THE UNIVERSITY OF SYDNEY
Department of History Centenary 1891-1991
CENTENARY CONFERENCE, SYDNEY, 20 JULY 1991
BRITISH RULE IN HONG KONG
FROM IGNOMINY TO IGNOMINY
The Hon Justice Michael Kirby AC CMG**
IN THE BEGINNING
The acquisition by the British Crown of sovereignty
one of the least noble over the colony of Hong Kong was
Little wonder chapters of the history of the British Empire. that the sesqui centenary passed recently with hardly any notice. And now that sovereignty is about to be surrendered
in a chapter equally shameful.
Visitors to the glittering metropolis of Hong Kong are dazzled by the steel and glass, the expensive shops, busy Few visitors people and the manifest wealth at every turn. trouble to acquaint themselves with the circumstances by which the British Crown acquired this colony. acquisition was eventually secured by the Treaty of Nanking, 1842. The treaty was enforced at the end of the first opium war. It is worth remembering how it came about.
That
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to open Britain led the efforts of western nations
China to the international trade in which Britain, early to
the industrial revolution, was the foremost exponent.
From
the 1830s, Britain increased its efforts to persuade China to alter the conditions upon which trade could be had with this vast country and huge potential market. A peaceful mission to this end, led by Lord Napier in 1834 was not permitted to
It ended in failure. This failure proceed beyond Canton.
stimulated the demands of the collected British merchants in
Canton for the use of Imperial force to achieve the
mercantile objectives.
Coinciding with these demands the Ch'ing government in
Peking turned its attention to the best means of tackling the problem of the growing use of opium within the Chinese
Empire.
some which we have After a debate, reminiscent of some
was
led by Lin Tse-Hsü.
The
He was
had more lately in Australia, a decision was made in 1838 to
suppress trafficking in opium and to punish its usage.
campaign to this end appointed Imperial Commissioner. His orders were to proceed to Canton immediately to liquidate opium trafficking.
arrived in Canton in March 1839.
He
It was soon confirmed for Lin that the primary source
(most of them British).
of opium was the foreign merchants (most of They imported most of the opium from the British possessions in India. When the demand for the surrender of the huge
was ignored, stocks of opium held by the foreign merchants
the foreign factories in Canton were blockaded and the Chinese employees recalled. This move ultimately produced
the surrender of the opium and a pledge by the merchants
never again to engage in its commerce.
Over 20,000 chests of
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opium were destroyed in public under the orders of Imperial Commissioner Lin, a man known for his probity and humanity. Having destroyed the opium and secured the promises, Lin
lifted the restrictions on the merchants.
However, the British Superintendent of Trade (Charles Elliot) determined that the enforced surrender of the opium
of Westminster was
was
a cause
for
war.
The
Government of
persuaded to agree. A number of British naval and land
-
forces arrived off Canton in November 1839.
They attacked a
Thus
fleet of Chinese war junks in the Pearl River estuary. began the first opium war. Its outbreak in England led to
denunciations of the
declared:
government's efforts.
Gladstone
war more
"A war more unjust in its origin, a calculated to cover this country with permanent disgrace, I do not know and have not read of. The British flag is hoisted to protect infamous traffic."
an
Canton was blockaded in June 1840. Demands were presented to
the Ch'ing government. These included compensation for the confiscated opium, an indemnity to cover the cost of the war,
the removal of barriers
on future
establishment of relations
on
trade with China, the
an "equal footing" and,
significantly, the grant of an island base.
Lin was replaced.
Talks began in September 1840. Because negotiations in Canton with his rapacious successor attack on Chinese dragged on, the British launched an
the city. This forced the positions near
new Imperial
Convention on 20 January negotiator to sign the Ch'uan-pi Convention
1841. It provided for the cession of Hong Kong to the British Crown, the payment of an indemnity of 6 million
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