A New Documentary History of Hong Kong, 1945–1997

In A New Documentary History of Hong Kong, 1945–1997, Florence Mok, Fung Chi Keung Charles, and other contributors analyse newly released archival records from the National Archives in London and the Government Records Service in Hong Kong. This documentary collection provides an updated and improved understanding of basic aspects of the city such as governance, economy, society, and culture. It also aims at investigating topics that are under-exploited in previous sourcebooks, such as race and diasporas, gender and familial relations, medicine and healthcare, and environment and natural disasters. Overall, this book offers an innovative and comprehensive long-term perspective of Hong Kong’s colonial history.

Florence Mok is Nanyang Assistant Professor of History at Nanyang Technological University. She is a historian of colonial Hong Kong and modern China, with an interest in environmental history, the Cold War and state-society relations. She is author of Covert Colonialism: Governance, Surveillance and Political Culture in British Hong Kong, c. 1966–97 (2023).

Fung Chi Keung Charles is a PhD student in sociology at the State University of New York, Stony Brook. He is co-author of Hong Kong Public and Squatter Housing: Geopolitics and Informality, 1963–1985 (2023), and has contributed articles to journals such as Asian Perspective, Social Transformations in Chinese Societies, and East Asia.

‘This book is far more than a collection of historical documents; it is a new history of Hong Kong from 1945 to 1997. As useful as these sources are for telling the history of Hong Kong during this period, just as valuable are the introductions and commentaries by the contributors. For while these sources tell us much about Hong Kong, this book is a powerful testament to the fact that it is historians who make historical documents speak and who give them meaning.’

—John M. Carroll, University of Hong Kong

‘I find a commitment to academic sharing and altruism among the editors and contributors of this sourcebook. They shared with us the documents they covered in their own research. They identified those that were most relevant to capturing the essential features of Hong Kong society in their chosen areas of study.’

—Tai-lok Lui, Education University of Hong Kong 

‘A significant contribution from a new generation of Hong Kong historians, this collective effort provides clear and concise accounts of various aspects of Hong Kong’s history. Their insights and meticulous work in uncovering archival materials and documentary sources will enable further inquiry and foster nuanced discussions among history enthusiasts and scholars.’

—Ray Yep, University of Bristol