Fire, Disease, Typhoons and Piracy Plagued Nineteenth Century Hong Kong

Present-day Hong Kong is regarded as one of the safest and healthiest cities in the world. Yet, that was far from always the case. In the early years of Hong Kong during the mid-nineteenth century, life was a constant struggle on numerous fronts.

When the British took possession of Hong Kong Island in 1841, the narrow strip of land between Victoria Peak and Victoria Harbour consisted of little more than pestilent marshes. Combined with a hot and humid climate, this was the perfect breeding ground for diseases such as malaria and cholera, which plagued nineteenth-century Hong Kong.

Likewise, violent fires frequently rampaged through the city’s poorest districts, killing hundreds of people—most of whom were Chinese. So catastrophic were these events that areas such as Sheung Wan and Shek Kip Mei—albeit the latter in the mid-twentieth century—were literally reshaped following devastating blazes.

Furthermore, as is still the case today, Hong Kong was regularly hit by destructive typhoons. Unlike today, however, nineteenth-century Hong Kong was not built to withstand powerful winds, nor did technology enable the Royal Observatory (now the Hong Kong Observatory) to warn the public of incoming storms, which often killed hundreds–sometimes thousands–of people within just a few hours.

And if that were not enough, throughout the nineteenth century and up until the 1920s, the waters surrounding Hong Kong were the playground of pirates who indiscriminately attacked Western and Chinese merchant ships, warehouses, and even villages.

Looking back at the early stages of the city, it is truly remarkable how drastically Hong Kong has changed since its inception.