Portugal Occupied (Parts of) Hong Kong

For 156 years, Hong Kong Island was a British colony, while Kowloon and the New Territories were held for 136 and 99 years, respectively. Yet, Great Britain was not the first European power to occupy Hong Kong, or parts thereof. That honour goes to Portugal.

In 1513, Jorge Álvares became the first European explorer to reach China by sea when he landed on an island in the Pearl River Delta, which he named Tamão. Claiming the land for the Portuguese crown, he erected a padrão—a stone pillar bearing Portugal's coat of arms. Historians believe this pillar stood either on Lantau Island or in Tuen Mun, both located in present-day Hong Kong. This makes Lantau arguably the first Chinese territory occupied by a European power.

By 1514, Portuguese merchants and soldiers had transformed Tamão into a fortified trading port. Operating without permission from the ruling Ming Dynasty, they spent seven years running highly lucrative smuggling networks in spices, silk, and porcelain.

This occupation ended in 1521 when a Chinese fleet defeated the Portuguese navy at the Battle of Tunmen, fought off the coast of modern-day Tuen Mun and Castle Peak, forcing the Portuguese to flee.

Eventually, in 1557, Portugal successfully negotiated the lease of nearby Macau. Three centuries later, the British defeated the Qing Dynasty and colonized Hong Kong.