rs ago.[20][21][22] Wong Tei Tung and Three Fathoms Cove are the two earliest sites of human habitation in the Palaeolithic period. It is believed the Three Fathom Cove was a river valley settlement and Wong Tei Tung was a lithic manufacturing site. Excavated Neolithic artefacts suggest cultural differences from the Longshan culture in northern China and settlement by the Che people prior to the migration of the Yue people.[23][24] Eight petroglyphs were discovered on surrounding islands dating back to Bronze Age during the Shang Dynasty time period, which are believed to have been used to pacify bad weather.[25] In 214 BC, Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China, conquered the Hundred Yue tribes in Jiaozhi (modern Guangdong and Guangxi) and incorporated the territory into imperial China for this first time. Modern Hong Kong is located in Nanhai commandery (modern Nanhai District) and near the capital city Pun Yue.[26][27][28] The area was consolidated under the kingdom of Nanyue founded by general Zhao Tuo in 204 BC after the Qin Dynasty collapsed.[29] When the kingdom was conquered by Emperor Wu of Han in 111 BC, the land was assigned to the Jiaozhi commandery under the Han Dynasty. Archaeological evidence indicates the population increased and early salt production florished in this time period. Lei Cheng Uk Han Tomb in the Kowloon Peninsula is believed to have been built during the Han Dynasty.[30] During the Tang Dynasty period, the Guangdong region flourished as a regional trading center. In 736, Emperor Xuanzong of Tang established a military town in Tuen Mun to defend the coastal area in the region.[31] The first village school Li Ying College was established around 1075 in the New Territories under the Northern Song Dynasty.[32] During the Mongol invasion in 1276, the Southern Song Dynasty court moved to Fujian, then to Lantau Island and later to Sung Wong Toi (modern Kowloon City), but the child Emperor Huaizong of Song committed suicide by drowning with his officials after being defeated in the Battle of Yamen. Hau Wong, an official of the emperor is still worshipped in Hong Kong today.[33] The earliest recorded European visitor was Jorge Álvares, a Portuguese explorer arrived in 1513.[34][35] After his settlement, Portuguese merchants began trading in Southern China. At the same time, they invaded and built up military fortifications in Tuen Mun. Military clashes between China and Portugal ensued resulting in the Portuguese expelled. In the mid-16th century, the Haijin order banned maritime activities and prevented contact with foreigners, it also restricted local sea activity.[33]. In 1661–69, the territory was affected by the Great Clearance ordered by Kangxi Emperor, which required the evacuation of the coastal areas of Guangdong. It is recorded that about 16,000 persons from Xin'an County were driven inland and 1,648 of those who left are said to have returned when the evacuation was rescinded in 1669.[36] What is now the territory of Hong Kong became largely wasteland during the ban.[37] In 1685, Kangxi became the first emperor to open limited trading on a regular basis starting with the Canton territory. He imposed strict terms for trades such as requiring foreign traders to live in restricted areas, staying only for the trading seasons, banning firearms, and trading with silver only.[38] The East India Company made the first sea venture to China in 1699 and British merchants grew rapidly in the region. In 1711, the company established their first trading post in Canton. By 1773, the British reached a landmark 1,000 chests of opium in Canton with China's consuming 2,000 chests annually by 1799.[38] Colonial Main article: History of colonial Hong Kong A view of Hong Kong Island from Kowloon in 1840 In 1839, the refusal by Qing Dynasty authorities to import opium resulted in the First Opium War between China and Britain. Hong Kong Island became occupied by British forces on 20 January 1841 and was initially ceded under the Convention of Chuenpee as part of a ceasefire agreement between Captain Charles Elliot and Governor Qishan, but the agreement was never ratified due to a dispute between high ranking officials in both governments.[39] It was not until 29 August 1842 that the island was formally ceded to the United Kingdom under the Treaty of Nanking. The British established a crown colony with the founding of Victoria City the following year.[40] In 1860, after China's defeat in the Second Opium War, the Kowloon Peninsula and Stonecutter's Island were ceded to Britain under the Convention of Peking. In 1898, under the terms of the Convention for the Extension of Hong Kong Territory, Britain obtained a 99-year lease of Lantau Island and the adjacent northern lands, which became known as the New Territories.[41] Hong Kong's territory has remained unchanged to the present.[42][43] During the first half of the 20th century, Hong Kong was a free port, serving as an entrepôt of the British Empire. The British introduced an education system based on their own model, while the local Chinese population had little contact with the European community of wealthy tai-pans settled near Victoria Peak.[41] Japanese occupation Main article: Japanese occupation of Hong Kong In conjunction with its military campaign, the Empire of Japan invaded Hong Kong on 8 December 1941. The Battle of Hong Kong ended with British and Canadian defenders surrendering control of the colony to Japan on 25 December. During the Japanese occupation, civilians suffered widespread food shortages, rationing, and hyper-inflation due to forced exchange of currency for military notes. Through a policy of enforced repatriation of the unemployed to the mainland throughout the period, because of the scarcity of food, the population of Hong Kong had dwindled from 1.6 million in 1941 to 600,000 in 1945, when the United Kingdom resumed control of the colony.[44] Post-war Main articles: 1950s in Hong Kong, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s Hong Kong's population recovered quickly as a wave of migrants from China arrived for refuge from the ongoing Chinese Civil War. When the People's Republic of China was proclaimed in 1949, more migrants fled to Hong Kong for fear of persecution by the Communist Party.[41] Many corporations in Shanghai and Guangzhou shifted their operations to Hong Kong.[41] In the 1950s, Hong Kong's rapid industrialisation was driven by exports: Textile and other manufacturing industries expanded as the population grew and labour costs remained low; living standards rose steadily.[45] The construction of Shek Kip Mei Estate in 1953 followed a massive slum fire, and marked the beginning of the public housing estate programme designed to cope with the huge influx of immigrants. Trade in Hong Kong accelerated even further when Shenzhen, immediately north of Hong Kong, became a special economic zone of the PRC, and Hong Kong was established as the main source of foreign investment to China.[46] With the development of the manufacturing industry in southern China beginning in the early 1980s, Hong Kong's competitiveness in manufacturing declined and its economy began shifting toward a reliance on the service industry, which enjoyed high rates of growth in the 1980s and 1990s, and absorbed workers released from the manufacturing industry.[47] Development of Hong Kong Island in 1986 In 1983, when Britain reclassified Hong Kong from a British crown colony to a dependent territory, the governments of Britain and China were already discussing the issue of Hong Kong's sovereignty due to the impending expiry (within two decades) of the lease of the New Territories. In 1984, the Sino-British Joint Declaration – an agreement to transfer sovereignty to the People's Republic of China in 1997 – was signed.[41] It stipulated that Hong Kong would be governed as a special administrative region, retaining its laws and a high degree of autonomy for at least fifty years after the transfer. The Hong Kong Basic Law, which would serve as the constitutional document after the transfer, was ratified in 1990.[41] Modern times Main articles: Transfer of sovereignty over Hong Kong and 2000s in Hong Kong On 1 July 1997, the transfer of sovereignty from United Kingdom to the People's Republic of China occurred, officially ending 156 years of British colonial rule. Hong Kong became China's first special administrative region, and Tung Chee Hwa took office as the first Chief Executive of Hong Kong. That same year, Hong Kong suffered an economic double blow from the Asian financial crisis and the H5N1 avian influenza.[41] In 2003, Hong Kong was severely affected by the outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS).[48] The World Health Organization reported 1,755 infected and 299 deaths in Hong Kong. An estimated of 380 million Hong Kong dollars (US$48.9 million) in contracts were lost as a result of the epidemic.[49] Today, Hong Kong continues to serve as an important global financial centre, but faces uncertainty over its future due to the growing mainland China economy, and its relationship with the PRC government in areas such as democratic reform and universal suffrage.[50] Governance Main articles: Politics of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Government, and Elections in Hong Kong The Legislative Council Building in Central became the home to Legislative Council of Hong Kong in 1985. In accordance with the Sino-British Joint Declaration, and the underlying principle of one country, two systems, Hong Kong has a "high degree of autonomy as a special administrative region in all areas except defence and foreign affairs."[note 4] The declaration stipulates that the region maintain its capitalist economic system and guarantees the rights and freedoms of its people for at least 50 years beyond the 1997 handover.[note 5] The guarantees over the territory's autonomy and the individual rights and freedoms are enshrined in a constitution, the Hong Kong Basic Law, which outlines the system of governance of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, but which is subject to the interpretation of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPCSC).[51] Government House is the official residence of the Chief Executive. The primary institutions of government are: The executive: The Executive Council is headed by the Chief Executive who is elected by the Election Committee and then appointed by the Central People's Government.[52][53] The civil service: This is a politically neutral body that implements policies and provides government services, where public servants are appointed based on meritocracy.[14] The legislature: The Legislative Council has 60 members, half of which are directly elected by universal suffrage by permanent residents of Hong Kong according to five geographical constituencies. The other half, known as functional constituencies, are directly elected by a smaller electorate, which consists of corporate bodies and persons from various stipulated functional sectors. It is headed by the President of the Legislative Council who serves as the speaker.[54] The judiciary: The Judiciary of Hong Kong is comprised of the magistrate's courts, the District Court, the High Court (which includes the Court of Appeal and the Court of First Instance) and the Court of Final Appeal.[55] Judges are appointed by the Chief Executive on the recommendation of an independent commission.[12] The implementation of the Basic Law, including how and when the universal suffrage promised therein is to be achieved, has been a major issue of political debate since the transfer of sovereignty. In 2002, the government's proposed anti-subversion bill pursuant to Article 23 of the Basic Law, which required the enactment of laws prohibiting acts of treason and subversion against the Chinese government, was met with fierce opposition, and eventually shelved.[13][56][57] Debate between pro-Beijing groups, which tend to support the Executive branch, and the Pan-democracy camp characterises Hong Kong's political scene, with the latter supporting a faster pace of democratisation, and the principle of one man, one vote.[58] In 2004, the government failed to gain pan-democrat support to pass its so-called 'district council model' blueprint for political reform.[59] In 2009, the government reissued the proposals as the "Consultation Document on the Methods for Selecting the Chief Executive and for Forming the LegCo in 2012". The document proposed the enlargement of the Election Committee from 800 members to 1,200 in 2012 and to expand the legislature from 60 to 70 seats. The ten new legislative seats would consist of five geographical constituency seats and five functional constituency seats, to be elected by elected district council members from among themselves.[60] Destined to be voted down once again by pan-democrats, a significant breakthrough came when the proposals were revised at the eleventh hour, by making the new functional seats subject to direct election – the Democratic Party then broke ranks with the other pan-democrats and voted in favour of this first change in the annexes of the Basic Law since the handover.[61] Legal system and judiciary Main articles: Law of Hong Kong and Judiciary of Hong Kong The Court of Final Appeal in Central is the supreme court of Hong Kong. Hong Kong's legal system is completely independent from the legal system of China. In contrast to mainland China's civil law system, she continues to follow the English Common Law tradition established under British rule.[62] Hong Kong's courts may refer to decisions rendered by courts of other common law jurisdictions as precedents,[12] and judges from other common law jurisdictions are allowed to sit as non-permanent judges of the Court of Final Appeal.[12] Structurally, the court system consists of the Court of Final Appeal, the High Court, which is made up of the Court of Appeal and the Court of First Instance, and the District Court, which includes the Family Court.[55] Other adjudicative bodies include the Lands Tribunal, the Magistrates' Courts, the Juvenile Court, the Coroner's Court, the Labour Tribunal, the Small Claims Tribunal, and the Obscene Articles Tribunal.[55] Justices of the Court of Final Appeal are appointed by Hong Kong's Chief Executive.[12] The Department of Justice is responsible for handling legal matters for the government. Its responsibilities include providing legal advice, criminal prosecution, civil representation, legal and policy drafting and reform, and international legal cooperation between different jurisdictions.[62] Apart from prosecuting criminal cases, lawyers of the Department of Justice act on behalf of the government in all civil and administrative lawsuits against the government.[62] As protector of the public interest, the department may apply for judicial reviews and may intervene in any cases involving the greater public interest.[63] The Basic Law protects the Department of Justice from any interference by the government when exercising its control over criminal prosecution.[64] Administrative districts  Statistics New Territories No. District Population[65] Area[66] 1. Islands 138,900 175.03 km2 (67.58 sq mi) 2. Kwai Tsing 510,300 21.82 km2 (8.42 sq mi) 3. North 287,700 137.31 km2 (53.02 sq mi) 4. Sai Kung 407,300 136.39 km2 (52.66 sq mi) 5. Sha Tin 606,700 69.46 km2 (26.82 sq mi) 6. Tai Po 292,700 147.42 km2 (56.92 sq mi) 7. Tsuen Wan 292,300 60.7 km2 (23.44 sq mi) 8. Tuen Mun 493,800 84.45 km2 (32.61 sq mi) 9. Yuen Long 533,300 138.43 km2 (53.45 sq mi) Kowloon No. District Population Area 10. Kowloon City 359,400 9.97 km2 (3.85 sq mi) 11. Kwun Tong 579,400 11.05 km2 (4.27 sq mi) 12. Sham Shui Po 365,600 9.48 km2 (3.66 sq mi) 13. Wong Tai Sin 421,900 9.36 km2 (3.61 sq mi) 14. Yau Tsim Mong 285,300 6.85 km2 (2.64 sq mi) Hong Kong Island No. District Population Area 15. Central and Western 253,100 12.52 km2 (4.83 sq mi) 16. Eastern 588,700 18.81 km2 (7.26 sq mi) 17. Southern 275,700 38.95 km2 (15.04 sq mi) 18. Wan Chai 155,700 10.02 km2 (3.87 sq mi) Main article: Districts of Hong Kong Hong Kong has a unitary system of government; no local government has existed since the two municipal councils were abolished in 2000. As such there is no formal definition for its cities and towns. Administratively, Hong Kong is subdivided into 18 geographic districts, each represented by a district council which advises the government on local matters such as public facilities, community programmes, cultural activities, and environmental improvements.[67] There are a total of 534 district council seats, 405 of which are elected; the rest are appointed by the Chief Executive and 27 ex officio chairmen of rural committees.[67] The Home Affairs Department communicates government policies and plans to the public through the district offices.[68] Military Main articles: Hong Kong Military Service Corps and People's Liberation Army Hong Kong Garrison As a British Colony and later as a territory, defence was provided by the British military under the command of the Governor of Hong Kong who was ex officio Commander-in-chief.[69] When the People's Republic of China assumed sovereignty in 1997, the British barracks were replaced by a garrison of the People's Liberation Army, comprising ground, naval, and air forces, and under the command of the Chinese Central Military Commission.[16] The Basic Law protects local civil affairs against interference by the garrison, and members of the garrison are subject to Hong Kong laws. The Hong Kong Government remains responsible for the maintenance of public order; however, it may ask the PRC government for help from the garrison in maintaining public order and in disaster relief. The PRC government is responsible for the costs of maintaining the garrison.[13] Geography and climate Main articles: Geography of Hong Kong, Environment of Hong Kong, and Climate of Hong Kong Areas of urban development and vegetation are visible in this false-colour satellite image. Hong Kong is located on China's south coast, 60 km (37 mi) east of Macau on the opposite side of the Pearl River Delta. It is surrounded by the South China Sea on the east, south, and west, and borders the Guangdong city of Shenzhen to the north over the Shenzhen River. The territory's 1,104 km2 (426 sq mi) area consists of Hong Kong Island, the Kowloon Peninsula, the New Territories, and over 200 offshore islands, of which the largest is Lantau Island. Of the total area, 1,054 km2 (407 sq mi) is land and 50 km2 (19 sq mi) is inland water. Hong Kong claims territorial waters to a distance of 3 nautical miles (5.6 km). Its land area makes Hong Kong the 179th largest inhabited territory in the world.[1][5] As much of Hong Kong's terrain is hilly to mountainous with steep slopes, less than 25% of the territory's landmass is developed, and about 40% of the remaining land area is reserved as country parks and nature reserves.[70] Most of the territory's urban development exists on Kowloon peninsula, along the northern edge of Hong Kong Island, and in scattered settlements throughout the New Territories.[71] The highest elevation in the territory is at Tai Mo Shan, 957 metres (3,140 ft) above sea level.[72] Hong Kong's long and irregular coast line provides it with many bays, rivers and beaches.[73] Despite Hong Kong's reputation of being intensely urbanised, the territory has tried to promote a green environment,[74] and recent growing public concern has prompted the severe restricti