British Hong Kong - wikipedia British Hong Kong Hong Kong 香港 1841 -- 1941 1945 -- 1997 Flag ( 1959 -- 1997 ) Coat of arms ( 1959 -- 1997 ) Map of Hong Kong Status 1843 -- 1941 ; 1945 -- 1981 : Crown colony 1981 -- 1997 : British Dependent Territory Capital Victoria ( de facto ) Official languages English Chinese Religion Chinese folk religion Buddhism Christianity Government Colonial dependency Monarch 1842 -- 1901 Victoria ( first ) 1952 -- 1997 Elizabeth II ( last ) Governor 1843 -- 1844 Sir Henry Pottinger ( first ) 1992 -- 1997 Chris Patten ( last ) Chief Secretary 1843 George Malcolm ( first ) 1993 -- 1997 Anson Chan ( last ) Legislature Legislative Council Historical era Victorian era to 20th century British occupation 26 January 1841 Treaty of Nanking 29 August 1842 Convention of Peking 18 October 1860 Extension of Hong Kong Territory Convention 9 June 1898 Imperial Japanese military occupation 25 December 1941 to 30 August 1945 Retrocession to China 30 June 1997 Area 1848 80.4 km ( 31.0 sq mi ) 1901 1,042 km ( 402 sq mi ) Population 1996 estimate 6,217,556 Density 5,796 / km ( 15,011.6 / sq mi ) GDP ( PPP ) 1996 estimate Total $154.185 billion Per capita $23,843 GDP ( nominal ) 1996 estimate Total $159.718 billion Per capita $24,698 Gini ( 1996 ) 51.8 high HDI ( 1995 ) 0.808 very high Currency before 1895 : Spanish dollar Chinese cash 1895 -- 1937 : Trade dollar after 1937 : Hong Kong dollar ISO 3166 code HK Preceded by Succeeded by Bao'an County, Guangdong Japanese occupation of Hong Kong Japanese occupation of Hong Kong Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Today part of China Hong Kong British Hong Kong Traditional Chinese 英 屬 香港 show Transcriptions Yue : Cantonese Yale Romanization Yīng suhk hēung góng Jyutping Jing suk hoeng gong British Hong Kong denotes the period during which Hong Kong was governed as a colony and British Dependent Territory of the United Kingdom. Excluding the Japanese occupation during the Second World War, Hong Kong was under British rule from 1841 to 1997. The colonial period began with the occupation of Hong Kong Island in 1841 during the First Opium War. The island was ceded by Qing China in the aftermath of the war in 1842 and established as a Crown colony in 1843. The colony expanded to the Kowloon Peninsula in 1860 after the Second Opium War and was further extended when Britain obtained a 99 - year lease of the New Territories in 1898. Although Hong Kong Island and Kowloon were ceded in perpetuity, the leased area, which comprised over 90 per cent of the territory, had such a vital role in the economy that Britain agreed to transfer the entire colony to China upon the expiration of that lease in 1997. The transfer has been considered by many as marking the end of the British Empire. Contents 1 History 1.1 Colonial establishment 1.2 Growth and expansion 1.3 Japanese occupation 1.4 Restoration of British rule 1.5 Handover to China 2 Government 2.1 Cadets 3 Economy 4 Dissent 5 See also 6 Notes 7 References 8 Bibliography 9 Further reading 10 External links History Colonial establishment Further information : History of Hong Kong ( 1800s -- 1930s ) and Bao'an County In 1836, the Manchu Qing government undertook a major policy review of the opium trade. Lin Zexu volunteered to take on the task of suppressing opium. In March 1839, he became Special Imperial Commissioner in Canton, where he ordered the foreign traders to surrender their opium stock. He confined the British to the Canton Factories and cut off their supplies. Chief Superintendent of Trade, Charles Elliot, complied with Lin 's demands to secure a safe exit for the British, with the costs involved to be resolved between the two governments. When Elliot promised that the British government would pay for their opium stock, the merchants surrendered their 20,283 chests of opium, which were destroyed in public. Possibly the earliest painting of Hong Kong Island, showing the waterfront settlement which became Victoria City In September 1839, the British Cabinet decided that the Chinese should be made to pay for the destruction of British property, either by the threat or use of force. An expeditionary force was placed under Elliot and his cousin, Rear - Admiral George Elliot, as joint plenipotentiaries in 1840. Foreign Secretary Lord Palmerston stressed to the Chinese government that the British government did not question China 's right to prohibit opium, but it objected to the way this was handled. He viewed the sudden strict enforcement as laying a trap for the foreign traders, and the confinement of the British with supplies cut off was tantamount to starving them into submission or death. He instructed the Elliot cousins to occupy one of the Chusan islands, to present a letter from himself to a Chinese official for the Emperor, then to proceed to the Gulf of Bohai for a treaty, and if the Chinese resisted, blockade the key ports of the Yangtze and Yellow rivers. Palmerston demanded a territorial base in Chusan for trade so that British merchants `` may not be subject to the arbitrary caprice either of the Government of Peking, or its local Authorities at the Sea - Ports of the Empire ''. In 1841, Elliot negotiated with Lin 's successor, Qishan, in the Convention of Chuenpi during the First Opium War. On 20 January, Elliot announced `` the conclusion of preliminary arrangements '', which included the cession of Hong Kong Island and its harbour to the British Crown. Elliot chose Hong Kong instead of Chusan because he believed a settlement further east would cause an `` indefinite protraction of hostilities '', whereas Hong Kong 's harbour was a valuable base for the British trading community in Canton. British rule began with the occupation of the island on 26 January. Commodore Gordon Bremer, commander - in - chief of British forces in China, took formal possession of the island at Possession Point, where the Union Jack was raised under a feu de joie from the marines and a royal salute from the warships. Hong Kong was ceded in the Treaty of Nanking on 29 August 1842 and established as a Crown colony after ratification was exchanged on 26 June 1843. Growth and expansion Spring Garden Lane, 1846 The treaty failed to satisfy British expectations of a major expansion of trade and profit, which led to increasing pressure for a revision of the terms. In October 1856, Chinese authorities in Canton detained the Arrow, a Chinese - owned ship registered in Hong Kong to enjoy protection of the British flag. The Consul in Canton, Harry Parkes, claimed the hauling down of the flag and arrest of the crew were `` an insult of very grave character ''. Parkes and Sir John Bowring, the 4th Governor of Hong Kong, seized the incident to pursue a forward policy. In March 1857, Palmerston appointed Lord Elgin as Plenipotentiary with the aim of securing a new and satisfactory treaty. A French expeditionary force joined the British to avenge the execution of a French missionary in 1856. In 1860, the capture of the Taku Forts and occupation of Beijing led to the Treaty of Tientsin and Convention of Peking. In the Treaty of Tientsin, the Chinese accepted British demands to open more ports, navigate the Yangtze River, legalise the opium trade and have diplomatic representation in Beijing. During the conflict, the British occupied the Kowloon Peninsula, where the flat land was valuable training and resting ground. The area in what is now south of Boundary Street and Stonecutters Island was ceded in the Convention of Peking. Hong Kong in the 1930s In 1898, the British sought to extend Hong Kong for defence. After negotiations began in April 1898, with the British Minister in Beijing, Sir Claude MacDonald, representing Britain, and diplomat Li Hongzhang leading the Chinese, the Second Convention of Peking was signed on 9 June. Since the foreign powers had agreed by the late 19th century that it was no longer permissible to acquire outright sovereignty over any parcel of Chinese territory, and in keeping with the other territorial cessions China made to Russia, Germany and France that same year, the extension of Hong Kong took the form of a 99 - year lease. The lease consisted of the rest of Kowloon south of the Shenzhen River and 230 islands, which became known as the New Territories. The British formally took possession on 16 April 1899. Japanese occupation Main article : Japanese occupation of Hong Kong Japanese Army crossing the border from the mainland, 1941 In 1941, during the Second World War, the British reached an agreement with the Chinese government under Generalissimo Chiang Kai - shek that if Japan attacked Hong Kong, the Chinese National Army would attack the Japanese from the rear to relieve pressure on the British garrison. On 8 December, the Battle of Hong Kong began when Japanese air bombers effectively destroyed British air power in one attack. Two days later, the Japanese breached the Gin Drinkers Line in the New Territories. The British commander, Major - General Christopher Maltby, concluded that the island could not be defended for long unless he withdrew his brigade from the mainland. On 18 December, the Japanese crossed Victoria Harbour. By 25 December, organised defence was reduced into pockets of resistance. Maltby recommended a surrender to Governor Sir Mark Young, who accepted his advice to reduce further losses. A day after the invasion, Chiang ordered three corps under General Yu Hanmou to march towards Hong Kong. The plan was to launch a New Year 's Day attack on the Japanese in the Canton region, but before the Chinese infantry could attack, the Japanese had broken Hong Kong 's defences. The British casualties were 2,232 killed or missing and 2,300 wounded. The Japanese reported 1,996 killed and 6,000 wounded. The Japanese soldiers committed atrocities, including rape, on many locals. The population fell in half, from 1.6 million in 1941 to 750,000 at war 's end because of fleeing refugees ; they returned in 1945. The Japanese imprisoned the ruling British colonial élite and sought to win over the local merchant gentry by appointments to advisory councils and neighbourhood watch groups. The policy worked well for Japan and produced extensive collaboration from both the élite and the middle class, with far less terror than in other Chinese cities. Hong Kong was transformed into a Japanese colony, with Japanese businesses replacing the British. However, the Japanese Empire had severe logistical difficulties and by 1943 the food supply for Hong Kong was problematic. The overlords became more brutal and corrupt, and the Chinese gentry became disenchanted. With the surrender of Japan, the transition back to British rule was smooth, for on the mainland the Nationalist and Communist forces were preparing for a civil war and ignored Hong Kong. In the long run the occupation strengthened the pre-war social and economic order among the Chinese business community by eliminating some conflicts of interests and reducing the prestige and power of the British. Restoration of British rule Further information : 1950s in Hong Kong, 1960s in Hong Kong, 1970s in Hong Kong, 1980s in Hong Kong, and 1990s in Hong Kong British forces reoccupy Hong Kong under Rear - Admiral Cecil Harcourt, 30 August 1945 On 14 August 1945, when Japan announced its unconditional surrender, the British formed a naval task group to sail towards Hong Kong. On 1 September, Rear - Admiral Cecil Harcourt proclaimed a military administration with himself as its head. He formally accepted the Japanese surrender on 16 September in Government House. Young, upon his return as governor in May 1946, pursued political reform known as the `` Young Plan '', believing that, to counter the Chinese government 's determination to recover Hong Kong, it was necessary to give local inhabitants a greater stake in the territory by widening the political franchise to include them. Handover to China This section does not cite any sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( January 2018 ) Main article : Transfer of sovereignty over Hong Kong The Sino - British Joint Declaration was signed by both the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and the Premier of the People 's Republic of China on 19 December 1984 in Beijing. The Declaration entered into force with the exchange of instruments of ratification on 27 May 1985 and was registered by the People 's Republic of China and United Kingdom governments at the United Nations on 12 June 1985. In the Joint Declaration, the People 's Republic of China Government stated that it had decided to resume the exercise of sovereignty over Hong Kong ( including Hong Kong Island, Kowloon, and the New Territories ) with effect from 1 July 1997 and the United Kingdom Government declared that it would relinquish Hong Kong to the PRC with effect from 1 July 1997. In the document, the People 's Republic of China Government also declared its basic policies regarding Hong Kong. In accordance with the One Country, Two Systems principle agreed between the United Kingdom and the People 's Republic of China, the socialist system of People 's Republic of China would not be practised in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region ( HKSAR ), and Hong Kong 's previous capitalist system and its way of life would remain unchanged for a period of 50 years. The Joint Declaration provides that these basic policies shall be stipulated in the Hong Kong Basic Law. The ceremony of the signing of the Sino - British Joint Declaration took place at 18 : 00, 19 December 1984 at the Western Main Chamber of the Great Hall of the People. The Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office at first proposed a list of 60 -- 80 Hong Kong people to attend the ceremony. The number was finally extended to 101. The list included Hong Kong government officials, members of the Legislative and Executive Councils, chairmen of The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation and Standard Chartered Bank, Hong Kong celebrities such as Li Ka - shing, Pao Yue - kong and Fok Ying - tung, and also Martin Lee Chu - ming and Szeto Wah. The handover ceremony was held at the new wing of the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre in Wan Chai on the night of 30 June 1997. The principal British guest was Charles, Prince of Wales who read a farewell speech on behalf of the Queen. The newly appointed Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Tony Blair, the British Foreign Minister, Robin Cook, the departing Hong Kong governor, Chris Patten, Chief of the Defence Staff of the United Kingdom, Field Marshal Sir Charles Guthrie, also attended. Representing China were the President of the People 's Republic of China, Jiang Zemin, Premier of the People 's Republic of China, Li Peng, and Tung Chee - hwa, the first Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People 's Republic of China. This event was broadcast on television and radio stations across the world. Government Elizabeth II Monarch ( 1952 -- 1997 ) Chris Patten Governor ( 1992 -- 1997 ) Anson Chan Chief Secretary ( 1993 -- 1997 ) Hong Kong was a Crown colony of the United Kingdom and maintained an administration roughly modelled after the Westminster system. The Letters Patent formed the constitutional basis of the colonial government and the Royal Instructions detailed how the territory should be governed and organised. The Governor was the head of government and appointed by the British monarch to serve as the representative of the Crown in the colony. Executive power was highly concentrated with the Governor, who himself appointed almost all members of the Legislative Council and Executive Council and also served as President of both chambers. The British government provided oversight for the colonial government ; the Foreign Secretary formally approved any additions to the Legislative and Executive Councils and the Sovereign held sole authority to amend the Letters Patent and Royal Instructions. The Executive Council determined administrative policy changes and considered primary legislation before passing it to the Legislative Council for approval. This advisory body also itself issued secondary legislation under a limited set of colonial ordinances. The Legislative Council debated proposed legislation and was responsible for the appropriation of public funds. This chamber was reformed in the last years of colonial rule to introduce more democratic representation. Indirectly elected functional constituency seats were introduced in 1985 and popularly elected geographical constituency seats in 1991. Further electoral reform in 1994 effectively made the legislature broadly representative. The administrative Civil Service was led by the Colonial Secretary ( later Chief Secretary ), who was deputy to the Governor. Government House, c. 1873 The judicial system was based on English law, with Chinese customary law taking a secondary role in civil cases involving Chinese residents. The Supreme Court was the highest court and ruled on all civil and criminal cases in the colony. During the early colonial period, extraterritorial appellate cases from other regions of China involving British subjects were also tried in this court. Further appeals from the Supreme Court were heard by the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, which exercised final adjudication over the entire British Empire. Cadets In 1861, Governor Sir Hercules Robinson introduced the Hong Kong Cadetship, which recruited young graduates from Britain to learn Cantonese and written Chinese for two years, before deploying them on a fast track to the Civil Service. Cadet officers gradually formed the backbone of the civil administration. After the Second World War, ethnic Chinese were allowed into the service, followed by women. Cadets were renamed Administrative Officers in the 1950s, and they remained the elite of the Civil Service during British rule. Economy Victoria Harbour in 1988, showing the Bank of China Tower being built The stability, security, and predictability of British law and government enabled Hong Kong to flourish as a centre for international trade. In the colony 's first decade, the revenue from the opium trade was a key source of government funds. The importance of opium reduced over time, but the colonial government was dependent on its revenues until the Japanese occupation in 1941. Although the largest businesses in the early colony were operated by British, American, and other expatriates, Chinese workers provided the bulk of the manpower to build a new port city. By the late 1980s, many ethnic Chinese people had become major business figures in Hong Kong. Amongst these billionaires was Sir Ka - shing Li, who had become one of the colony 's wealthiest people by this time. Dissent Police confrontation during the 1967 leftist riots During China 's turbulent period in the 20th century, Hong Kong served as a safe haven for dissidents, political refugees, and officials who lost power. British policy allowed dissidents to live in Hong Kong as long as they did not break local laws or harm British interests. The implementation of this policy varied according to what the senior officials thought constituted British interests and the state of relations with China. The Canton -- Hong Kong strike ( 1925 -- 1926 ) was anti-imperialist in nature. The 1966 riots and Maoist - led 1967 riots, essentially spillovers from the Cultural Revolution, were large scale demonstrations fuelled by tensions surrounding labour disputes and dissatisfaction towards the government. Although the 1967 riots started as a labour dispute, the incident escalated quickly after the leftist camp and mainland officials stationed in Hong Kong seized the opportunity to mobilise their followers to protest against the colonial government. Chinese Communist members organised the Anti-British Struggle Committee during the riots. Historian Steve Tsang wrote that it was `` ironic '' that despite Hong Kong being a symbol of China 's humiliation by Britain, there was not one major movement started by the Chinese residents of the colony for its retrocession to China, even though there had been several upsurges of Chinese nationalism. He explained : In the 1920s, the working class Chinese of Hong Kong did not have a good reason to rally around the Hong Kong government, and they were more susceptible to appeals based on Chinese nationalism. Consequently, the call of the Communists was basically heeded by the working men, and their actions practically paralysed the colony for a year. By the ( end of the ) 1960s, however, the attempts by the Hong Kong government to maintain stability and good order which helped improve everyone 's living conditions, and... the beginning of the emergence of a Hong Kong identity, changed the attitude of the local Chinese. They overwhelmingly rallied around the colonial British regime. See also List of heads of Hong Kong by education Notes Jump up ^ No specific variety of Chinese was listed in legislation, but Cantonese was the de facto standard. Jump up ^ The office of Colonial Secretary was renamed to Chief Secretary in 1976. References Jump up ^ Main Results ( PDF ). 1996 Population By - Census ( Report ). Census and Statistics Department. December 1996. ^ Jump up to : `` Hong Kong ''. International Monetary Fund. Retrieved 6 September 2018. Jump up ^ Gini Coefficient Fact Sheet ( PDF ) ( Report ). Legislative Council. December 2004. Jump up ^ Hong Kong, China ( SAR ) ( PDF ). Human Development Report 2016 ( Report ). United Nations Development Programme. 2016. ^ Jump up to : Tsang 2004, pp. 9 -- 10 ^ Jump up to : Tsang 2004, p. 11 Jump up ^ Tsang 2004, p. 21 Jump up ^ The Chinese Repository. Volume 10. pp. 63 -- 64. Jump up ^ Tsang 2004, pp. 11, 21 Jump up ^ Belcher, Edward ( 1843 ). Narrative of a Voyage Round the World. Volume 2. London : Henry Colburn. p. 148. Jump up ^ Tsang 2004, p. 12 Jump up ^ Tsang 2004, p. 29 Jump up ^ Tsang 2004, pp. 32 -- 33 Jump up ^ Tsang 2004, pp. 33, 35 Jump up ^ Tsang 2004, pp. 38 -- 41 Jump up ^ Tsang 2004, p. 121 Jump up ^ Tsang 2004, p. 122 Jump up ^ Tsang 2004, pp. 123 -- 124 Jump up ^ Snow 200, p. 81 Jump up ^ Tsai, Jung - Fang ( 2005 ). `` Wartime Experience, Collective Memories, and Hong Kong Identity ''. China Review International 12 ( 1 ) : 229. Jump up ^ Zhang, Wei - Bin ( 2006 ). Hong Kong : The Pearl Made of British Mastery and Chinese Docile - Diligence. Nova Publishers. p. 109. Jump up ^ Tsang 2004, p. 133 Jump up ^ Tsang 2004, p. 138 Jump up ^ Tsang 2004, pp. 143 -- 144 ^ Jump up to : Hong Kong Government ( July 1984 ). Green Paper : The Further Development of Representative Government in Hong Kong. Hong Kong : Government Printer. Jump up ^ Lewis, D.J. ( April 1983 ). `` A Requiem for Chinese Customary Law in Hong Kong ''. The International and Comparative Law Quarterly 32 ( 2 ) : 347 -- 379. Cambridge University Press. JSTOR 759499. Jump up ^ Jones, Oliver ( 2014 ). `` A Worthy Predecessor ? The Privy Council on Appeal from Hong Kong, 1853 to 1997 ''. In Ghai, Y. ; Young, S. Hong Kong 's Court of Final Appeal : The Development of the Law in China 's Hong Kong. Cambridge : Cambridge University Press. SSRN 2533284. Jump up ^ Tsang 2004, pp. 25 -- 26 ^ Jump up to : Tsang 2004, p. 57 Jump up ^ Tsang 2004, p. 58 Jump up ^ Tsang 2004, pp. 80 -- 81 Jump up ^ Cheung, Gary Ka - wai ( 2009 ). Hong Kong 's Watershed : The 1967 Riots. Hong Kong : Hong Kong University Press. Jump up ^ Cheung, Gary ( 10 June 2016 ). `` When the Cultural Revolution spilled over into riots in Hong Kong -- and changed lives forever ''. South China Morning Post. Retrieved 10 July 2018. Jump up ^ Tsang 1995, p. 1 Jump up ^ Tsang 1995, p. 246 Bibliography Snow, Philip ( 2004 ). The Fall of Hong Kong : Britain, China and the Japanese Occupation. New Haven : Yale University Press. ISBN 0300103735. Tsang, Steve ( 1995 ). A Documentary History of Hong Kong : Government and Politics. Hong Kong : Hong Kong University Press. ISBN 962 - 209 - 392 - 2. Tsang, Steve ( 2004 ). A Modern History of Hong Kong. London : I.B. Tauris. ISBN 978 - 1 - 84511 - 419 - 0. Further reading Carroll, John M ( 2007 ). A Concise History of Hong Kong. Plymouth : Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 978 - 0 - 7425 - 3422 - 3. Clayton, Adam ( 2003 ). Hong Kong Since 1945 : An Economic and Social History. Endacott, G.B. ( 1964 ). An Eastern Entrepot : A Collection of Documents Illustrating the History of Hong Kong. Her Majesty 's Stationery Office. p. 293. ASIN B0007J07G6. OCLC 632495979. Lui, Adam Yuen - chung ( 1990 ). Forts and Pirates -- A History of Hong Kong. Hong Kong History Society. p. 114. ISBN 962 - 7489 - 01 - 8. Liu, Shuyong ; Wang, Wenjiong ; Chang, Mingyu ( 1997 ). An Outline History of Hong Kong. Foreign Languages Press. p. 291. ISBN 978 - 7 - 119 - 01946 - 8. Ngo, Tak - Wing ( 1999 ). Hong Kong 's History : State and Society Under Colonial Rule. Routledge. p. 205. ISBN 978 - 0 - 415 - 20868 - 0. Welsh, Frank ( 1993 ). A Borrowed Place : The History of Hong Kong. Kodansha International. p. 624. ISBN 978 - 1 - 56836 - 002 - 7. External links `` Official website of the British Hong Kong Government ''. Archived from the original on 24 December 1996. Retrieved 2013 - 03 - 26. British Hong Kong on Facebook Hong Kong History Prehistoric Imperial China Bao'an County and Xin'an County British colony 1800s -- 1930s Battle of Hong Kong Japanese occupation 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s Geography Administrative divisions Areas Bays Beaches Buildings and structures Channels Cities and towns Country parks and conservation Ecology Land reclamation Harbours Islands and peninsulas Lakes Marine parks Mountains and peaks Public parks and gardens Reservoirs Rivers Villages Politics Anthem Autonomy Basic Law Chief Executive Districts Councils Elections Flag Foreign relations Government departments and agencies Independence Judiciary Legal system Legislative Council LGBT rights Military One country, two systems Political parties Sino - British Joint Declaration Special administrative regions of China Public services Education Fire services Food and Health Bureau Healthcare Police Royal Hong Kong Regiment Economy Banks Companies Dollar ( currency ) Employment Hawkers Port Stock Exchange Communications The Hongs Real Estate Hegemony Tourism Landmarks and tourist attractions Disneyland Ocean Park Transport Airlines Airport Buses light buses Cycling Ferries List of roads Major roads Chung Ying Street Rail Taxis Culture Architecture Kowloon Walled City Tallest buildings Cinema Comics Cheung Chau Bun Festival Cuisine Cantonese cuisine Street food Gambling Graffiti Hong Kong orchid Honours system International rankings Languages Cantonese English Lion Rock Spirit Literature McDull Media Museums Music Cantonese opera Cantopop Hakka hill song Ngai jong People Demographics Women Youth Public holidays Religion RTHK Shopping Sport National football team National rugby union team Hong Kong Sevens Television Television drama British Empire ( 1583 -- 1997 ) Legend Current territory Former territory * Now a Commonwealth realm Now a member of the Commonwealth of Nations Historical flags of the British Empire Europe 1542 -- 1800 Ireland ( integrated into UK ) 1708 -- 1757, 1763 -- 1782 and 1798 -- 1802 Minorca Since 1713 Gibraltar 1800 -- 1813 Malta ( Protectorate ) 1813 -- 1964 Malta ( Colony ) 1807 -- 1890 Heligoland 1809 -- 1864 Ionian Islands 1878 -- 1960 Cyprus 1921 -- 1931 Irish Free State North America 17th century and before 18th century 19th and 20th century 1579 New Albion 1583 -- 1907 Newfoundland 1605 -- 1979 * Saint Lucia 1607 -- 1776 Virginia Since 1619 Bermuda 1620 -- 1691 Plymouth 1623 -- 1883 Saint Kitts 1624 -- 1966 * Barbados 1625 -- 1650 Saint Croix 1627 -- 1979 * Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1628 -- 1883 Nevis 1629 -- 1691 Massachusetts - Bay 1632 -- 1776 Maryland since 1632 Montserrat 1632 -- 1860 Antigua 1635 -- 1644 Saybrook 1636 -- 1776 Connecticut 1636 -- 1776 Rhode Island 1637 -- 1662 New Haven 1643 -- 1860 Bay Islands Since 1650 Anguilla 1655 -- 1850 Mosquito Coast 1655 -- 1962 * Jamaica 1663 -- 1712 Carolina 1664 -- 1776 New - York 1665 -- 1674 and 1702 -- 1776 New - Jersey Since 1666 Virgin Islands Since 1670 Cayman Islands 1670 -- 1973 * Bahamas 1670 -- 1870 Rupert 's Land 1671 -- 1816 Leeward Islands 1674 -- 1702 East Jersey 1674 -- 1702 West Jersey 1680 -- 1776 New Hampshire 1681 -- 1776 Pennsylvania 1686 -- 1689 New England 1691 -- 1776 Massachusetts - Bay 1701 -- 1776 Delaware 1712 -- 1776 North - Carolina 1712 -- 1776 South - Carolina 1713 -- 1867 Nova - Scotia 1733 -- 1776 Georgia 1754 -- 1820 Cape Breton Island 1762 -- 1974 * Grenada 1763 -- 1978 Dominica 1763 -- 1873 Prince Edward Island 1763 -- 1791 Quebec 1763 -- 1783 East Florida 1763 -- 1783 West Florida 1784 -- 1867 New Brunswick 1791 -- 1841 Lower Canada 1791 -- 1841 Upper Canada Since 1799 Turks and Caicos Islands 1818 -- 1846 Columbia District / Oregon Country 1833 -- 1960 Windward Islands 1833 -- 1960 Leeward Islands 1841 -- 1867 Canada 1849 -- 1866 Vancouver Island 1853 -- 1863 Queen Charlotte Islands 1858 -- 1866 British Columbia 1859 -- 1870 North - Western Territory 1860 -- 1981 * British Antigua and Barbuda 1862 -- 1863 Stickeen 1866 -- 1871 British Columbia 1867 -- 1931 * Dominion of Canada 1871 -- 1964 Honduras 1882 -- 1983 * Saint Kitts and Nevis 1889 -- 1962 Trinidad and Tobago 1907 -- 1949 Newfoundland 1958 -- 1962 West Indies Federation 1. Occupied jointly with the United States. 2. In 1931, Canada and other British dominions obtained self - government through the Statute of Westminster. See Name of Canada. 3. Gave up self - rule in 1934, but remained a de jure Dominion until it joined Canada in 1949. South America 1631 -- 1641 Providence Island 1651 -- 1667 Willoughbyland 1670 -- 1688 Saint Andrew and Providence Islands 1831 -- 1966 Guiana Since 1833 Falkland Islands Since 1908 South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands 4. Now a department of Colombia. 5. Occupied by Argentina during the Falklands War of April -- June 1982. Africa 17th and 18th centuries 19th century 20th century Since 1658 Saint Helena 1792 -- 1961 Sierra Leone 1795 -- 1803 Cape Colony Since 1815 Ascension Island Since 1816 Tristan da Cunha 1806 -- 1910 Cape of Good Hope 1807 -- 1808 Madeira 1810 -- 1968 Mauritius 1816 -- 1965 The Gambia 1856 -- 1910 Natal 1862 -- 1906 Lagos 1868 -- 1966 Basutoland 1874 -- 1957 Gold Coast 1882 -- 1922 Egypt 1884 -- 1900 Niger Coast 1884 -- 1966 Bechuanaland 1884 -- 1960 Somaliland 1887 -- 1897 Zululand 1890 -- 1962 Uganda 1890 -- 1963 Zanzibar 1891 -- 1964 Nyasaland 1891 -- 1907 Central Africa 1893 -- 1968 Swaziland 1895 -- 1920 East Africa 1899 -- 1956 Sudan 1900 -- 1914 Northern Nigeria 1900 -- 1914 Southern Nigeria 1900 -- 1910 Orange River 1900 -- 1910 Transvaal 1903 -- 1976 Seychelles 1910 -- 1931 South Africa 1914 -- 1960 Nigeria 1915 -- 1931 South - West Africa 1919 -- 1961 Cameroons 1920 -- 1963 Kenya 1922 -- 1961 Tanganyika 1923 -- 1965 and 1979 -- 1980 Southern Rhodesia 1924 -- 1964 Northern Rhodesia 6. League of Nations mandate. 7. Self - governing Southern Rhodesia unilaterally declared independence in 1965 ( as Rhodesia ) and continued as an unrecognised state until the 1979 Lancaster House Agreement. After recognised independence in 1980, Zimbabwe was a member of the Commonwealth until it withdrew in 2003. Asia 17th and 18th century 19th century 20th century 1685 -- 1824 Bencoolen 1702 -- 1705 Pulo Condore 1757 -- 1947 Bengal 1762 -- 1764 Manila and Cavite 1781 -- 1784 and 1795 -- 1819 Padang 1786 -- 1946 Penang 1795 -- 1948 Ceylon 1796 -- 1965 Maldives 1811 -- 1816 Java 1812 -- 1824 Banka and Billiton 1819 -- 1826 Malaya 1824 -- 1948 Burma 1826 -- 1946 Straits Settlements 1839 -- 1967 Aden 1839 -- 1842 Afghanistan 1841 -- 1997 Hong Kong 1841 -- 1946 Sarawak 1848 -- 1946 Labuan 1858 -- 1947 India 1874 -- 1963 Borneo 1879 -- 1919 Afghanistan ( protectorate ) 1882 -- 1963 North Borneo 1885 -- 1946 Unfederated Malay States 1888 -- 1984 Brunei 1891 -- 1971 Muscat and Oman 1892 -- 1971 Trucial States 1895 -- 1946 Federated Malay States 1898 -- 1930 Weihai 1878 -- 1960 Cyprus 1907 -- 1949 Bhutan ( protectorate ) 1918 -- 1961 Kuwait 1920 -- 1932 Mesopotamia 1921 -- 1946 Transjordan 1923 -- 1948 Palestine 1945 -- 1946 South Vietnam 1946 -- 1963 North Borneo 1946 -- 1963 Sarawak 1946 -- 1963 Singapore 1946 -- 1948 Malayan Union 1948 -- 1957 Federation of Malaya Since 1960 Akrotiri and Dhekelia ( before as part of Cyprus ) Since 1965 British Indian Ocean Territory ( before as part of Mauritius and the Seychelles ) League of Nations mandate. Iraq 's mandate was not enacted and replaced by the Anglo - Iraqi Treaty Oceania 18th and 19th centuries 20th century 1788 -- 1901 New South Wales 1803 -- 1901 Van Diemen 's Land / Tasmania 1807 -- 1863 Auckland Islands 1824 -- 1980 New Hebrides 1824 -- 1901 Queensland 1829 -- 1901 Swan River / Western Australia 1836 -- 1901 South Australia since 1838 Pitcairn Islands 1841 -- 1907 New Zealand 1846 - 1847 North Australia 1851 -- 1901 Victoria 1874 -- 1970 Fiji 1877 -- 1976 Western Pacific Territories 1884 -- 1949 Papua 1888 -- 1901 Rarotonga / Cook Islands 1889 -- 1948 Union Islands 1892 -- 1979 Gilbert and Ellice Islands 1893 -- 1978 Solomon Islands 1900 -- 1970 Tonga 1900 -- 1974 Niue 1901 -- 1942 * Australia 1907 -- 1947 * New Zealand 1919 -- 1942 and 1945 -- 1968 Nauru 1919 -- 1949 New Guinea 1949 -- 1975 Papua and New Guinea 9. Now part of the * Realm of New Zealand. 10. Suspended member. 11. Now Kiribati and * Tuvalu. 12. Now the * Solomon Islands. 13. Now * Papua New Guinea. Antarctica and South Atlantic Since 1658 Saint Helena Since 1815 Ascension Island Since 1816 Tristan da Cunha Since 1908 British Antarctic Territory 1841 -- 1933 Australian Antarctic Territory ( transferred to the Commonwealth of Australia ) 1841 -- 1947 Ross Dependency ( transferred to the Realm of New Zealand ) 14. Since 2009 part of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha ; Ascension Island ( 1922 -- ) and Tristan da Cunha ( 1938 -- ) were previously dependencies of Saint Helena. 15. Both claimed in 1908 ; territories formed in 1962 ( British Antarctic Territory ) and 1985 ( South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands ). Commons Portal Geography portal History portal Colonialism portal Asia portal China portal Hong Kong portal United Kingdom portal Coordinates : 22 ° 16 ′ N 114 ° 09 ′ E ﻿ / ﻿ 22.267 ° N 114.150 ° E ﻿ / 22.267 ; 114.150 Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=British_Hong_Kong&oldid=865842903 '' Categories : British Hong Kong 19th century in Hong Kong 20th century in Hong Kong 1841 establishments in Hong Kong 1841 establishments in the British Empire 1997 disestablishments in Hong Kong Concessions in China China -- United Kingdom relations Former British colonies and protectorates in Asia Former polities of the Cold War History of Hong Kong Hong Kong -- United Kingdom relations States and territories established in 1841 States and territories disestablished in 1941 States and territories established in 1945 States and territories disestablished in 1997 Hidden categories : EngvarB from August 2014 Use dmy dates from August 2014 Articles containing Chinese - language text Pages using infobox country or infobox former country with the flag caption or type parameters Pages using infobox country or infobox former country with the symbol caption or type parameters Articles needing additional references from January 2018 All articles needing additional references Pages using multiple image with manual scaled images Coordinates on Wikidata Talk Contents About Wikipedia Languages Asturianu Bân - lâm - gú Беларуская Español Esperanto فارسی Français 한국어 Bahasa Indonesia Italiano Magyar Bahasa Melayu Nederlands 日本 語 Português Русский Simple English Suomi Svenska ไทย Türkçe Українська اردو Tiếng Việt 粵語 中文 18 more Edit links This page was last edited on 26 October 2018, at 14 : 53 ( UTC ). Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization. About Wikipedia

Question: when did the british take control of hong kong
Answer: 1841