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Victoria City
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Victoria City, or the City of Victoria, was one of the first urban settlements in Hong Kong after it became a British colony in 1842. It was initially named Queenstown but was soon known as Victoria. The name "Victoria" is rarely used today except to refer to the Victoria Park, The Peak, the harbour and a number of roads and streets. It was often said to be the "capital" of Hong Kong during its time as a colony of the United Kingdom, as almost all government departments have their head offices located there.
city is centred in present-day Central, and named for Queen Victoria in 1843.
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Encyclopedia
Victoria City, or the City of Victoria, was one of the first urban settlements in Hong Kong after it became a British colony in 1842. It was initially named Queenstown but was soon known as Victoria. The name "Victoria" is rarely used today except to refer to the Victoria Park, The Peak, the harbour and a number of roads and streets. It was often said to be the "capital" of Hong Kong during its time as a colony of the United Kingdom, as almost all government departments have their head offices located there.
Location
The city is centred in present-day Central, and named for Queen Victoria in 1843. It occupies the areas that are known in modern times as Central, Admiralty and part of Sheung Wan, on Hong Kong Island. In 1903, the Hong Kong Government erected seven boundary stones for the city, inscribed "City Boundary 1903" at Hatton Road, Pok Fu Lam Road, Bowen Road, Old Peak Road, Wong Nai Chung Road, Victoria Road and Magazine Gap Road. All remain, except for the one in Magazine Gap Road, which disappeared around mid-June, 2007.
History
In 1857, the British government expanded the scope of Victoria City and divided it into four "wans" (?, jyutping: waan4, pinyin: huàn, literally rings). The four wans are Sai Wan ("West Ring" in Chinese, present-day Sai Wan, including Kennedy Town, Shek Tong Tsui, and Sai Ying Pun), Sheung Wan ("Upper Ring" in Chinese, present-day Sheung Wan), Choong Wan or Chung Wan ("Central Ring" in Chinese, present-day Central) and Ha Wan ("Lower Ring" in Chinese, present-day Wan Chai). Except "Ha Wan"; "Sai Wan", "Sheung Wan" and "Choong Wan" retain the same name in Chinese today.
The four wans are further divided into nine "yeuks" (?, jyutping: joek3, pinyin: yue, 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.
In the 1890s the capital city extended four miles 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.
Districts
Also called yeuks.
See also
- Praya
- History of Hong Kong
- List of buildings, sites and areas in Hong Kong
- List of places named for Queen Victoria, for a list of places named after Queen Victoria
External links
- , Cap 1 SCHED 1 of Hong Kong Law
- (in Chinese)
- (Adobe PDF format)
- (in Simplified Chinese)
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