As I recall, the British Empire was ceded Hong Kong as a condition of
China's surrender following the Opium Wars at the end of the 19th
Century.  This concession was somehow turned into a 99-year lease -
possibly with the treaty that was signed in 1984 which agreed to the
eventual return of Hong Kong to the PRC in 1997.  I'm sorry, but I
don't know more of the details.

Lee Gunter          [log in to unmask]
Regence HMO Oregon


______________________________ Reply Separator _________________________________
Subject: [HP3000-L] Off Topic: History of Hong Kong
Author:  Shawn Gordon <[log in to unmask]> at ~INTERNET
Date:    6/30/97 11:57 AM


I know this probably sounds stupid, but all the news coverage has been
of the handover, but not how Britain ended up with Hong Kong in the
first place.  Would someone with some time be so kind as to give me a
quick run down of the history?

thanks