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Product Description
In 1842 a "barren island" was reluctantly ceded by China to an unenthusiastic Britain. "Hong Kong", grumbled Palmerston, "will never be a mart of trade". But from the outset the new colony prospered, its early growth owing much to the energy and resourcefulness of opium traders, who soon diversified in more respectable directions. In 1859 the Kowloon Peninsula was sold to Britain, and in 1898 a further area of the mainland, the "New Territories", was leased to Britain for 99 years - the arrangement from which the present difficulties spring. Despite its extraordinary economic success, which has made it one of the world's leading commercial centres, Hong Kong has never quite shaken off the raffishness of its early days. It has continued to be a source of embarrassment to British governments, and now, as its enforced return to China approaches, its future is the focus of worldwide attention and speculation. This work is an evocation of Hong Kong and the characters of those who shaped it, from its buccaneering origins to its post-war growth.
About the Author
Frank Welsh was born in Washington, County Durham, and educated at Magdalene College, Cambridge. He has had a varied career in international business and banking, including service on the boards of nationalised industries and as a member of the Royal Commission on the National Health Service. His books include ‘The Profit of the State’, ‘Uneasy City’, ‘Building the Trireme’ and ‘A History of Hong Kong’. Frank Welsh lives in France and England.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
26 of 26 people found the following review helpful
Frank Welsh writes of the economic, political, and social history of Hong Kong with great passion, humour and insight, from the original 'unequal' treaties with which Britain was able to lease the island from mainland China, through its expansion, to its return to Chinese control in 1997. Although he covers much ground - his discussion of the opium trade and the powerful Hongs are particularly interesting - the main thrust of the book concerns the administration of the island (and the administrators themselves), including the often uneasy relationship between Hong Kong and Great Britain. This natural emphasis on Western control, together with the use of mainly English-language sources leads to my only criticism of the book - that insufficient space is given to the Chinese perspective - both from the mainland and the Hong Kong Chinese. However, this remains a particularly interesting and important book, and proves excellent reading for academics and Sinophiles alike.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Brilliant, educational and very interesting; the best account I have ever read. It covers intensively not only HK's birth and history but also the attitudes, especially in the early years, of the British Administration/Politicians in the UK towards HK itself and its people, and the reports received from their staff based there who had first-hand knowledge of what was going on. Eurasian, born in HK, lived there until I was 22 which included its occupation by the Japanese, I highly recommend this book; I am sure it would make one think and perhaps question.
We lived in HK for 3 years so reading the history filled in the gaps of our experience of the place. Not that you can ever really know it.
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