The collapse of Qing rule in Shanghai during the Taiping rebellion led to significant numbers of Chinese settling in the international areas,[1] though they were ostensibly prohibited from renting property there.
Unsatisfied with this state of affairs, in 1864, the "Mixed Court" was established, with a Qing official cooperating with a foreign consul to achieve some verdict.
[6] In British extraterritorial courts, while Qing officials were present in mixed cases, they were sidelined.
[7] The Mixed Court itself, when trying cases involving only Chinese citizens, similarly sidelined foreign influence.
[8] In the last decade of the Qing dynasty, with growing nationalist sentiment, the problems associated with various different jurisdictions became quite evident as revolutionaries used the protection of foreign jurisdiction to violate Qing dynasty sedition and lèse-majesté laws.