The Canton–Hong Kong strike was a strike and

boycott A boycott is an act of nonviolent, voluntary abstention from a product, person, organization, or country as an expression of protest. It is usually for moral, social, political, or environmental reasons. The purpose of a boycott is to inflict so ...

that took place in

British Hong Kong Hong Kong was a colony and later a dependent territory of the British Empire from 1841 to 1997, apart from a period of occupation under the Japanese Empire from 1941 to 1945 during the Pacific War. The colonial period began with the British ...

and

Guangzhou Guangzhou (, ; ; or ; ), also known as Canton () and Chinese postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Kwongchow or Kwangchow, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Guangdong Provinces of China, province in South China, sou ...

(Canton),

Republic of China Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the northeas ...

, from June 1925 to October 1926.Jens Bangsbo, Thomas Reilly, Mike Hughes. 995(1995). Science and Football III: Proceedings of the Third World Congress of Science and Football, Cardiff, Wales, 9–13 April 1995. Taylor & Francis publishing. , . p 42-43. It started out as a response to the May 30 Movement shooting incidents in which Chinese protesters were fired upon by

Sikh Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism, Sikhism (Sikhi), a Monotheism, monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Gu ...

detachments of the

Shanghai Municipal Police The Shanghai Municipal Police (SMP; ) was the police force of the Shanghai Municipal Council which governed the Shanghai International Settlement between 1854 and 1943, when the settlement was retroceded to Chinese control. Initially composed o ...

Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Chinese, Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four Direct-administered municipalities of China, direct-administered municipalities of the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the ...

Incident

On May 30, 1925,

detachments of the

opened fire on a crowd of Chinese demonstrators at the

Shanghai International Settlement The Shanghai International Settlement () originated from the merger in the year 1863 of the British and American enclaves in Shanghai, in which British subjects and American citizens would enjoy extraterritoriality and consular jurisdictio ...

. At least nine demonstrators were killed, and many others wounded. Escalating the incident, on June 23, 1925, a heated demonstration in Shameen Island took place which resulted in the

Shakee Massacre The Shakee Massacre occurred on June 23, 1925 and resulted in over two hundred casualties due to gunfire by British, French and Portuguese forces in Shaji (called ''Shakei'' in Cantonese), Canton, China. On June 21, 1925, workers in Hong Kong a ...

. Troops under foreign command, perceiving shots being fired at them, killed more than fifty Chinese protesters and wounded almost two hundred more.

Strike

Prominent Chinese citizens in

Guangdong Guangdong (, ), alternatively romanized as Canton or Kwangtung, is a coastal province in South China on the north shore of the South China Sea. The capital of the province is Guangzhou. With a population of 126.01 million (as of 2020 ...

called for an anti-British strike, especially in

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a List of cities in China, city and Special administrative regions of China, special ...

, then a

British colony The British Overseas Territories (BOTs), also known as the United Kingdom Overseas Territories (UKOTs), are fourteen territories with a constitutional and historical link with the United Kingdom. They are the last remnants of the former Bri ...

. The

Kuomintang The Kuomintang (KMT), also referred to as the Guomindang (GMD), the Nationalist Party of China (NPC) or the Chinese Nationalist Party (CNP), is a major political party in the Republic of China, initially on the Chinese mainland and in Ta ...

leaders and

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

advisors even considered attacking the Anglo-French Settlement in Shameen. Anti-British

pamphlet A pamphlet is an unbound book (that is, without a hard cover or binding). Pamphlets may consist of a single sheet of paper that is printed on both sides and folded in half, in thirds, or in fourths, called a ''leaflet'' or it may consist of a ...

s were passed around in Hong Kong. Rumours also spread that the colonial government planned to poison the colony's water supplies. Guangdong offered free train passage to Hong Kong. In the first week of protest, more than 50,000 Chinese citizens left Hong Kong.

Food prices Food prices refer to the average price level for food across countries, regions and on a global scale. Food prices have an impact on producers and consumers of food. Price levels depend on the food production process, including food marketing ...

soared. The colony was a ghost town by July. By the end of July, some 250,000 Chinese left for Guangdong. The worst of the strike was over by 1926.

Government and economy

The

British government ga, Rialtas a Shoilse gd, Riaghaltas a Mhòrachd , image = HM Government logo.svg , image_size = 220px , image2 = Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (HM Government).svg , image_size2 = 180px , caption = Royal Arms , date_est ...

had to provide a trade

loan In finance, a loan is the lending of money by one or more individuals, organizations, or other entities to other individuals, organizations, etc. The recipient (i.e., the borrower) incurs a debt and is usually liable to pay interest on that ...

of 3 million pounds to prevent the economy from collapsing. Hong Kong's top two colonial officials, Governor Sir Reginald Stubbs and Colonial Secretary

Claud Severn Sir Claud Severn ( Chinese Translated Name: 施勳) (1869–1933) was a British colonial administrator. Severn joined the colonial civil service in British Malaya in 1894 and worked under the Governor of the Straits Settlements. In 1912, he beca ...

were replaced in 1925 as a consequence of the crisis, under criticism from James Jamieson, the British Consul General in Canton. Jamieson claimed the two were out of touch and out of date, unable to converse in Chinese and ignorant of the political situation in China. An anti-British boycott continued for several more months. The economy was paralysed and Hong Kong's total trade fell by 50%, shipping diminished by 40%, rents decreased by 60%, which lasted until the end of the boycott.

In literature

The Canton–Hong Kong strike plays a prominent part in

André Malraux Georges André Malraux ( , ; 3 November 1901 – 23 November 1976) was a French novelist, art theorist, and Minister of Culture (France), minister of cultural affairs. Malraux's novel ''La Condition Humaine'' (Man's Fate) (1933) won the Prix Go ...

's first novel, '' The Conquerors'' (1928).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Canton-Hong Kong strike 1925 in Hong Kong 1926 in Hong Kong 1925 in China 1926 in China British Hong Kong Riots and civil disorder in Hong Kong History of Guangzhou Labour movement in China 1925 labor disputes and strikes 1926 labor disputes and strikes China–United Kingdom relations Hong Kong–United Kingdom relations Political repression in Hong Kong

Incident

Strike

Government and economy

In literature

See also

References