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History of Hong Kong
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Prehistoric     Imperial (221 BC - 1800s)     Colonial (1800s - 1930s)     Occupied (1940s)     Modern Hong Kong (1950s - 1997)         1950s | 60s | 70s | 80s | 90s         Handover to PRC rule     At present
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The History of Hong Kong began as a coastal island geographically located in southern China. While pockets of settlements have taken place in the region with archaeological findings dating back thousands of years. Regularly written records did not make way until the engagement of Imperial China and the British Colony in the territory. Starting out as a fishing village, salt production site and trading ground. It would evolve into a military port of strategic importance and eventually an international financial centre that enjoys the world's 14th highest GDP (PPP) per capita, supporting 33% of the foreign capital flows into China^[1].

Contents 1 Prehistoric Era 2 Imperial China Era (221 BC - 1800s) 3 Colonial Hong Kong Era (1800s - 1930s) 4 Japanese Occupation Era (1940s) 5 Modern Hong Kong under British rule (1950s - 1997) 5.1 The 1950s 5.2 The 1960s 5.3 The 1970s 5.4 The 1980s 5.5 The 1990s 6 Modern Hong Kong under China (post 1997 - Present) 6.1 The 2000s 7 See also 8 External links 9 References

Main article: Pre-history of Hong Kong

Archaeological findings suggest human activity in Hong Kong dates back over 5000 years. Bronze fishing and combat tools of Yuet people during Bronze Age have been excavated on Lantau Island and Lamma Island. Stone religious carvings on outlying islands and coastal areas have also been found, possibly related Che people in Neolithic. The latest findings dating from the Paleolithic suggest that Wong Tei Tung (黃地峒) is one of the most ancient settlements in Hong Kong.

Main article: History of Hong Kong under Imperial China

The territory was incorporated into China during the Qin Dynasty (221 BC - 206 BC), and the area was firmly consolidated under Nam Yuet (203 BC - 111 BC.) Archaeological evidence indicates that the population has increased since the Han Dynasty (206 BC - 220). In the 1950s, the tomb at Lei Cheng Uk from the Eastern Han Dynasty (25 – 220) was excavated and archaeologists began to investigate the possibility that salt production flourished in Hong Kong around 2000 years ago, although conclusive evidence has not been found.

Tai Po Hoi, the sea of Tai Po, was a major pearl hunting harbour in China since Han Dynasty. The activities peaked during the Southern Han (917 to 971) and continued till Ming Dynasty (1368 to 1644)

During the Tang Dynasty, the Guangdong region flourished as an international trading center. The Tuen Mun region in what is now Hong Kong's New Territories served as a port, naval base, salt production centre and later, base for the exploitation of pearls. Lantau Island was also the salt production centre where the salt smugglers riots broke out against the government.

In 1276 during the Mongol invasion, the Southern Song Dynasty court moved to Fujian, then to Lantau Island and later to today's Kowloon City, but the child emperor, Zhao Bing, after being defeated in the Battle of Yamen, committed suicide by drowning with his officials. Tung Chung valley, named after a hero who gave up his life for the emperor, is believed to have been a base for the court. Hau Wong, an official of the emperor is still worshipped in Hong Kong today.

However, during the Mongol period, Hong Kong saw its first population boom as Chinese refugees entered the area. Five families of Hau (Hou, 候), Tang (Deng, 鄧), Pang (Peng, 彭) and Liu (Liao, 廖) and Man (Wen, 文) were claimed to be among the earliest recorded familial settlers of Hong Kong. Despite the immigration and light development of agriculture, the area was still relatively barren and had to rely on salt, pearl and the fishery trades to produce income.

The last dynasty in China, Qing Dynasty, would also be the last to come in contact with Hong Kong. As a military outpost and trading port, the Hong Kong territory would gain the attention of the world.

Date	Treaty	Result
January 25, 1841	Convention of Chuenpeh	Prelimary cession of Hong Kong Island to United Kingdom
August 29, 1842	Treaty of Nanking	Cession of Hong Kong Island, founded as a crown colony of the United Kingdom
October 18, 1860	Convention of Peking	Cession of Kowloon (south of Boundary Street)
July 1, 1898	Second Convention of Peking	Lease of the New Territories (including New Kowloon)

Main article: History of Colonial Hong Kong (1800s - 1930s)

By the beginning of the 19th century, the British Empire had become heavily dependent upon the import of tea from China. While the British have exported to China luxurious items like clocks and watches, there was an overwhelming imbalance between the trades. China developed a strong demand for silver, which would become a difficult commodity to come by in large quantities for the British. The counterbalance of trades would come with illegal opium entering China. Lin Zexu would become the Chinese commissioner who voiced to Queen Victoria the Qing state's opposition to the unlawful opium trade. It resulted in the Opium Wars, which spawned British victories over China and the cession of Hong Kong to the United Kingdom via the enactment of the new treaties.

After the territorial settlements, the achievements of the era would set the foundation for the culture and everything having to do with modern Hong Kong for years to come. From the first first electric company to the transition from rickshaws to bus, ferries, trams and airline^[2], there was no shortage of improvements. Every industry was going through major transformation and growth. Other vital establishments include the change in philosophy starting with a western-style education with Frederick Stewart^[3], which would be a critical step in separating Hong Kong from mainland China during the political turmoil associated with the falling Qing dynasty. The monumental start of the financial powerhouse industry of the far east would begin with the first large scale bank^[4]. The period is also challenged by the onslaught of the Third Pandemic of Bubonic Plague changing the view of importance of the first hospital. On the outbreak of World War I in 1914, fear of a possible attack on the colony led to an exodus of 60,000 Chinese. Statistically Hong Kong's population would continue to boom in the following decades from 530,000 in 1916 to 725,000 in 1925. Nonetheless the crisis in mainland China in the 1920s and 1930s would leave Hong Kong vulnerable to a strategic invasion from Japan.

Main articles: Battle of Hong Kong and Japanese Occupation of Hong Kong

Hong Kong was occupied by Japanese from 25 December 1941 to 15 August 1945. The period, called '3 years and 8 months' halted the economy. The British, Canadians, Indians and the Hong Kong Volunteer Defense Forces resisted the Japanese invasion commanded by Sakai Takashi which started on December 8, 1941, eight hours after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Japanese achieved air superiority on the first day of battle and the defensive forces were outnumbered. The British and the Indians retreated from the Gin Drinker's Line and consequently from Kowloon under heavy aerial bombardment and artillery barrage. Fierce fighting continued on Hong Kong Island; the only reservoir was lost. Canadian Winnipeg Grenadiers fought at the crucial Wong Nai Chong Gap that secured the passage between downtown and the secluded southern parts of the island.

On December 25, 1941 - which has gone down in history as Black Christmas to local people - British colonial officials headed by the Governor of Hong Kong, Mark Aitchison Young, surrendered in person at the Japanese headquarters on the third floor of the Peninsula Hotel. Isogai Rensuke became the first Japanese governor of Hong Kong.

During the Japanese occupation, hyper-inflation and food rationing became the norm of daily lives. It became unlawful to own Hong Kong Dollars, which were replaced by the Japanese Military Yen, a currency without reserves issued by the Japanese Imperial Army administration. Some estimate that as many as 10,000 women were raped in the first few days after Hong Kong's capture and large number of suspected dissidents were executed. Philip Snow, a prominent historian of the period, said that the Japanese cut rations for civilians to conserve food for soldiers, usually to starvation levels and deported many to famine- and disease-ridden areas of the mainland. Most of the repatriated actually had come to Hong Kong just a few years earlier to flee the terror of the Second Sino-Japanese War in mainland China.

By the end of the war in 1945, the population of Hong Kong shrunk to 600,000, less than half of the pre-war population of 1.6 million. The communist takeover of mainland China in 1949 led to another population boom in Hong Kong. Thousands of refugees emigrated from Mainland China to Hong Kong, and made it an important entrepôt until the United Nations ordered a trade embargo on Mainland China due to the Korean War. More refugees came during the Great Leap Forward.

Main article: 1950s in Hong Kong

Skills and capital brought by refugees of Mainland China, especially from Shanghai, along with a vast pool of cheap labor helped revive the economy. At the same time, many foreign firms relocated their offices from Shanghai to Hong Kong. Enjoying unprecedented growth Hong Kong would transform from a territory of entrepôt trade to industrial and manufacturing.

Large squatter camps developed throughout the territory. These posed a fire and health hazard, and it was in order to respond to the problem of housing the influx of refugees that the Hong Kong government began its policy of developing public housing. Disasters like the Shek Kip Mei fire would lead to the deployments of "multi story buildings" as a standard. Conditions in public housing were very basic with several families sharing communal cooking facilities. Other aspects of life would change as traditional cantonese opera begin to overlap big screen cinemas. Other industry like tourism would begin to formalize.

Main article: 1960s in Hong Kong

The manufacturing industry opened a new decade utilizing large portions of the population. The construction business would also be revamped with new detailed guidelines for the first time since World War II. While Hong Kong started out with a low GDP, it would use the textile industry as the foundation to boost the economy. China's cultural revolution would put Hong Kong on a new political stage. Events like the 1967 riot would fill the streets with home-made bombs and chaos.

Family values and Chinese tradition would be challenged like never before as people spent more time in the factories than at home. Other obstacles include water shortages, long working hours coupled with extremely low wages were all trademarks of the era.

Main article: 1970s in Hong Kong

The 1970s also saw the extension of government subsidised education from six years to nine years and the creation of Hong Kong's country parks system.

The opening of the mainland Chinese market and rising salaries drove many manufacturers north. Hong Kong consolidated its position as a commercial and tourism centre in the South-East Asia region. High life expectancy, literacy, per-capita income and other socioeconomic measures attest to Hong Kong's achievements over the last four decades of the 20th Century.

In 1974, Murray McLehose founded ICAC, the Independent Commission Against Corruption, in order to combat corruption within the police force. The extent of corruption was so widespread that a mass police petition took place resisting prosecutions. Despite early opposition to the ICAC by the police force, Hong Kong was quite successful in its anti-corruption efforts, eventually becoming one of the least corrupt societies in the world.

Main article: 1980s in Hong Kong

In 1982, the British Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, hoped that the increasing openness of the PRC government and the economic reform in the mainland would allow the continuation of British ruling. The result meeting, led to the signing of Sino-British Joint Declaration and the proposal of the One country, two systems concept by Deng Xiaoping. Political news dominated the media, while real estate takes a major upswing. The financial world would also be rattled by panics, leading to waves of policy changes and Black Saturday. Meanwhile Hong Kong is now recognized as one of the most wealthy representative of the far east. At the same time, the warnings of 1997 raise emigration statistics to an all new historical level. Hong Kong Cinema would enjoy one paramount run that would put it on the international map. But everything seems to be overshadowed by the uncertainty of the future.

Main articles: 1990s in Hong Kong and Transfer of the sovereignty of Hong Kong

On April 4, 1990, the Hong Kong Basic Law was officially accepted as the mini-constitution of the Hong Kong SAR after the handover. The pro-Beijing bloc welcomed the Basic Law, calling it the most democratic legal system to ever exist in the PRC. The pro-democratic bloc criticized it as not democratic enough. In July 1992, Chris Patten was appointed as the last British Governor of Hong Kong. Patten had been Chairman of the Conservative Party in the UK until he lost his parliamentary seat in the general election earlier that year. Relations with the PRC government in Beijing became increasingly strained, as Patten introduced democratic reforms that increased the number of elected members in the Legislative Council. This caused considerable annoyance to the PRC, which saw this as a breach of the Basic Law. On July 1, 1997 Hong Kong was handed over to the People's Republic of China by the United Kingdom. The old Legislative Council, elected under Chris Patten's reforms, was replaced by the Provisional Legislative Council elected by a selection committee whose members are appointed by the PRC government. Tung Chee Hwa, elected in December by a selection committee with members appointed by the PRC government, assumed duty as the first Chief Executive of Hong Kong.

Unchanged after 1997

Changed after 1997

English is still taught in all schools. However, many schools teach in Cantonese in parallel with Chinese and English. The border with the mainland continued to be patrolled as before. Hong Kong remained an individual member of various international organizations, such as the IOC, APEC and WTO. Hong Kong continues to negotiate and maintain its own aviation bilateral treaties with foreign countries and territories. Flights between Hong Kong and China mainland are treated as international flights (or more commonly known as inter-territorial flights in China mainland). Hong Kong SAR passport holders had easier access to countries in Europe and North America, while mainland citizens did not. Citizens in mainland China can only apply for a visa to Hong Kong from the PRC Government. Many former colonial citizens can still use British National passports after 1997. (Main article: British nationality law) It continued to have more political freedoms than the mainland China, including freedom of the press. Hong Kongers, unlike those in mainland China, continue to drive on the left. Electrical plugs (BS1363), TV transmissions (PAL-I) and many other technical standards from the United Kingdom are still utilised in Hong Kong. However, telephone companies ceased installing British Standard BS 6312 telephone sockets in Hong Kong. (Main article: Technical standards in colonial Hong Kong) Hong Kong retains a separate international dialing code (852) and telephone numbering plan from that of the mainland. calls between Hong Kong and the mainland still require international dialing. The former British way of drill, marching and words of command in English continued in all disciplinary services including all civil organizations. The PLA soldiers of the Chinese Garrison in Hong Kong have their own drills and Mandarin word of command. All the British Crown statues like Queen Victoria, King George remained unchanged.

All public offices now fly the flags of the PRC and the Hong Kong SAR. The Union Jack now flies only outside the British Consulate-General and other British premises. Queen Elizabeth II's portrait disappeared from banknotes, postage stamps and public offices. As of 2007, some pre-1997 coins and banknotes are still in circulation. The 'Royal' title was dropped from almost all organisations that had been granted it, with the exception of the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club. Legal references to the 'Crown' were replaced by references to the 'State', and barristers who had been appointed Queen's Counsel would now be known as Senior Counsel. Public holidays changed, with the Queen's Official Birthday and other British-inspired occasions being replaced by PRC National Day and Hong Kong SAR Establishment Day. All the red colour Post Boxes (Royal Mail, Queen Elizabeth II)'s totally diappeared in the streets of Hong Kong and replaced by the green colour Hong Kong Post.

Main article: 2000s in Hong Kong

The new millennium would signal a series of events. A sizeable portion of the population who were previously against the handover found themselves living with the adjustments. Article 23 became a controversy, and led to marches in different parts of Hong Kong. The government also dealt with the SARS outbreak in 2003. Other health crisis such as the Bird Flu Pandemic gained momentum from the late 90s, and led to the disposal of millions of chicken and poultry. The slaughtering put Hong Kong at the center of global discussions. At the same time, the economy is trying to rebound fiscally. Hong Kong Disneyland was also introduced in the much turbulent time. In a very short time, the political climate heated up and the Chief Executive position would be challenged culturally, politically and managerially.

• History of China - Timeline of Chinese history
• History of the People's Republic of China
• Imperialism in China
• British Empire

• British nationality law and Hong Kong
• Declared monuments of Hong Kong

• Secretary of State for War and the Colonies (1801-1854)
• Secretary of State for the Colonies (1768-1782 and 1854-1966)
• Secretary of State for Commonwealth Affairs (1966-1968)
• Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (since 1968)

• Politics of Hong Kong
• Governor of Hong Kong
• Museums in Hong Kong

• Hong Kong Museum of History website
• Song Dynasty burial site unearthed in Ma Wan
• A speech script on history of Hong Kong
• The Fall of Hong Kong Christmas 1941
• History of Hong Kong to 1910
• Mondophoto.net - 579 Public Domain photos of Hong Kong including historical sites and museums
• Bibliography of Hong Kong Archaeology on the University of Hong Kong website
• "Story of the Stanford family and the effect of the fall of Hong Kong in 1941."