Victoria, Hong Kong
{{Short description|Historical city in Hong Kong}}
{{For|other places named Victoria|Victoria (disambiguation)}}
{{Use Hong Kong English|date=July 2016}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2016}}
{{Infobox settlement
| name = City of Victoria
| native_name = 維多利亞市
| native_name_lang = zh-hk
| other_name = Victoria
| settlement_type = City
| image_skyline = THE PRAYA, HONG-KONG.jpg
| imagesize =
| image_alt =
| image_caption = Praya Central of the City of Victoria, 1870s
| etymology =
| nickname =
| motto =
| image_map = Map of Victoria City, Hongkong (2023) (cropped).png
| map_alt =
| map_caption = Current day boundary of Victoria City (2023)
| pushpin_map = Hong Kong
| pushpin_map_alt =
| pushpin_map_caption =
| pushpin_label_position =
| coordinates =
| coor_pinpoint =
| coordinates_footnotes =
| subdivision_name1 = United Kingdom
| subdivision_type1 = Country
| subdivision_name2 = {{flagicon|British Hong Kong}} Hong Kong
| subdivision_type2 = Dependent territory
| subdivision_type3 =
| subdivision_name3 =
| established_title = Founded as a town
| established_date = {{startdate|1841|1|25|df=y}}
| founder = British Hong Kong, Charles Elliot
| seat_type =
| seat =
| government_footnotes =
| government_type =
| governing_body =
| leader_party =
| leader_title =
| leader_name =
| leader_title1 =
| leader_name1 =
| leader_title2 =
| leader_name2 =
| leader_title3 =
| leader_name3 =
| leader_title4 =
| leader_name4 =
| unit_pref = Metric
| area_footnotes =
| area_urban_footnotes =
| area_rural_footnotes =
| area_metro_footnotes =
| area_note =
| area_water_percent =
| area_rank =
| area_blank1_title =
| area_blank2_title =
| area_total_km2 =
| area_land_km2 =
| area_water_km2 =
| area_urban_km2 =
| area_rural_km2 =
| area_metro_km2 =
| area_blank1_km2 =
| area_blank2_km2 =
| area_total_ha =
| area_land_ha =
| area_water_ha =
| area_urban_ha =
| area_rural_ha =
| area_metro_ha =
| area_blank1_ha =
| area_blank2_ha =
| length_km =
| width_km =
| dimensions_footnotes =
| elevation_footnotes =
| elevation_m = 552
| population_footnotes =
| population_as_of =
| population_total =
| population_density_km2 = auto
| population_note =
| population_demonym =
| utc_offset1 =
| timezone1_DST =
| utc_offset1_DST =
| postal_code_type =
| postal_code =
| area_code_type =
| area_code =
| area_codes =
| iso_code =
| website =
| module =
| footnotes =
| established_title1 = Incorporated as a city
| established_date1 = {{startdate|1849|5|11|df=y}}{{Cite web |title=ORIGINAL LETTERS PATENT CREATING BISHOPRIC OF VICTORIA |url=http://archives.hkskh.org/HistoryDetails.aspx?id=2&lang=2 |access-date=2024-05-09 |website=HKSKH}}
}}
{{Chinese
| title = City of Victoria
| t = 維多利亞市
維多利亞城
| s = 维多利亚市
维多利亚城
| j = Wai4 do1 lei6 aa3 si5
Wai4 do1 lei6 aa3 sing4
| y = Wàih dō leih a shíh
Wàih dō leih a shìhng | showflag = y
| ci = {{IPA|yue|wɐ̏itɔ́ːlèiʔā si̬ː|}}
{{IPA|yue|wɐ̏itɔ́ːlèiʔā si̭ːŋ|}}
| p = Wéiduōlìyà Shì
Wéiduōlìyà Chéng
}}
The City of Victoria,{{cite web|url=https://www.hklii.hk/en/legis/ord/1/sch1|title=CAP 1 INTERPRETATION AND GENERAL CLAUSES ORDINANCE Schedule 1 Boundaries of the City of Victoria|via=hklii.hk}} ({{zh|t=維多利亞市}},{{cite web|url=https://www.hklii.hk/chi/hk/legis/ord/1/sch1.html|script-title=zh:第1章 《釋義及通則條例》 附表1 維多利亞市的界線|trans-title=CAP 1 INTERPRETATION AND GENERAL CLAUSES ORDINANCE Schedule 1 Boundaries of the City of Victoria|language=zh|via=hklii.hk}} or {{zh|t=維多利亞城|labels=no}}){{cite web |author=Yeung Sum |date=5 July 2006 |title=OFFICIAL RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS |trans-title=zh:會議過程正式紀錄 |url=https://www.legco.gov.hk/yr05-06/chinese/counmtg/floor/cm0705ti-confirm-c.pdf |access-date=2 October 2021 |publisher=Legislative Council of Hong Kong |language=en, zh-hant}} often called Victoria City or simply Victoria ({{zh|t=維城}}), was the de facto capital of Hong Kong during its time as a British dependent territory."[http://www.britannica.com/place/Hong-Kong Hong Kong]" It was initially named Queenstown but was soon known as Victoria.Shelton, Barrie; Karakiewicz, Justyna; Kvan, Thomas (2011). The Making of Hong Kong: From Vertical to Volumetric. Routledge. p. 41. {{ISBN|113685763X}}. It was one of the first urban settlements in Hong Kong and its boundaries are recorded in the Laws of Hong Kong.{{Cite web|url=http://www.blis.gov.hk/blis_ind.nsf/B505654FA2FD062B4825647A00339D10/AA3679ED0931CC00482580D7000C74A7?OpenDocument|title=Cap 1 Sched 1 Boundaries of the City of Victoria (Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance)|website=www.blis.gov.hk|access-date=2018-03-23}}{{Dead link|date=February 2022 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} All government bureaux and many key departments still have their head offices located within its limit.
Present-day Central is at the heart of Victoria City. Although the city expanded over much of what is now Kennedy Town, Shek Tong Tsui, Lung Fu Shan, Sai Ying Pun, Sheung Wan, Wan Chai, Happy Valley, the Mid-Levels, East Point and parts of Causeway Bay,Wordie, Jason (2002). Streets: Exploring Hong Kong Island. Hong Kong University Press. p. 12. {{ISBN|962-209-563-1}}. the name Victoria has been eclipsed by Central in popular usage.Tsang, Steve (2004). A Modern History of Hong Kong. I.B. Tauris. p. 17. {{ISBN|1-84511-419-1}}. However, the name is still used in places such as Victoria Park, Victoria Peak, Victoria Harbour, Victoria Prison, and a number of roads and streets. It is also retained in the names of various organisations such as the Victoria City District of the Hong Kong Scout,[http://www.vicscout.org/ Victoria City District] and the Victoria Junior Chamber.[http://www.vjc.org.hk/ Victoria Junior Chamber] The name Victoria District Court had been used into the 1980s,{{Cite web |url=http://www.info.gov.hk/bor/eng/pdf/dv22_first/d1307.doc |title=Volume 22 Inland Revenue Board of Review decisions |access-date=8 July 2010 |archive-date=10 November 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131110115203/http://www.info.gov.hk/bor/eng/pdf/dv22_first/d1307.doc |url-status=dead }}[http://legalref.judiciary.gov.hk/lrs/common/ju/ju_body.jsp?DIS=55140&AH=&QS=&FN=&currpage=T CACC497/1986 The Queen v. Chan Ngai Hung][http://legalref.judiciary.gov.hk/doc/judg/word/vetted/other/en/1987/CACC000186A_1987.doc CACC186A/1987 The Queen v Currency Brokers (H.K.) Ltd and Robert Lee Flickinger][http://legalref.judiciary.gov.hk/lrs/common/ju/ju_body.jsp?DIS=54939&AH=&QS=&FN=&currpage=T CACC133A/1986 The Queen v. Wai Hin Keung] when it was moved to the Wanchai Tower and combined with other district courts in the territory.
History
"City of Victoria" had appeared on the statute books early in the 1845,{{Cite web |title=Summary Offences Ordinance |url=https://oelawhk.lib.hku.hk/archive/files/495d6193003b4df627ba7b487b43d76f.pdf |website=University of Hong Kong}} although names such as "Town of Victoria" can be found as well.{{Cite web |title=Peace and Quiet Ordinance |url=https://oelawhk.lib.hku.hk/archive/files/b7fb7b4142cf18db5231814a2c893860.pdf |website=University of Hong Kong}} Letters patent that formally confers the city status and creates the City of Victoria was made on 11 May 1849.
In 1857, the British government expanded the scope of Victoria City and divided it into four wans ({{zh|first=t,j|t=環|j=waan4|l=rings}}):
- Sai Wan ({{lit}} 'West Ring', present-day Sai Wan, including Kennedy Town, Shek Tong Tsui, and Sai Ying Pun)
- Sheung Wan ('Upper Ring', present-day Sheung Wan)
- Choong Wan or Chung Wan ('Central Ring', present-day Central)
- Ha Wan (Lower Ring, present-day Wan Chai).
"Sai Wan", "Sheung Wan" and "Choong Wan" retain the same Chinese name today. The four wans are further divided into nine yeuks ({{zh|t=約|labels=no}}, similar to 'district' or 'neighbourhood'). The coverage also included parts of East Point and Happy Valley (west of Wong Nai Chung Road on the east side of the racecourse). In 1903, boundary stones were established to mark the city's boundary and six of them are still preserved today. The stones spread from Causeway Bay to Kennedy Town.Wordie, Jason (2002)
In the 1890s, Victoria extended {{convert|4|mi|km|order=flip}} west to east along the coastal strip. Buildings were made of granite and brick. Buses and the new tramway would become the main form of transportation in the area.{{cite book |title= The British Empire in the nineteenth century: its progress and expansion at home and abroad|last= Sanderson|first= Edgar |author-link=Edgar Sanderson|volume= IV|year= 1897–1898|publisher= Blackie and Son|location= London| oclc = 11625716| lccn = 02002538|page= [https://archive.org/details/britishempireinn04sandiala/page/339 339]|url= https://archive.org/details/britishempireinn04sandiala}}
The city is centred in present-day Central, and named after Queen Victoria in 1843. It occupies the areas known in modern times as Central, Admiralty, Sheung Wan, Wan Chai, East Point, Shek Tong Tsui, the Mid-levels, the Peak, Happy Valley, Tin Hau, and Kennedy Town, on Hong Kong Island.
{{multiple image
| align=center
| direction=horizontal
| image1=Tcitp d154 city of victoria.jpg
| width1=300
| image2=Tcitp d154 hong kong harbour.jpg
| width2=320
| footer= Map of Victoria published in 1908
| footer_align=center
}}
Boundaries
File:Map of Victoria City, Hongkong (2023) (cropped) edited.png
The city boundaries are defined in the laws of Hong Kong as follows:
- On the north – The Harbour;
- On the west – A line running due north and south drawn through the north-west angle of Inland Lot No. 1299 and extending southwards a distance of {{convert|850|ft|m|order=flip}} from the aforesaid angle;
- On the south – A line running due east from the southern extremity of the western boundary until it meets a contour in the vicinity of the Hill above Belchers {{convert|700|ft|m|order=flip}} above principal datum, that is to say, a level {{convert|17.833|ft|m|order=flip}} below the bench-mark known as "Rifleman's Bolt", the highest point of a copper bolt set horizontally in the east wall of the Royal Navy Office and Mess Block Naval Dockyard, and thence following the said contour until it meets the eastern boundary;
- On the east – A line following the west side of the Government Pier, Bay View and thence along the west side of {{ill|Hing Fat Street|zh-tw|興發街}}, then along the north side of Causeway Road to {{ill|Moreton Terrace|zh-tw|摩頓臺}}. Thence along the west side of Moreton Terrace to the south-east corner of Inland Lot No. 1580 and produced in a straight line for {{convert|80|ft|m|order=flip}}, and thence along the north side of Cotton Path and produced until it meets the west side of Wong Nei Chong Road on the east side of Wong Nei Chong Valley and thence to the south-east angle of Inland Lot No. 1364, produced until it meets the southern boundary.
First streets
According to the 1845 map of Victoria City, 16 streets were initially named for the city. These streets exist mainly in the areas of Central and the Mid-Levels, with two being in Sheung Wan. These street names were finalised by the second Governor of Hong Kong, Sir John Francis Davis. All 16 streets were named after persons of great prominence in Great Britain or in Hong Kong, with the location and layout determined according to the position and prominence of the eponymous person:
| class="wikitable"
|+ !Street Name !Location !Person named after !Eponym's position |
| Queen's Road |
| Arbuthnot Road
|Central |Auditor of the Civil List |
| Caine Road |
| Cochrane Street
|Mid-Levels |Commander-in-Chief, East Indies and China Station |
| D'Aguilar Street
|Central |
| Elgin Street
|Central |James Bruce, 8th Earl of Elgin and 12th Earl of Kincardine |High Commissioner and Plenipotentiary in China and the Far East |
| Gough Street
|Hugh Gough, 1st Viscount Gough |Commander-in-Chief, British Forces in China |
| Graham Street
|Central |
| Lyndhurst Terrace
|Central |
| Peel Street
|Mid-Levels |
| Pottinger Street
|Central |
| Stanley Street
|Central |Edward Smith-Stanley, Baron of Stanley Later 14th Earl of Derby | Colonial Secretary of Great Britain, later Prime Minister of Great Britain |
| Wellington Street
|Central and Sheung Wan |
| Wyndham Street
|Central | Royal Navy Lieutenant, Harbour Master and Marine Magistrate of Hong Kong |
Boundary stones
File:Victoria City and Kowloon 1915.jpg
In 1903, the Hong Kong Government erected several boundary stones to mark the limits of Victoria, measuring 98 cm in height, tapered at the top and with the inscription "City Boundary 1903". As the city’s boundaries were clearly defined by ordinance, these stones were more just physical markers.{{Cite web |title=Antiquities and Monuments Office - Central and Western Heritage Trail (555) |url=https://www.amo.gov.hk/en/heritage-trails/cw-trails/western/section-a/a6/index.html |access-date=2023-01-19 |website=www.amo.gov.hk}}
Three additional boundary stones were found in 2021,{{Cite web |last=張嘉敏 |date=2021-12-12 |title=港島再發現兩塊逾百年歷史維多利亞城界石 團體籲市民勿破壞 |trans-title=Two century-old Victoria City boundary stones found on Hong Kong Island; public urged not to damage |url=https://www.hk01.com/18區新聞/711483/港島再發現兩塊逾百年歷史維多利亞城界石-團體籲市民勿破壞 |access-date=2023-01-19 |website=HK01 |language=zh-HK}} adding the total of discovered stones to 10, including the one disappeared in June 2007.{{cite news |author= |date=2007-08-19 |title=百年古物網上掀拯救行動專題報道：第七界石神秘消失 |page=A6 |work=Apple Daily |url=http://hk.apple.nextmedia.com/news/art/20070819/10044267 |url-status=dead |accessdate=2012-10-29 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160125031151/http://hk.apple.nextmedia.com/news/art/20070819/10044267 |archive-date=2016-01-25}}
Districts
File:Victoria Town, Hong Kong.jpg
File:City of Victoria.jpgIn 1866 the nine districts, also called yeuks, are:{{Cite web |title=Victoria Registration Ordinance |url=https://oelawhk.lib.hku.hk/archive/files/77df9c397ffafc9df127a5b8c5293a33.pdf |website=University of Hong Kong}}
- Shek Tong Tsui
- Sai Ying Pun
- Taipingshan, a neighborhood near Sheung Wan that shared its name with Victoria Peak
- Sheong Wan
- Choong Wan North and South, known in modern times as Central in English
- Ha Wan, today's Admiralty and Wan Chai
- Wan Chai
- Bowrington, between today's Wan Chai and Causeway Bay, known also as Ngo Keng
- So Kun Poo.
Other places that might be considered as yeuks include:
Territorial designation
On 21 May 1982, Sir Crawford Murray MacLehose was made a life peer, weeks after the end of his governorship in Hong Kong. His peerage was announced on 31 December 1981 in the 1982 New Years Honours. He was therefore styled as Baron MacLehose of Beoch, of Maybole in the District of Kyle and Carrick, and of Victoria in Hong Kong. Victoria was listed as the barony's territorial designation, alongside MacLehose's hometown Maybole. The Barony went extinct on 27 May 2000 when MacLehose passed away. {{Cite web |title=MacLehose of Beoch (Barony) |url=https://peerages.historyofparliamentonline.org/peerages/1879}}{{Cite web |title=The Lord Maclehose Of Beoch |url=https://hansard.parliament.uk/lords/1982-07-21/debates/6fbc78ba-b448-4677-a696-743646b39e83/TheLordMaclehoseOfBeoch |website=UK Parliament}}
See also
- History of Hong Kong
- List of buildings, sites and areas in Hong Kong
- List of places named for Queen Victoria § Hong Kong, for a list of places named after Queen Victoria
- Praya
References
{{Reflist|30em}}
External links
{{Commons category|Victoria City}}
{{Wiktionary|Victoria}}
- [https://www.elegislation.gov.hk/hk/cap1/sch1 Boundary of the City of Victoria as defined in Hong Kong Laws], Cap 1 SCHED 1 of Hong Kong Law
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20100602014404/http://www.edb.gov.hk/FileManager/TC/Content_3422/CH_S1-3_Pkg5_07.pdf Article on history of Hong Kong] {{in lang|zh}}
- [http://www.hk-place.com/db.php?post=d007004 Photos of the 1903 boundary stones]
- {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20050206045111/http://cwfestival.org/images/pdf/history/032.pdf A article on the "four wans and nine yeuks" in Chinese]}} (Adobe PDF format)
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20050317150447/http://szlib.szptt.net.cn/hk97/j2a.htm Another article on "four wans and nine yeuks"] {{in lang|zh-cn}}
- [http://cudl.lib.cam.ac.uk/view/PH-Y-30383-A/4 A photographic panorama of the water-front and city of Victoria], taken sometime after 1906, in Cambridge Digital Library
{{Authority control}}
{{Coord|22|16|42|N|114|10|28|E|region:CN-91_type:city(1063646)_source:dewiki|display=title}}
Category:Central and Western District, Hong Kong
Category:Populated coastal places in Hong Kong
Category:Populated places established in 1842