Editing Weihai (section)

== History ==
[[File:Aankomst van Chinese krijgsgevangenen te Weihaiwei The landing of Chinese prisoners at Wei-Hai-Wei (titel op object), RP-F-2001-7-1637B-26 (cropped).jpg|left|thumb|Landing of Chinese prisoners at Wei-Hai on 16 February 1895]]
Prehistorically, it was inhabited by [[Dongyi]] tribes,<ref>{{Cite web |title=威海市人民政府 民俗方言 |url=http://www.weihai.gov.cn/col/col58861/index.html |access-date=2023-02-19 |website=www.weihai.gov.cn}}</ref> and it was annexed into [[China proper]] by the state of [[Qi (state)|Qi]] in 567 B.C.

Before the 14th century, Weihai was a minor fishing settlement. In 1398, during the [[Ming dynasty]], it became a military stronghold (''wei'') to defend against raids by the [[wokou]]. The fortification at Weihai was constructed in 1403, and contained walls almost 2 miles (3.2&nbsp;km) in circumference.<ref name=":0">{{cite book |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |url=http://www.britannica.com/place/Weihai |title=Weihai, Encyclopædia Britannica Online |date=8 October 2015 |publisher=Encyclopædia Britannica Inc. |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150905223907/http://www.britannica.com/place/Weihai |archive-date=5 September 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref>

Weihaiwei was the base for the [[Beiyang Fleet]] during the [[Qing Dynasty]]. In 1895, the Japanese captured it in the [[Battle of Weihaiwei]], which is regarded as the last major battle of the [[First Sino-Japanese War]]. The Japanese then evacuated Weihaiwei on 24 May 1898, after which it was occupied by the British.<ref name="auto">http://www.worldstatesmen.org/China_Foreign_colonies.html#Weihaiwei {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110420174121/http://www.worldstatesmen.org/China_Foreign_colonies.html |date=20 April 2011 }} WorldStatesMen - China - Foreign colonies - Weihaiwai</ref>

The core of Weihai (now [[Huancui District]]) was [[Weihaiwei under British rule|ruled by the British]] from 1 July 1898 to 1930 under a lease agreement with the Chinese empire, with '''Port Edward''' (the center of the original Weihai city, now in Huancui District) serving as the capital.<ref name=":0" /> A [[Royal Navy]] base was built on [[Liugong Island]].

[[File:Wei-Hai-Wei (1906).jpg|thumb|200px|alt=refer to caption|Map of Weihaiwei in 1906]]
Weihaiwei became an integral part of China after it was returned to the [[Republic of China (1912–1949)|Republic of China]] on 1 October 1930,<ref name="independent">{{cite news|last=Vines|first=Stephen|title=How Britain lost chance to keep its last major colony|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/how-britain-lost-chance-to-keep-its-last-major-colony-1258861.html|newspaper=The Independent|date=30 June 1997|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170627041321/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/how-britain-lost-chance-to-keep-its-last-major-colony-1258861.html|archive-date=27 June 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|title=China: A Cultural and Historical Dictionary|publisher=Curzon Press|year=1998|isbn=0-7007-0439-6|editor-last=Dillon|editor-first=Michael|location=London|pages=[https://archive.org/details/chinahistoricalc0000unse/page/341 341]|url=https://archive.org/details/chinahistoricalc0000unse/page/341}}</ref> but Liugong Island and its facilities were leased back to the [[United Kingdom|U.K.]] until 1940.<ref name="auto" />

Weihaiwei was occupied by the Japanese from 1938 to 1945.<ref name=region>{{cite web| url= http://www.worldstatesmen.org/China_prov.html#Weihaiwei | title= China Provinces and Administrative Divisions - Weihai |publisher= WorldStatesMen.org |access-date=9 December 2018}}</ref>  There was a withdrawal of most British forces and supplies from Liugong Island, and finally a Japanese military landing and occupation of the island in 1940.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/newspapers/Digitised/Article/straitstimes19401208-1.2.66.aspx|title=Weihaiwai Withdrawal|website=nlb.gov.sg|access-date=9 December 2018}}</ref>

The region was formally incorporated into Shandong province on 10 May 1945.<ref name=region/>  In 1949, Weihaiwei City was established, and its name was shortened to Weihai after the [[Chinese Civil War|Communist revolution]].

Since 2003, a replica of the [[Chinese battleship Dingyuan|Chinese battleship ''Dingyuan'']] has been anchored here as a [[museum ship]] and memorial for Chinese veterans of the [[First Sino-Japanese War]].<ref>{{Cite web |title="定远舰"沉舰遗物出水：沉没125年终被找到，图9文物锁定身份！_复制品 |url=https://www.sohu.com/a/382741316_120362718 |access-date=2024-10-20 |website=www.sohu.com}}</ref>