In Aug. 2010, at the 21st International Congress of Historical Sciences, the proposal that Shandong University, China should host the 22nd ICHS was approved by the Executive Committee by a vote of 36-8 with five abstentions marking its first hosting in Asian countries and a milestone in national academic improvement by generations of scholars.

Back in the 1930s, the Chinese scholar Hu Shi attended the ICHS on an individual basis. Then in 1980s, the Association of Chinese Historians gained its membership. And in 1985, a Chinese delegation officially attended the 16th ICHS and has been participating ever since. In 1995, China proposed hosting the 2000 19th Series in Beijing but sadly, got turned down.

Remarkable achievements like the 2008 Olympics made in the past 30 years of “reform and opening”, and the extraordinary cheering economic vitality during the vast depression around the globe gave people confidence in competing for the right to host. And clearly, China’s highs-speed development provided sufficient condition for proper hosting.