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HONG
KONG
ISLAND
I
KOWLOON
I
NEW
TERRITORIES
I
OUTLYING
ISLANDS |
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Fashion
& Apliu
Street
I
Ladies'
Market
I
Temple
Street
Night
Market
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Jade
Market |
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Avenue
of
Stars
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Symphony
of
Lights
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Clock
Tower
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Yuen
Po
Street
Bird
Garden |
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Kowloon
Walled
City
Park
I
Wong
Tai
Sin
Temple
I
Lei
Yue
Mun
Seafood
Bazaar |
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 Few
areas
of
Hong
Kong
have
a
richer
historical
background
than
the
Kowloon
Walled
City
Park,
originally
the
site
of a
walled
fort.
A
senior
mandarin
commanded
the
garrison
with
his
own
administrative
headquarters
in
an
official
"Yamen".
While
not
particularly
distinctive
to
look
at,
being
a
rectangular
structure
with
a
typical
tiled
roof,
a
Yamen
represented
the
power
of
the
Emperor
as
passed
down
to
the
Mandarin
in
charge,
and
so
was
both
highly
respected
and
feared
by
those
who
passed
it. |
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After
Hong
Kong
Island
was
ceded
to
Great
Britain
in
1841,
the
fort's
role
was
to
police
the
Chinese
side
of
Hong
Kong
Harbour.
But
the
British
seized
on a
minor
skirmish
between
the
two
sides
to
demand
the
garrison's
withdrawal
on
pain
of a
naval
bombardment.
Having
already
suffered
enough
from
British
guns,
the
Chinese
had
the
good
sense
to
abandon
the
fort
although,
by
Treaty,
the
site
remained
theirs. |
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Squatters
soon
moved
in
and
for
about
100
years
it
remained
a
quiet
rural
hamlet
huddled
behind
its
protective
walls.
However,
during
the
Japanese
occupation
of
1942-45
the
walls
were
torn
down
and
the
stone
used
to
enlarge
the
nearby
airfield
at
Kai
Tak.
War's
end
soon
saw
hundreds
of
thousands
of
Chinese
refugees
flock
to
Hong
Kong,
bringing
a
fresh
wave
of
squatters,
particularly
criminal
elements
attracted
by
this
legal
no-man's
land.
Lacking
law
and
order,
the
area
mushroomed
into
a
squalid
eyesore
of
illegal
buildings
where
crime,
drugs
and
vice
flourished
side
by
side
in a
maze
of
dank,
dark
alleyways. |
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The
situation
became
so
out
of
hand
that
the
Chinese
and
British
authorities
finally
agreed
to
clear
the
festering
slum
in
1994
and
resettle
its
occupants.
Part
of
the
cleared
site
was
then
transformed
into
this
beautiful
Chinese
park
and
garden
which
today
delights
visitors
from
all
over
the
world.
It
is
built
in
the
classical
Jiangnan
style
featuring
a
Garden
of
the
Chinese
Zodiac,
a
Mountain
View
Pavilion
and
a
Hill
Top
Pavilion.
Amazingly,
the
Commandant's
Yamen
survived
the
chaos
of
the
area's
worst
years
and
has
been
perfectly
restored.
It
is
one
of
the
few
remaining
Yamens
in
South
China.
Other
reminders
of
the
old
walled
fort
include
the
original
stone
plaques
from
the
South
Gate,
stone
tablets
and
Qing
official
inscriptions,
plus
the
only
two
cannons
to
survive. |
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How
To
Get
There
1.
Take
a
taxi
from
MTR
Lok
Fu
Station
Exit
B to
the
entrance
on
Tung
Tau
Tsuen
Road.
2.
Bus
1
from
Tsim
Sha
Tsui
Star
Ferry
bus
terminus
and
get
off
at
Kowloon
Walled
City
Park. |
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