned by Sir Victor Sassoon of the successful Sassoon family. Designed by P & T Architects, construction on the 13-story building began in 1926 and was completed in 1929. Initially, the first three floors of the Sassoon House were leased as office space, while offices for the Sassoon family occupied the fourth floor. The fifth, sixth, and seventh floors were occupied by the Cathay Hotel, the name by which the hotel was known until 1956 when it fell under new ownership and became known as the Peace Hotel. The hotel's bar, restaurant, and ballroom were located on the eighth floor, while the ninth floor accommodated a nightclub and private dining hall. The tenth floor housed private apartments for the Sassoon family, with a private dining hall located within the three-story pyramid roof structure.

During its decades of operation prior to 1949, the Cathay hotel was considered as the pinnacle of opulence, signifying the economic prestige that had come to define Shanghai as the "Paris of the East". The hotel gained world-wide recognition, attracting the attention of such internationally renound guests including actors, political figures, and playwrights. During China’s Cultural Revolution the hotel offices were temporarily occupied by the Municipal Finance Committee, during which the building was under control of the Municipal Government.

The hotel reopened in 1956, continuing to lour visitors with its grandiose style and prominent location along The Bund until it was closed in 2007 to undergo extensive renovations. The renovation sought to accurately restore the architectural integrity of the structure, reintroducing the historical splendor of this landmark just in time for the 2010 World Exop in Shanghai.