Kiaochow

views updated

Kiaochow (kyou´chou´, jēou´jō´) or Jiaozhou (jēou´jō´), former German territory, area c.200 sq mi (520 sq km), along the southern coast of Shandong prov., China. Its administrative center was the city of Qingdao. Germany leased Kiaochow in 1898 for 99 years, but in 1914 Japan seized it. Through agreements reached at the Washington Conference in 1922, Kiaochow was returned to China.