21
THE TRAVELLING PALACE OF SOUTHERN SUNG IN KOWLOON
A lecture delivered on September 26, 1966
JEN YU-WEN (KAN YAU-MAN)
I am honoured by being invited to talk to you on a subject which deals with a very important episode in the local history of Hong Kong and Kowloon. In recent years I have done some exhaustive research work on this subject and I am glad to have this opportunity to share with you whatever little knowledge I have gained.
It is recorded in several Chinese historical books2 that Emperor Tuan Tsung of Southern Sung (宋端宗) arrived at Kuan-fu (官富) in the spring of A.D. 1277. According to Ta-Ch'ing I-t'ung Chi (大清一統志)
"There were over thirty travelling palaces of (Southern) Sung, and four of them can be located now. One of them was Kuan-fu Ch'ang".
The problems confronting us now are: Where exactly was Kuan-fu Ch'ang? Why and how did the Sung Emperor go there? Where is the Travelling Palace to be located now? What other historical relics and sites can be found connected with the royal visit? etc. Before answering these questions, however, you should be acquainted with one of the most pathetic stories in the history of China in order to gain a clear understanding of the historical background.
I. THE ROYAL REFUGEES
The story begins with the death of the 6th emperor of the Southern Sung Dynasty, Tu Tsung (度宗) in 1274, the 10th year of his reign, in the capital Lin-an (臨安), i.e. Hangchow. He was survived by the Queen Ch'uan (全皇后), a few concubines and four children: three sons and a daughter. The eldest son, Shih (昰), 7 years old, was reared by the concubine Yang (楊淑妃). The second son, Hsien (昱), 4 years old, was reared by Queen Ch'uan. The third son, Ping (昺), also 4 years old, was reared by the concubine Yu (俞淑妃). The daughter, probably