Kowloon Walled City – the city "Behind the Wall"

When you walk around Kowloon Walled City Park it is difficult to imagine that another 20 years ago there was an unusual and at the same time terrible place in Hong Kong. What is in Hong Kong – in the world! "City by the wall", "City of Darkness", "Hong Kong anthill", "City-fortress" – this place has dozens of names, thousands of articles in different languages are written about him. Over 50,000 people, 400 buildings, 1000 mini-factories and factories are located on a piece of land with a size of only 126 by 213 meters! This area of Hong Kong became the prototype of the "City of Hackers" in book "Idor" William Gibson, you can see it in the famous militant "Bloody Sport" with Van Damm (1988) and in the film "Criminal History" with Jackie Chan (1993). However, photos and video materials from this place are very few. The most famous and spectacular photos made a Canadian photographer and a journalist Greg Girar, when in the 80s for 5 years he watched and studied the "City of the Wall", the most tightly populated point of our planet.

Today we will talk about the city-fortress Kowloon, who, until the mid-90s, was also the most criminal place of Hong Kong, where even the police preferred once again not to enter. We not only tell about his history, but also walk through the beautiful modern park, which appeared here today, and which we visited in one of our recent visits to Hong Kong. By the way, do not forget to watch the video at the end of the article! &# 128578;

History of Kowloon Walled City – how it all started

Despite the fact that the city of Kowloon’s fortress acquired its fame in the 70-90s of the 20th century, his story began for several centuries before. During the Sun Dynasty on the Peninsula’s coast, an outpost was created in order to regulate trading flows and control the saline. It would seem why to protect the merchants of salt to whom they need? But this is now we perceive the salt as something ordinary, and in those days she was one of the most expensive goods. By 1668, 30 soldiers were constantly in the port built, the task was to protect not only merchants, but also to protect the shore from pirates and other invaders. The outpost has enlarged and to the parish in Hong Kong British turned into a real military fort. In 1841, Hong Kong Island became a British colony, and in 1898 under the jurisdiction of the crown and "new territories" together with the Cowloon Peninsula.

Cowloon Fortress in the XIX century

China managed to exclude from the list of the territories of the city-fortress Kowloun – they were allowed in the fortress until their interests interfere with Britain. At that time, the area of the fortress was estimated at 26,000 square meters, which is just more than the Red Square in Moscow. The checkpoint was a fortress with six watchdog towers and four gates. On the territory there were military barracks and other structures, the "population" of the fortress was estimated at about 700 people.

The Chinese enclave on the territory of Britain very much interfered by the mighty empire, so already a year later (in 1899), British troops on orders of the governor Sir Henry Blake committed the first attack on the fortress. According to the official version, they fought with the movement of resistance, which was organized against the British. When on May 16, 1899, the army entered the fortress, inside was only one mandarin and 150 people, and the vice-king of Cantonese troops and a large half of the military disappeared.

The fortress passed under the control of the British and lost any martial significance. Gradually, she began to come to the launch, and now she was interested in only rare curious tourists. In the former military barracks were organized houses for the elders, and in 1933 the Hong Kong authorities decided to demolish the dilapidated buildings, promising all local residents (which 436 people got) new housing. By 1940, all the houses were demolished, only Yamen’s building remained.

During World War II, the power on the peninsula went to the hands of the Japanese, they destroyed the remnants of the walls of the former fortress to increase the territory of Kai airport, and the trash from the destroyed wall was used as a building material for the airport. After the surrender of Japan, China again presented the British rights to the fortress city, and so far Europeans thought, 2000 Chinese refugees from the mainland took Kowloon. After an unsuccessful attempt to "clear the territory", the British decided to go along the way the least resistance and simply stopped interfering in the affairs of the "City of the Wall".

Crime in Kowloong City

They ceased to pay attention to what is happening in the fortress city, and the Chinese are far away, and they could not clean up. The old fortress of Kowloon pretty quickly turned into refuge of drug addicts, gangsters and prostitutes, which was quite expected. By 1950, she became a real city of darkness, the spheres of influence were divided between criminal groups known as triads.

Among the most famous and influential were "Suniion" and "14k". Suniion ("Sun Yee ON") in the Chinese sounds like rather optimistic "happiness, justice and revival". Such a name is suitable for a charitable foundation, and not the largest Hong Kong criminal grouping.

His story Triad takes from 1919, existing in our days. If you believe journalists, it has more than 40 thousand people around the world, including in Russia. "14K" – no less influential Triad of Hong Kong and is considered one of the most cruel. Was organized in 1945 and, like Sunyion, lives to this day.

In the press constantly pop up loud cases, which are involved both groupings. But back in the story of Walled City. In the 60s of the 20th century, absolutely all criminal activity in Hong Kong was managed precisely because of the walls of the city of Fortress: Public houses, drug trade, racket. all.

Kowloon Walled City in the 1960s

The writer Leung Ping Kwan in his book "City of Darkness" described this place approximately as follows: "There are prostitutes on the street, next to someone with poor milk, drug addicts are lying on stairs in the entrances, and schools and kindergartens turn to the borders at night. In order to live in such a place, it was necessary to have uncommon qualities.

According to the stories of the local resident of Paul Tanga, who lived in Anklava 30 years and the Hong Fat Shan trip to the triad, being still a teenager, the fortress city was "good" three things: drugpritons ("opium houses"), brothels and unlicensed dentists. His father moved to Hong Kong from the mainland China and built a shop right in his small apartment in KWC, which divided into 2 parts – the workspace of the store and the bedroom behind the wall. The floor often helped her father with a store, working as seller. In the assortment of the store, in addition to the usual products of everyday demand, there were also devices for drug use. Buyers of these goods often offered the floor to try drugs, but he was able to hold onto the side for a long time. However, later he still fell on heroin.

Tang’s floor shop. © Greg Girard / Ian Lambot

According to his memories, the most expensive potion was "Red Tablet", which only rich can afford. Next was the opium, it was cheaper, but still enough dear to be accessible to all. The cheapest, and, at the same time, the most terrible and poisonous, was heroin. Opium addicts always looked happiness on their heroin "colleagues". When the heroes could not get another dose, they, as a rule, were dying, and their families from hopelessness simply endured their bodies in the toilets and left there.

Opium smoking in Hong Kong in the 50s

Heroeer’s addict in Kowloon Fortress. © Greg Girard / Ian Lambot

Because of the very criminogenic environment inside, the police tried to do something from time to time. So, in the period 1973-1974 more than 2500 arrests were committed and almost 2 tons of narcotic substances were seized. Operations took part 3500 police and several hundred secret agents implemented in Triads.

Police raids in KWC. © Greg Girard / Ian Lambot

Raid policemen. © Greg Girard / Ian Lambot

KWC in 1973

Internal arrangement Walled City

At least Kowloong City and walked the female crime, most of the inhabitants were absolutely normal people who worked and lived, or rather survived, as they could. There were even initiative groups who tried to improve everyday life. And improved was that! In addition to a difficult situation with crime, in the fortress city, there was not enough space.

According to experts by 1987, 33,000 people lived on the territory of the city around the wall, and by 1992 the population increased to 53,000, poured into a density of almost 2 million per square kilometer! There was no such dense location on our planet anymore and never existed anywhere. Represented how the life of local residents was organized using the scheme below.

Water supply

But the lack of space is not the only problem. Since initially Walled City was a real military fortress, it was a non-trivial engineering task in it. Because of this, the authorities have closed their eyes for a very long time on the problem and flatly refused to connect separate buildings, apartments and mini-factory in Kowloong City to a centralized system under various pretexts. Until 1963, the only source of pure water in the fortress city for ordinary mortals was several ordinary wells.

Traditional well not far from Walled City in 1950

One of the latest preserved wells in the city, 1988. The inscription makes it clear that it is impossible to drink this water. © Greg Girard / Ian Lambot

Full flourishing underground economy of water supply under the control of triads. Make informal tie-in existing settlements outside the city water, kept armies jars that for $ 12-15 a month almost around the clock pulled impossibly cans from underground sources to consumers of apartments in the then 3-4 storey concrete boxes. Things began to change only in 1963 when, under pressure from civil society organizations in the immediate vicinity of the Walled City was established the first official free faucet with clean drinking water.

Though it is a bit and helped the guests, but the problem does not solve – they still had to pay the water-carrier or connected to illegal water pipes, if for some reason were not able to do every day to fetch water. However, if your usual daily water requirement ordinary people could somehow shut yourself, hundreds of mini-mills, small factory, restaurants and cafes is not saved – illegal "water" business continues to grow. By 1987, it functioned only 8 official water column, and seven of them were outside the perimeter of the settlement. Only available to ordinary citizens with clean water faucet was on the street Tai Chang Street.

Crane with drinking water in the Tai Chang Street. © Greg Girard / Ian Lambot

Since most "projects" of buildings is no running water, there is not, in principle, every day the locals down to taps with buckets and jerry cans for water. But a number of local entrepreneurs managed to build their own water supply, "hanging" on their outside walls of buildings. Any resident of the house for the money could be connected to it, of course, if he has enough amount. The cost of water in such private water pipes ranged from $ 50-70 per month, which was expensive for ordinary people. Moreover, connecting to such a water supply, the problem with water was often not solved to the end, since her daily stock was limited.

As a rule, the pumps included only one or 2 times a day at a certain time to fill the roof reservoir. If the water in the tank ended, then all users remained only to wait for the following scheduled inclusion. Pumps included and turned off manually, for which it was contained by the staff of the service personnel with a number of about 20 people. In addition to managing pumps, they also dealt with the maintenance of the water pipes themselves.

One of the local businessmen shows its "high-tech" well pumping water into the roof tank to create a pressure. © Greg Girard / Ian Lambot

Organize such wells were allowed only by real estate owners inside the enclave and for their drilling were attracted by third-party commercial companies. The cost of one such system, taking into account the roof reservoir, the pump and pipeline reached several thousand dollars depending on the floor of the building and the distance to the well. Some wells of recent years left under the ground by more than 100 meters, and by the end of the 80s they were numbered 67, owned by forty private owners. In total, more than three hundred wells were discovered, including already derived from operation due to their complete drainage or infectious infection. The condition of all these semi-engineering structures in many cases was a deplorable, and the inhabitants of the fortress city often had to move under umbrellas, since the pipes were constantly proceeding, and the water pulled on the head of passersby.

One of the cranes with pure drinking water. © Greg Girard / Ian Lambot

Surely you should not say that the quality of such water was very low, and this was caused by several reasons. One of the most important things was, first of all, the absence of any bio filtration, vital in the case of Walled City. The fact is that there was no centralized system for collecting and exporting garbage, and in most cases, life waste was simply ejected and poured out of the windows of narrow streets. The garbage, of course, was exported, but it was irregular, and on the scorching Hong Kong heat he quickly began to decompose and sow around various infesses. And not only around – all this was still under the ground, to aquifer.

Recall that the area of this fortress city was only 2.7ga, and there was about four hundred of buildings in which a huge number of people lived and more than 1000 different small bodies worked. Imagine how much biological and manufacturing garbage was born here daily. As a result, the turbid and stinking water from these wells came only for washing and washing the floors, it was even unsuitable for boiling. The guests who ruined to connect to these water pipes still had to wear drinking water from a municipal column on Tai Chang Street, well, or pay water.

Protective grille over the temple of Yaman, littered with garbage. © Greg Girard / Ian Lambot

Same, but bottom view. © Greg Girard / Ian Lambot

Electricity for all

Until 1953 in the Freight Fortress was not at all. The impetus to the electrification "Total and All" served Very large fire, The 1953 New Year’s Eve in the Refugee Camp with mainland China in the area of Shek Kip Mei, when more than 50,000 people were left from fire. In those days, such settlements were content with only kerosene lamps for lighting and furnaces for cooking on solid or liquid fuel. It was rumored that this fire was arranged specifically to attract the attention of the authorities to the problem of terrible living conditions in "cardboard" settlements of refugees and poor areas of Hong Kong. And it worked – since 1953, the local electricity company "China Light and Power" began active work on connecting absolutely all objects in Hong Kong to reduce the use of open fire in everyday life. In their number entered Walled City.

Electric meters on the 1st floor of one of the buildings. © Greg Girard / Ian Lambot

However, even after connecting the "Fortress" to the power system, the power supply is disastrously lacked. In one of the state reporting documents of January 1964, it was noted that the condition of the wiring is in a deplorable state, the cables are strongly overloaded due to numerous unauthorized connections, the risk of fires, and the repair team of the electricity supplier company almost around the clock was on the territory of KWC, restoration of wires and protective automata. In the city of darkness there were enough many educated engineers, including employees of China Electric itself, which skillfully connected consumers bypass official counters, which partly and led to constant overloads.

Distribution shield in Kowloon-City. © Greg Girard / Ian Lambot

In the mid-60s China Light and Power, though reluctantly, but increased the power for the fortress city, but it did not save the situation. With increasing power also grow and demand – more and more apartments wanted to get the benefits of civilization plus universally completed new floors, the population increased. The company simply did not have time to satisfy demand, and in the mid-70s it was decided to the global reconstruction of the Hong Kong power system, since the power consumed increased everywhere, and the existing network did not cope with it.

On the Internet there are very interesting memories of one of the employees of China Electric, Mok Chung Yuk, which occupied in the late 70s – early 80s modernization of the power grid inside the KWC. We decided not to translate and not publish them completely within the framework of this article, since they are quite voluminous and are hardly interesting to most of our readers, but their essence is approximately as follows: tons of tangled hanging overwhelming wiring and pipes, without end and edge, almost all In a terrible state, going to do not understand where and it is not clear where. After the global renovation of the power system in the 80s, the number of illegal connections has declined sharply, since the cost of the official was practically equal to the price of unauthorized, and allowed not to worry about the problem of shutdown in case of detection.

Architecture and life

In the process of the growth of settlement and flooding with his migrants from the mainland, by 1961, in the territory of the former fortress, there was practically no free space – everything was built up with houses in 3-4 floors, and sometimes 9-hours came across. Since the beginning of the 50s, a business has been practiced here when small construction companies negotiated with the owners of existing buildings to increase their floors. They paid something to the owner, repaired that there is and from above, completed a few more floors, which formally the owner of the original building no longer belonged. Developers sold apartments in them and had a very fast and decent "black" profit with it. By the end of 1962, the fortress city was almost completely rebuilt here in this way, and the new appearing apartments of the middle square near 18kV.M. Spilled like hot cakes only $ 10000.

Surely you should not say that all these concrete boxes were built without using any standards and architectural delights, as the authorities, in fact, did not control the territory. The set of erected buildings were formed "foundation" with which something in the future was no longer possible, and it was he who served as the basis for the further growth of the "City of Darkness" up.

In the background you can see the lights of the runway. © Greg Girard / Ian Lambot

Subsequently, the height of buildings by the authorities was limited to fourteen floors due to the immediate vicinity of WFP Airport Kaitak – one of the most dangerous air harvesters in the world. And this limitation is strictly observed. In return, the inhabitants of Walled City from their roofs received breathtaking views of the landing aircraft flying literally over their heads.

We have already written in detail about this airport in one of of our articles, Therefore, we will show only a video that gives an idea how hard it was necessary to pilots set on to land.

Typical "Apartments" of the city of Darkness was rarely exceeded on an area of 18-20 square meters and even less. Few could afford to have a separate kitchen or bedroom – everything was located in one room, often divided into zones only virtually.

Sometimes such apartments turned into residential workshops, in which during the day they produced, for example, noodles, and slept at night. Desktop such "factory" In addition to the main purpose, also served as a desk for children’s home sessions. In some buildings, improvised schools and kindergartens were organized, where they gave their children the most secured residents of KWC.

Since "on earth" there was no free space, and the aisles between the buildings were catastrophically narrow, children for games and walks in their free time were chosen in the garbage of the roof – the only place where there was access to light and fresh air.

Another of the numerous problems of Kowloon City was ventilation. Because of the superstructural development, the access of flow air inside the fortress city was extremely limited, which led to the stagnation of the air masses inside. In addition to oxygen starvation, it also led to the fact that the dampness and stench from the garbage was a permanent and natural satellite of the inhabitants of the lower floors.

Photo taken day! © Greg Girard / Ian Lambot

Due to the reason, including bad ventilation, fashion for metal grilles originated here. They closed everything that can. It was lattices that were used, and not solid doors because of the hot local climate, poor circulation of air and omnipresent drug addicts, ready to steal any thing that could be sold at least for some kind of money.

In the work of three talented students of one of the Canadian universities, the history of Kowloon Walled City from an architectural point of view is very well shown, if interested – be sure to look. In it, among other things, the problem of bad ventilation is also considered. By the way, even Greg Girard himself refers to this video.

Cafe, factories, plants in the fortress Kowloon

As we have already mentioned, about a thousand different small industries, cafes and restaurants were located in the fortress city. Most of them were the factory of "one person" when the owner himself was both the workforce, and an accountant, and the seller. One of the most common industries was the production of the Chinese noodle.

The entrance to business was inexpensive, and the demand is high and permanent. The cheapest noodle in Hong Kong could only buy here. Because of the almost complete absence of any sanitary and epidemiological control by the authorities, the price of any food product in KWC was the lowest in the city, and no one could affect it under any circumstances.

Family noodle business. © Greg Girard / Ian Lambot

This looked like a typical "shop" for the production of noodles. © Greg Girard / Ian Lambot

Work desk inside the shop – all in flour dust. © Greg Girard / Ian Lambot

In addition to noodles here in huge quantities, traditional fried Chinese "fish balls" (Fishballs) were produced – one of the most accessible and common dishes in the daily life of a poor Chinese.

Production of fish balls in Kowloong City. © Greg Girard / Ian Lambot

Most bidders of the local "food industry" worked on restaurants around the city, and because of low prices, rarely who remained without customers – work went to 12-15 hours a day. In addition to Fishballs and noodles Here you could find candy, meat for barbecue, smoked ducks, chickens and other products. All this in the finished form looked very tasty, but if you look at the conditions of production, then eat such products in restaurants, where they were supplied, hardly anyone dared.

Smokehouse in kwc. © Greg Girard / Ian Lambot

Cutting pork on one of the meat collectors of Kowloong City. © Greg Girard / Ian Lambot

Making candies on one of "One-man factory". © Greg Girard / Ian Lambot

Lam Leung Po, co-owner and worker Fish mincedor factory. © Greg Girard / Ian Lambot

Kowloon Fortress - Fortress City in Hong Kong - Photo, Video

The cafes themselves looking at their windows "outside" from the fortress city, looked quite decently, but what was happening inside, it was covered by a secret. Recall that almost no state control here was conducted here, and it unleashed the hands of the owners of such restaurants to increase profits by maximizing the cost of production and ingredients. At least officially at the legislative level in Hong Kong and it was forbidden to eat dogs in food, Cowloong City restaurants could easily find dishes from dogs (狗肉) for very modest money.

Typical cafe in the fortress city of Kowloon. © Greg Girard / Ian Lambot

As for the "light industry", then here it was possible to find a mini-factory for the production of everything,. It was believed that the most high-quality fakes of clothes and shoes were produced here, in Kowloon Walled City. Products made of rubber, fabrics, skin and even metal could be purchased from local bodies for almost a penny.

Rubber production Gui Bon. © Greg Girard / Ian Lambot

Gui Bon. © Greg Girard / Ian Lambot

"When I came here in the mid-60s, the heroin was sold completely freely, and there were often queues from drug adding for a dose near dealers. In those days I had to carefully look after my factory, because the drug addicts could steal everything that lies badly. For example, my working scissors."

GUI BON, Owner of Vanuzov Plant.

Machine for the manufacture of curtains. © Greg Girard / Ian Lambot

Medicine and services

One of the results of the absence of state control was the emergence of a huge number of dentist dentists in Walled City. According to the estimates of the locals, they were more than a hundred, all from the mainland China and none of them had a license for practice in Hong Kong. Many of them were truly real dentists and had relevant documents and diplomas of the mainland sample, but the right to legally practiced in Hong Kong did not possess.

Prices for their services reconcally differed from official doctors in the city, but the quality of equipment, materials, and their qualifications directly in question. However, it did not scare the majority of low-income local, and even in the clients "from the side" the lack did not feel.

In addition to dentals, other doctors were naturally. Basically, of course, the therapists of a wide profile. Prices for their services were also very low and licensed was exactly the same problem.

In addition to doctors, in the fortress city of course it was possible to find other typical of the usual city of masters. For example, hairdressers, like dentists, was in excess, and they were almost always loaded with work.

By the way, there were here and "Cartographers". One of them gave an interview with WSJ (you can watch this video below). During the nine years, he wandered on KWC and painted his card, as it was few people under power to understand the intriculture of internal transitions and the streets.

End of everything

After long disputes, in 1987 it was decided to demolish the city-fortress, which was announced by local residents. 350 million dollars were allocated for new housing and compensation from the budget (2.7 billion Hong Kong dollars). According to local residents, the authorities on average offered them from 50 to 70 thousand dollars, but it was negligible compared to relevant accommodation prices in those days.

The demolition was delayed for many years, as disgruntled people refused to leave their homes. Many of them were forcibly evaluated only by the beginning of 1992, and on March 23, 1993, the actual demolition of the legendary city of Darkness began.

Kowloon Walled City Park – our days

The full dismantling of the "wall behind the wall" ended a year later, in April 1994, and another year, in August 1995, the Park of Walled City appeared on the site. Official discovery took place in December.

Kowloon Walled City Park

The park is located away from the lines of the Hong Kong Metro, and in order to get to it, you will have to walk on foot, or take advantage of the bus. We went on foot from Mong Kok Metro, but on the way they looked at The market of goldfish, Flower bazaar and Bird Market. It is much more convenient to walk from the Lok Fu station – from it to the park just 800 meters.

It will not be able to get lost – at every step pointers

If you walk too lazy, then from the metro station Kowloon Tong can be reached on the green mini bus route "D", or from Lok Fu Metro on the route "E".

Kowloon Walled City Park is very beautiful and green, it is built according to the classic Jiangnan Gardens, which were characterized by the Gardens of the Tsing Dynasty. The area of the park is almost the same as the "city behind the wall" was about 31,000 square meters. Conditionally all the territory can be divided into 8 main zones, the main of which, of course, is the zone of Yaman.

Yamin (Yamen)

Yamin is a typical name for buildings in which Kazenny Institutions are located. Sometimes it was precisely in these buildings a residence of mandarin or manager. Cowloan Yamyn was built in 1847, and is the only building that has been preserved from the city-fortress. In 1996, he was renovated and inside posted a permanent exhibition. Initially, this is a rather modest and unsuccessful building intended for officers and an assistant military inspection, and later the nursing home was equipped here. By the way, the sign "Laddle" (Almshouse) can still be seen on the facade of the building.

The building is built in traditional for southern China style and has three loses and four extensions. If you want to see old photos and learn a little more about the history of Kowloon Walled City, then you need it here. In the former building, Yaman are 6 main exhibition halls, which are told about the history of the city, show photos from the life of ordinary people, in general, everything is rather impressive.

Small free museum in the park

Kowloon Walled City XIX Century Mockup

Kowloon Walled City Map

Film on the history of the city of Kowloon fortress

Special attention deserve old guns that are at the entrance to the exhibition and, of course, a bronze copy of Kowloon Walled City.

Bronze Mockup KWC

Old South Gate (Old South Gate)

Another monument to the city-fortress, which can not be missed – the ruins of the old southern gates. The gate was built, like the Yamin building, at the end of the XIX century. During the Japanese occupation of 1941-1945, they were demolished in order to increase the runway of the airport Kaitak. The foundation ruins were discovered in 1994 during construction work on the territory of the future Park. It was decided to keep everything left from the ancient fortress.

Old Southern Gate of Cowloon Fortress

Other Kowloon Walled City Park Areas

But despite all our love for history and museums, the park behind the wall is not only an exhibition, but also an excellent place to stay. Each of his zones has its own unique name: Four Seasons Garden, Zodiac Sign Garden, Six Art Terrace and Others. Separate aesthetic pleasure deliver all sorts of pavilions in traditional Chinese style.

Kowloon Fortress – Fortress City in Hong Kong – Photo, Video