Tsang Tai Uk, also known as Shan Ha Wai (), is a

Hakka The Hakka (), sometimes also referred to as Hakka-speaking Chinese, or Hakka Chinese, or Hakkas, are a southern Han Chinese subgroup whose principal settlements and ancestral homes are dispersed widely across the provinces of southern China ...

walled village A walled village () is a type of large traditional multi-family communal living structure found in China, that is designed to be easily defensible. It is completely surrounded by thick defensive walls, protecting the residents from the attack ...

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

,Brief Information on proposed Grade I Items. Item #1
and one of the best preserved. The complex is located in

Sha Tin Sha Tin, also spelt Shatin, is a neighbourhood along Shing Mun River in the eastern New Territories, Hong Kong. Administratively, it is part of the Sha Tin District. Sha Tin is one of the neighbourhoods of the Sha Tin New Town project. The new ...

close to the south of Pok Hong Estate, near

Lion Rock Tunnel The Lion Rock Tunnel, the first major road tunnel in Hong Kong, is a twin-board toll tunnel, connecting Hin Tin, Sha Tin District, Sha Tin in the New Territories and New Kowloon near Kowloon Tong. It has two southbound lanes, and there are ...

Road.

Administration

Shan Ha Wai (Tsang Tai Uk) is a recognized village under the

New Territories The New Territories (N.T., Traditional Chinese characters, Chinese: ) is one of the three areas of Hong Kong, alongside Hong Kong Island and Kowloon. It makes up 86.2% of Hong Kong's territory, and contains around half of the population of H ...

Small House Policy The Small House Policy (SHP, ) was introduced in 1972 in Hong Kong. The objective was to improve the then prevailing low standard of housing in the rural areas of the New Territories. The policy allows an indigenous male villager who is 18 ye ...

History

The construction of Shan Ha Wai was begun in 1847 by the wealthy granite merchant and stonemason Tsang Koon-Man as a stronghold for the Tsang

clan A clan is a group of people united by actual or perceived kinship and descent. Even if lineage details are unknown, a clan may claim descent from a founding member or apical ancestor who serves as a symbol of the clan's unity. Many societie ...

, and took around 20 years to complete. The founder situated his rural fortress so he could access his business ventures in the city reasonably. Also purchasing the best agricultural land in the surrounding valley alongside the village to afford a stable income when there were inevitable economic recessions. The high fortified walls and defensive gate offering protection protecting the families inside from the troubled times and night robberies of late-imperial China. The original granite, bricks and solid timber are still preserved today. The complex is rectangular and consists of three rows of houses enclosed by grey brick walls. The four corners each feature a three-story guard tower with openings in the wall through which guns could be fired back in the early days of the complex's role as a defensive fortification. All the houses are interlinked by passages and small courtyards. In the innermost row of houses is an ancestral hall where meetings and ceremonies took place. There are three arched entrances in the northern wall. The main or ceremonial entrance is in the middle and leads to the ancestral hall. In front of the main building is a massive courtyard, where villagers traditionally winnowed and dried their harvest. It also contained a study hall where the Tsang children were tutored before schools existed. At the time of the 1911 census, the population of Shan Ha Wai was 56. The number of males was 24. Shan Ha Wai gained its current name Tsang Tai Uk from locals when it housed displaced families after the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. During the 1970s development of the

Sha Tin New Town Sha Tin New Town, also known as Sha Tin-Ma On Shan New Town or Sha Tin Town is one of the satellite towns and new towns of Hong Kong. It is within the Sha Tin District, the New Territories. The New Town covers the neighbourhoods of Sha Tin, ...

, the surrounding area was developed significantly. During the course of new town development in Hong Kong, sometimes villages were relocated. However, Tsang Tai Uk was preserved due to its historical significance. In 1979, the village had about 700 residents, of whom about 300 belonged to the Tsang clan. Prince Charles, a former archaeology and history student, visited Tsang Tai Uk on 4 March 1979 during a royal tour. The land reclaimed from

Tide Cove Sha Tin Hoi / Sha Tin Sea () or Tide Cove is a cove at the mouth of the Shing Mun River. It is between Ma Liu Shui and Ma On Shan. The cove is open to Tolo Harbour (Tai Po Hoi). It was largely reclaimed for the development of Sha Tin New Town. ...

upon which the Sha Tin New Town was built was formed to an average of five or six metres above sea level. However, Tsang Tai Uk is only 2.5 or three metres above sea level, and historically suffered from flooding. During Typhoon Wanda in 1962, the village was badly flooded, with the ground level having been completely inundated. In the late 1970s, the government devised a drainage improvement plan.

Conservation

Tsang Tai Uk is listed as a

Grade I historic building Grade most commonly refers to: * Grading in education, a measurement of a student's performance by educational assessment (e.g. A, pass, etc.) * A designation for students, classes and curricula indicating the number of the year a student has reach ...

. Restoration work of the ancestral hall started in 2009, after a

HK$ The Hong Kong dollar (, sign: HK$; code: HKD) is the official currency of Hong Kong. It is divided into 100 cents. Historically, it was also divided into 1000 mils. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority is the monetary authority of Hong Kong an ...

1m Government grant on maintenance of privately owned graded historic buildings had been approved. Visitors are permitted in the first courtyard and ancestral hall;Approved applications for financial assistance on maintenance of privately-owned graded historic buildings
/ref> the remaining courtyards and buildings are private.

Access

The closest

MTR The Mass Transit Railway system, known locally by the initialism MTR, is a rapid transit system in Hong Kong and the territory's principal mode of Rail transport in Hong Kong, railway transportation. Operated by the MTR Corporation (MTRCL), ...

stations are

Che Kung Temple Che Kung Miu ( zh, first=t, t=車公廟, s=车公庙, p=Chēgōng Miào, j=ce1 gung1 miu6), also called Che Kung Temple, are temples dedicated to the Chinese deity Che Kung, who was a general during the Southern Song dynasty (1127–1279 ...

and

Sha Tin Wai Sha Tin Wai () is an area in Sha Tin District, New Territories, Hong Kong, named after Sha Tin Wai Village (). Name The name of the Sha Tin area allegedly comes from the fact that British Hong Kong, British colonial officials mistook the name o ...

References

External links

Delineation of area of existing village Shan Ha Wai (Sha Tin) for election of resident representative (2019 to 2022)

Journey Between the Centuries: Sha Tin by DiscoverHongKong.com
* Film Services Office
Tsang Tai Uk

Photos of Tsang Tai Uk

Google satellite view
{{coord, 22.3738, 114.1906, type:landmark_source:enwiki-googlemaplink, display=title Walled villages of Hong Kong Sha Tin Wai Hakka culture in Hong Kong Grade I historic buildings in Hong Kong Villages in Sha Tin District, Hong Kong