Dalian's urban plan reflects a turbulent past: the Russians leased the area in 1898 and laid out Dalny with grand boulevards and traffic circles (
中山广场 is their Nikolayevskaya); Japan took over after the 1904–05 Russo-Japanese War and renamed it Dairen. The Japanese and Russian architecture on
中山广场 and in the
旅顺 (Port Arthur) district still stands.