HIS385H1 Chapter Notes - Chapter Week 4: Tai Ping Shan Street, Tung Wah Hospital, Henry Pottinger
The Emergence of Leadership among the Chinese Population, and the Tung Wah Hospital –
W.K. Chan – 53 - 67
• The British occupation of HK in 1841 led to an increase in demand in domestic goods
and services
• Most of the services that appeared were concentrated in Victoria
• Over time, people were making HK their permanent home rather than simply a society
to work and return to China afterwards
• By 1901 there were sufficient families to make HK a more stable, permanent, and self-
reproducing society
• In censuses conducted in 1871, 1876, 1881 and 1891, they were classified into 3 types:
(PG 55)
o Merchants and manufactures
▪ Owners of capital
▪ Most likely to comprise the elite of the Chinese population
▪ Came primarily from commerce rather than industry
o Professional and clerical
▪ Sharpest rise in this category is due to clerical and scientific occupations
▪ The growth of these groups means that the avenues of upward mobility
were better established
o Workers and laborers
▪ Although these were numerically dominant, the existence of avenues of
upward mobility and commercial opportunities are evident
• In his proclamation on February 1841, Captain Elliot laid down the basis of the colonial
government’s policy towards the Chinese
o It amounted to the creation of two systems of administration, one Chinese and
the other British
o Stated that all people of HK and China will be governed according to Chinese
laws
o Also stated that British subjects residing in HK will be subjected to british law and
enjoy british protection and security
• Geographically, the separation between China and the Europeans was reflected in the
creation of Chinatown in Tai Ping Shan
• The Chinatown created in the Lower, Middle and upper bazaars were areas in town
where the Europeans had no power and were not allowed to penetrate
• However, the middle bazaar formed a barriers between two parts in town where
Europeans were located, so new captain Henry Pottinger ordered the removal of its
inhabitants in 1844
• The Chinese landowners of the middle bazaar opposed the removal with two petitions
in 1844
o Since they had legal entitlements to the lots, alternative sites had to be found for
them
o It was decided they would be resettled near the Upper Bazaar on Victoria
Peak/Tai Ping Shan
• The creation of the Tai Ping Shan Chinese reserve enabled 2 things to happen:
o The physical segregation from the Europeans encouraged the development of
local leadership independently of the British governmental process
o The geographical concentration enabled the more successful landowners to
accumulate landed property by buying up the lots of others, and gradually a
small group of wealthy property owners emerged
• The first piece of legislation that John Davis (Pottinger’s successor) enacted was an
ordinance to appoint Chinese Peace Officers in 1844
• In 1853, another ordinance was enacted in regard to these officers
o For each district, ratepayers would select from 5-12 assessors who would choose
one officer (tepo) from among them and fix his salary
o Complaints against a Chinese should be made to the tepo of the district
o If it went unresolved, then it might be referred to an English tribunal
• The system was to apply to civil and not criminal affairs
• The provision ensured that an intermediate level existed between the tepo and the
public, thus making the system more elaborate
• The levying of rates meant that the tepo’s leadership was ligitmized by legal authority
stemming from the British administration
• The working Tepo system was demolished by Hercules Robinson in 1861, mainly
because it was believed that the Chinese had their own tepos in their own manners
• In its early years, HK was often reported as populated by the worst criminals of China
• It became apparent that Europeans judged respectability levels of Chinese based on
their wealth and status
• There were 3 types of respectable Chinese:
o Building contractor
▪ Construction of properties
o Landowner
▪ Financial or speculative investment in real estates
o Trade merchant
▪ China trade (import of opium and export of silk)
• In 1856, Chinese respectability was openly acknowledged by Europeans in a joint
petition to the government
o It was signed by 61 Europeans and 19 chinese
▪ This was important because it showed that the Chinese were not only
commemorialists but active participants who had a view to express
• The primary activity that generated wealth for the Chinese was the same as that which
made the Europeans rich, namely, trade and commerce
• The more frequent association of compradores and Christians with the holders of formal
political power (the europeans), this gave them advantage over native merchants and
contractors who were uninitiated into the European culture
Document Summary
The emergence of leadership among the chinese population, and the tung wah hospital . In his proclamation on february 1841, captain elliot laid down the basis of the colonial go(cid:448)er(cid:374)(cid:373)e(cid:374)t"s poli(cid:272)y to(cid:449)ards the chi(cid:374)ese. It was decided they would be resettled near the upper bazaar on victoria. In its early years, hk was often reported as populated by the worst criminals of china. In 1856, chinese respectability was openly acknowledged by europeans in a joint petition to the government. Rebellion in china was driving merchants to settle in hk: the citizens that dealt in goods between china and south east asia were known as nam. Pak (north-south) hongs: those trading with california and australia were known as kam shan (gold mountains) Hongs: those selling goods on 2% commission were known as kau pat (98) hongs. Po leung kuk: the establishment of the tung wah hospital by an ordinance in 1870 and its opening in.
