Charles Elliot Sir Charles Elliot , KCB ( 1801 – 9 September 1875 ) , was a British naval officer , diplomat , and colonial administrator . He became the first administrator of Hong Kong in 1841 while serving as both Plenipotentiary and Chief Superintendent of British Trade in China . He was a key founder in the establishment of Hong Kong as a British colony . Born in Dresden , Saxony , Elliot joined the Royal Navy in 1815 and served as a midshipman in the bombardment of Algiers against Barbary pirates the following year . After serving in the East Indies Station for four years , he joined the Home Station in 1820 . He joined the West Africa Squadron and became a lieutenant in 1822 . After serving in the West Indies Station , he was promoted to captain in 1828 . He met Clara Windsor in Haiti and they married in 1828 . After retiring from active military service , Elliot followed a career in the Foreign Office . From 1830 to 1833 , he was Protector of Slaves in Guiana . In 1834 , he went to China as Master Attendant to the staff of Chief Superintendent Lord Napier . He became Plenipotentiary and Chief Superintendent from 1836 to 1841 . From 1842 to 1846 , Elliot was chargé d ' affaires and consul general in the Republic of Texas . He served as Governor of Bermuda ( 1846 – 54 ) , Governor of Trinidad ( 1854 – 56 ) , and Governor of Saint Helena ( 1863 – 69 ) . He was made a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath in 1856 . Early career . Elliot was born in Dresden , Saxony , in 1801 to Margaret and Hugh Elliot . He was one of nine children . His uncle was Scottish diplomat Gilbert Elliott , 1st Earl of Minto while Gilbert Elliott , 2nd Earl of Minto and George Eden were cousins . He was educated in Reading , Berkshire , England . On 26 March 1815 , Elliot joined the Royal Navy as a first - class volunteer on board HMS " Leviathan " , which served in the Mediterranean Station . In July 1816 , he became a midshipman on board HMS " Minden " , in which he served in the bombardment of Algiers against Barbary pirates in August 1816 . He then served in the East Indies Station for four years under Sir Richard King . In 1820 , he joined the cutter " Starling " under Lieutenant - Commander John Reeve in the Home Station , and HMS " Queen Charlotte " under James Whitshed . West Africa and West Indies . In 1821 , Elliot joined HMS " Iphigenia " under Sir Robert Mends in the West Africa Squadron . On 11 June 1822 , he became a lieutenant while serving in HMS " Myrmidon " under Captain Henry John Leeke . He again served in the " Iphigenia " on 19 June , and in HMS " Hussar " under Captain George Harris in the West Indies Station . There , he was appointed to the schooner s " Union " on 19 June 1825 and " Renegade " on 30 August . On 1 January 1826 , he was nominated acting - commander of the convalescentship " Serapis " in Port Royal , Jamaica , where on 14 April , he served in the hospital ship " Magnificent " . After further employment on board HMS " Bustard " and HMS " Harlequin " , he was promoted to captain on 28 August 1828 . Guiana . After retiring from active military service , Elliot followed a career in the Foreign Office . In 1830 , the Colonial Office sent Elliot to Demerara in British Guiana to be Protector of Slaves and a member of the Court of Policy from 1830 to 1833 . He was brought home to advise the government of administrative problems relating to the " Slavery Abolition Act 1833 " . In a letter to the Treasury in 1833 , Prime Minister Lord Howick wrote : Lord Goderich [ Secretary of State for the Colonies ] feels himself bound to acknowledge that His Majesty ' s Government are indebted to him [ Elliot ] , not only for a zealous and efficient execution of the duties of his office , but for communications of peculiar value and importance sent from the Colony during the last twelve months , and for essential services rendered at a critical period since his arrival in this country . . . Elliot has contributed far beyond what the functions of his particular office required of him . China . In late 1833 , Elliot was appointed as Master Attendant to the staff of Lord Napier , Chief Superintendent of British Trade . His position was involved with British ships and crews operating between Macao and Canton . He was appointed Secretary in October 1834 , Third Superintendent in January 1835 , and Second Superintendent in April 1835 . In 1836 , he became Plenipotentiary and replaced Sir George Robinson as Chief Superintendent of British Trade . Elliot wrote to Foreign Secretary Lord Palmerston in 1839 that he regarded the opium trade as a " disgrace and sin . . . I have steadily discountenanced it by all the lawful means in my power , and at the total sacrifice of my private comfort in the society in which I have lived for some years past . " During the First Anglo - Chinese War , he was on board the " Nemesis " during most of the battles . In January 1841 , he negotiated terms with Chinese Imperial Commissioner Qishan in the Convention of Chuenpee . Elliot declared , among other terms , the cession of Hong Kong Island to the United Kingdom . However , Palmerston disapproved of the terms and dismissed Elliot . Henry Pottinger was appointed to replace him as plenipotentiary in May 1841 . On 29 July , HMS " Phlegeton " arrived in Hong Kong with dispatches informing Elliot of the news . His administration ended on 10 August . On 24 August , he left Macao , with his family for England . As he embarked on the " Atlanta " , a Portuguese fort fired a thirteen gun salute . Historian George Endacott wrote , " Elliot ' s policy of conciliation , leniency , and moderate war aims was unpopular all round , and aroused some resentment among the naval and military officers of the expedition . " Responding to the accusation that " It has been particularly objected to me that I have cared too much for the Chinese " , Elliot wrote to Foreign Secretary Lord Aberdeen on 25 June 1842 : But I submit that it has been caring more for lasting British honour and substantial British interests , to protect friendly and helpful people , and to return the confidence of the great trading population of the Southern Provinces , with which it is our chief purpose to cultivate more intimate , social and commercial relations . Later career . On 23 August 1842 , Elliot arrived in the Republic of Texas , where he was chargé d ' affaires and consul general until 1846 . He served as Governor of Bermuda ( 1846 – 54 ) , Governor of Trinidad ( 1854 – 56 ) , and Governor of Saint Helena ( 1863 – 69 ) . In the retired list , he was promoted to rear - admiral on 2 May 1855 , vice - admiral on 15 January 1862 , and admiral on 12 September 1865 . In Sir Henry Taylor ' s play , " Edwin the Fair " ( 1842 ) , the character Earl Athulf was based on Elliot . Taylor also mentioned Elliot in his poem , " Heroism in the Shade " ( 1845 ) . Elliot was made Knight Commander of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath in 1856 . He died in Witteycombe , Exeter , England , on 9 September 1875 . Marriage and family . During Elliot ' s naval service in the West Indies , he met Clara Genevieve Windsor ( 1806 – 1885 ) in Haiti , where she was born and raised . After marrying in 1828 , they had two daughters and three sons : Elliot ' s wife accompanied him to Guiana from 1830 to 1833 , and to China from 1834 to 1841 .