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Cheung Po Tsai, Pirate, 1806-1810

1810 Jan 01

Cheung Po Tsai,  Pirate1806-1810

According to Pun Yu County record in late Ching Dynasty, Cheung Po , was the pirate in Southern China coast.

Cheung Po went out fishing with his father when he was around 15 years old, and was captured by Red Flag pirate leader of South China, Cheng Yat, who was descendant of Cheng Shing Kung, the famous sea explorer of Ming dynasty.

Cheng Yat later died in typhoon. His wife promoted Cheung Po as assistant to control the Red Flag pirates.

For his young age, other pirates started calling him Po Tsai. (literally in English, kid Po)

Cheung Po Tsai active leadership of Red Flag pirates only lasted between 1806 and 1810.

As a result of fear of revenge by another leader, Kwok Por Dai, of Black Flag pirates, and on the advice by wife of Cheng Yat, he surrendered to Ching Government.

He was given a position of military officer in Ching army, got officially married with wife of Cheng Yat. She later started casino business in Macau.

Cheung Po Tsai used Tung Chung of Lantau Island as repair and maintenance base,  and once broke through the blockage set up in Chek Lap Kwok by joint force of Ching and Portuguese navies.

Based on report of 2 East India Company sailors kidnapped by Cheung Po Tsai, he had over 500 boats and around 25,000 pirates under his command at his peak.

張保仔洞

Cheung Po Tsai Cave on Cheung Chau

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Last edited by Cheung Chau Magazine on 2013 Oct 21

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Cheung Chau Fong Bin Hospital, 1872

1872 Jan 01

Cheung Chau Fong Bin Hospital, 1872

According to assessment report in 2009 from Antiquities and Monuments Office of  Hong Kong Government :

“Cheung Chau Fong Bin Hospital was set up by Mr. Choi Leung , a merchant on the island.

His aim is to provide shelter to the homeless and sick and those perished in sea during typhoon. It was then expanded in 1915 by Cheung Chau Kai Fong.”

Based on the record from Land Registry of Hong Kong Lands Department, Cheung Chau Kai Fong, represented by Chu Fook, and Lo Chiu, and witnessed by Wong Wai Tsak Tong Manager, Wong Tsuen Ting ,on 5th of December in 1914, executed a deed of exchange of  Cheung Chau  Lot 340 with a parcel of land of 4,500 s.f.. from Colonial Government.  It is Cheung Chau Lot 732 where Fong Bin Hospital now located.

This act caused then Assistant District Officer for New Territories South, Eric Hamilton, to comment on news of death of Chu Fook in report in 1921, of his great amount of work for Cheung Chau community.

It also led to him remark in his report in 1922 on death of  Wong Tsuen Ting, Manager of  Wong Wai Tsak Tong, of his and his predecessor’s appreciation for Wong’s continuous support and his capability in Cheung Chau community work.

Antiquities and Monuments Office also mentioned “Cheung Chau Fong Bin Hospital was mainly providing Chinese Medicine, and was under major renovation in 1931 and 1951 to cope with demand.

It was changed hand to Cheung Chau Residents Association in 1945, reputable Chinese medication practice was hired, visitors came as far as other outlying  islands.”

But ever since 1934 when St John’s Ambulance opened Haw Par Hospital providing western medicine, Fong Bin Hospital was slowly fading away till complete abandon in 1988.

Right now the premises are in ruin, ownership is managed on temporary basis by Assistant District Officer for New Territories South.

長洲方便醫院 方便醫院大新街
Cheung Chau Fong Bin Hospital Cheung Chau Fong Bin Hospital – Tai Sun Street
方便醫院捐贈牌
Cheung Chau Fong Bin Hospital Donation plaque

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Last edited by Cheung Chau Magazine on 2013 Oct 04

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Ching Dynasty New Territories and outlying islands Land Tenure, before 1898

1898 Jan 01

New Territories and outlying islands Land Tenure, before 1898

With a view to increase land tax revenue for British Empire, then Colony Secretary  for Hong Kong in 1900, Stewart Lockhart, with the assistance of Mr. Messer and Mr. Tsoi, prepared a Memorandum of Chinese  Land Tenure of Ching Dynasty for submission to then Governor, Henry Blake.

In brief details, ” Chinese land title will not be passed to female, only through the male line. Title deeds are often in perpetuity or for 1,000 years. Many deeds were registered in Ka Tsing years of Ming dynasty (A.D. 1519-1626) and recognised by Ching Dynasty.

Ching government stipulated all farm lands must be registered with authority or risk the chance of repossession for resale once discovered by government. In reality, many farm lands were registered in a much smaller than their actual size.

Land with fertile soil and near water supply to yield 2 crops of rice annually is considered 1st class farm land. Farm land on slope and relatively far from water supply, yielding 1 crop of rice per year, is considered 2nd class. Land on hilly area far from water supply is considered 3rd class.  Fish pond is top class land, whereas building land and others are lowest class of land.

Red deeds means title deeds with Official Stamps in red from Ching government and registered with authority. White deeds are title deeds in private agreement not registered with Ching Government. Government will only recognize and collect Crown Rent on Red deeds.

Landlords has Ti Kwat (地骨), the right to receive rent, tenant has Ti Pi (地皮), the right to cultivate, this double ownerships has caused many dispute.

Small village where farm land is located usually has security problem making villagers looking up to big clans for protection. They also pay land tax through these big clans, who most often have members as officials in the government. But then these big clans did not usually registered farm lands with authority.

Villagers did not  claim these farm lands as their own, in fear that Ching government would repossess these land as a result of non payment for land tax. They would then lose the farm land and livelihood.”

Henry Arthur Blake , 1898-1903

Henry Arthur Blake

Governor, 1898-1903

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Last edited by Cheung Chau Magazine on 2013 Oct 21

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Land ownership chaos in New Territories, 1898

1898 Jan 01

Land ownership chaos in New Territories, 1898

After Britian took over New Territories and outlying Islands in 1898, Stewart Lockhart,  Colonial Secretary, wrote in 1900 report to government there was too much chaos in Land ownerships in New Territories.

He reported that there were cases involving ill-informed tenants wrongly refusing to pay rent to their Landlords because the lands are in New Territories, and others are to pay rents to the Government.

“Lawless characters also took forcible possession of land and tried to deceive the authority by misrepresentations. Tenants have also endeavoured to usurp the rights of landlords.”

On 20th Oct 1898 , Stewart Lockhart issued a special notice in Chinese  to emphasize all landlords and tenants ought to submit land right  information to authority.

“Ill-behaved persons will most certainly be severely punished according to law and no leniency will be shown to them.  Tremble and obey”

Hong Kong Government Colonial  Secretary , STEWART LOCKHART,香港政府輔政司,史超活·駱克

Stewart Lockhart

Colonial Secretary,1900

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Last edited by Cheung Chau Magazine on 2016 May 20

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Cheung Chau in 1898

1898 Oct 01

Cheung Chau in 1898

When Stewart Lockhart, Special Commissioner to Hong Kong , wrote a report to Colonial Office in Oct 1898 after taking over New Territories which includes outlying islands, this is how he described Cheung Chau in his report :

“The Island of Cheung Chau is a busy place, at which many of the steamers, launches, and junks plying between Hong Kong and Macao call.

There is a station of the Chinese Imperial Maritime Customs on the Island, as there is also on the Island of Ma Wan, commonly known as the Kap Shui Mun Station.

The deep anchorage of Cheung Chau affords good shelter, especially during easterly gale.

He also remarked the population of Cheung Chau at 5,000 in 1898, based on the estimate from the officer of the Chinese Imperial Maritime Customs stationed at Cheung Chau.”

But a British, L C Arlington, the expatriate employed by Ching Dynasty as Imperial Maritime Customs Officer stationed at Cheung Chau between 1894-98, recalled a different aspect of life in his book.  “The exceptionally strong smell from raw fish and shrimp paste under the sun was almost everywhere on the island. It made him very difficult to set foot on Cheung Chau again after 6 long years of service on the island.”

長洲島上海關檢查站

Chinese Imperial Maritime Customs at Cheung Chau


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Last edited by Cheung Chau Magazine on 2013 Oct 21

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