THE PORTUGUESE COMMUNITY IN HONG KONGPresentation at the J. A. Freitas Library, San Leandro, CaliforniaWednesday, June 8, 2011VOLUME XXAntónio M. Pacheco Jorge da SilvaMacau, September 2011

2 - António M. Pacheco Jorge da SilvaCollection MOSAICO, Volume XX Title The Portuguese Community in Hong KongAuthor António M. Pacheco Jorge da SilvaEditor International Institute of MacauEditorial Coordination Rufino RamosCollection “Mosaico” Volume XXDesign B.D. Designer HousePrinting Tipografia Macau Hung Heng Ltda.Support Fundação MacauPrint run 1,000 copiesMacau, September 2011ISBN

The Portuguese Community in Hong Kong“The descendants of the Portuguese born in Macau under the Portuguese flag always looked to Portugal as their country, but in reality it was a distant land most of them had never seen. Their loyalty and pride of pátria persisted long after some left to settle in Hong Kong and the Treaty Ports.”Their sense of belonging to a faraway homeland was passed down through the generations, however, in reality their world was China, and all that surrounded them were Chinese. Living in a British colony they were subjected to British rule and British attitudes.The urgent necessity for a pictorial history of the Portuguese Community in Hong Kong became apparent to me in 1992. Except for a single book by José Pedro Braga entitled The Portuguese in Hongkong and China, first published in 1944, and a few articles by others, the history of the Portuguese community in Hong Kong and the identity of those who lived there is in danger of just fading away. I was saddened by that prospect and felt that someone had to do something about it. I had no idea at the time that the person was to be me. In 2005 I set aside my private practice and career as an architect to work full-The Portuguese Community In Hong Kong - 3 Collection MOSAICO, Volume XX

time, without remuneration, to write on the soon to be extinct Portuguese communities from China.In 1513 the Portuguese landed on the south coast of China. Almost exactly a hundred years after the beginning of their Voyages of Discovery they had reached the other side of the world – the first Europeans to do so by sea and the only contact with the Chinese by Europeans since Marco Polo in 1266, almost 250 years before. Thirty years later, in 1542, a Portuguese ship was blown off-course by a typhoon and was rewarded by the discovery of Japan. By 1557 they settled on the tiny 3 mile by 5 mile peninsula of Macau within sight of where they first landed in China. Trade between China and Japan was forbidden by the Ming Emperors of China since 1371 resulting from attacks by marauding Japanese pirates along the China coast. Acting as intermediaries between China and Japan the Portuguese were able to forge a trade between the two countries. They, in fact, controlled the Japan Trade. For eighty years this trade proved to be very lucrative for the Portuguese.The Macau settlement saw its booming economy decline after the Portuguese were expelled from Japan in 1640 ending the Japan Trade. 4 - António M. Pacheco Jorge da SilvaCollection MOSAICO, Volume XX

The Portuguese Community In Hong Kong - 5 Collection MOSAICO, Volume XXDISCOVERY OF CHINA AND JAPAN 1513 - 1542

However, Portugal still had monopoly over trade with China. The British and other European powers could only look on, vying for their share. By the early 19th century Macau receded into a backwater; the British and Europeans who had by then eroded their way into trade with China used this tiny Portuguese enclave as their base of operations. Though the British and Europeans had warehouses in nearby Canton they were not permitted to reside there permanently; at the end of each trading season they had to leave. The only legal European settlement was downstream in Portuguese Macau. There they resided, set up their offices, and hired the local Portuguese as translators and clerks.Though forbidden by the Chinese, the British feverishly pursued the lucrative Opium Trade. Eventually this ignited the Opium Wars between the Chinese and the British in 1839, leading to the seizure of the nearby island of Hong Kong by the British in January 1841. The Treaty of Nanjing in 1842 brought the Wars to a close ceding Hong Kong to the British and establishing Treaty Ports which included Shanghai. Subsequently, the British and foreign traders who had established in Macau moved to their businesses across the 40 mile mouth of the Pearl River to the island of Hong Kong together with their Portuguese staff. A few Portuguese entrepreneurs followed suit.6 - António M. Pacheco Jorge da SilvaCollection MOSAICO, Volume XX

The linguistic abilities of the local Portuguese, their efficiency, loyalty and understanding of local Chinese culture and customs made their services invaluable to the British and European firms. Most Portuguese were at least tri-lingual, falando Português, speaking English and taipo-fūn too sik cong Quontung-wah – meaning “the majority also knew how to speak Cantonese”. Those who employed them relied on their ability as translators and valued them highly for their intellect, integrity and gentle manner.The early Portuguese entrepreneurs from Macau founded shipping companies, developed large businesses exporting goods from China to Europe and the Americas. They founded the largest and best-known printing company in the Colony; they were dispensers, music teachers, and property owners. However, they were not the only ones. Also playing an active part in the early business development of the new colony were the Parsees, Jews and Indians with who the Portuguese cordially coexisted.Almost immediately after Hong Kong was claimed by the British Crown, Sir Henry Pottinger, who became the first Governor of Hong Kong in 1842, transferred the Superintendency of British Trade in China from Macau to the new British territory. Among the ten Civil Servants transferred were two brothers: Leonardo d’Almada e Castro and his younger brother The Portuguese Community In Hong Kong - 7 Collection MOSAICO, Volume XX

José Maria d’Almada e Castro. Both went on to serve long and honourable careers with the British Government.Leonardo d’Almada e Castro served the new Hong Kong Government as Clerk of Councils to both the Executive and Legislative Councils. He was also the Keeper of Records in the Colonial Secretary’s Office. In 1854, the British Government appointed Sir John Bowring to be the governor of the British Colony proposing that Chief Clerk Leonardo d’Almada e Castro take the position of Colonial Secretary. Due to strong local opposition, because he was a Portuguese national and not a British subject, the post was denied from him and given to the Colonial Treasurer William Mercer.Another Portuguese among the early arrivals was Januário António de Carvalho who worked his way to Chief Cashier in the Treasury. In 1878 he was nominated by the Governor, Sir John Pope Hennessy, to be the Acting Treasurer of Hong Kong; but also being a Portuguese national he could not take that office. Instead, he was appointed Justice of the Peace.8 - António M. Pacheco Jorge da SilvaCollection MOSAICO, Volume XX

The British colonial system aimed at maintaining a level beyond which the Portuguese, much less so the Chinese, could not penetrate. The law seemed to suggest that only the British could rise to posts above a certain level. Between 1880 and 1900 several ordinances were put in place to facilitate the acquisition of British nationality. “Population estimates of 1897 showed that of the 2,265 Portuguese residing in Hong Kong only 51 claimed to be British, yet 1,241 were born in the colony and 931 in Macau”.i Those Portuguese who exchanged their nationality to become British soon found that unfairly they were still restricted and denied higher positions despite being granted British Subject status.The senior professional staff of the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC) were always drawn from Britain, and in keeping with The Portuguese Community In Hong Kong - 9 Collection MOSAICO, Volume XX

commercial and administrative practice throughout the British Empire, this did not change until the late 1960s. The large Portuguese clerical staff were the solid base upon which the Bank’s reputation largely rested. Their reliability, integrity and efficiency were outstanding. A very good relationship existed between the Portuguese clerical staff and the British managerial elite. However, senior positions were not open to the Portuguese, and promotion to Chief Clerk was the limit of their place, never advancing above senior clerical positions. Management positions were also denied from them.As Hong Kong grew, so the Portuguese community grew with it. By 1860, the colony’s population climbed to over 90,000 Chinese and just under 2,500 British and other non-Chinese nationals. Of these it is estimated that the Portuguese numbered just over a thousand. The Portuguese immigrants brought with them their traditions, cuisine and patois, “Maquista”, from Macau. Speaking and using the English language in their workplace they spoke Maquista or Portuguese at home and when socializing with their friends and relatives. Over the years, English eventually took over as their lingua franca, and the Portuguese language lost its grip as new generations emerged into the twentieth century.10 - António M. Pacheco Jorge da SilvaCollection MOSAICO, Volume XX

The Portuguese youth usually married within their own community. As a result, many generations of intermarriage resulted in strong family ties, family values and unity among the Portuguese in Hong Kong. This was also true in Shanghai and Macau. Though some Chinese and a few Europeans did marry into the Portuguese community it was not a common occurrence in Hong Kong – at least during the time period up to the end of 1960s.For centuries and multiple generations the young married, had children and the cycle repeated. They were isolated. In Hong Kong they were neither The Portuguese Community In Hong Kong - 11 Collection MOSAICO, Volume XX

Chinese nor British. Their lives revolved around their work, their family, the Church, sports, and their two community clubs. Club Lusitano, a gentlemen’s club, was first built on Hong Kong Island in 1866. Rebuilt twice, the Club stands today as a twenty-eight story building in the center of Hong Kong’s financial district. In 1908, the community built Clube de Recreio, a sporting club on the other side of the harbour where many later settled as the rents and homes were less expensive than on the Island of Hong Kong. Twenty years later, in 1928, it was relocated and replaced with a larger building and accompanying sports grounds for field hockey, cricket, lawn bowls and tennis. The Clube de Recreio building which still stands today was the sporting and recreation centre of the Portuguese families and saw many exciting cricket matches and international field hockey games in the years from the 1930s well into the 1970s.In the years between 1900 and 1941 many in the Portuguese community in Hong Kong gained prominence in the Colony’s development. By this time, many more Portuguese from Macau had moved to Hong Kong and the passage of time now saw the community grow to above two thousand.At the outbreak of World War II the Portuguese who were in the Hong 12 - António M. Pacheco Jorge da SilvaCollection MOSAICO, Volume XX

Kong Volunteer Defence Corps played their part in the defence of the Colony. Almost 300 Portuguese fought in those weeks before Christmas. By the end of the battle, 26 of them had lost their lives.Short of food and frightened, the citizens throughout the Colony were soon to meet the Japanese soldiers face to face. By December 13th, only five days after the initial attack, the Japanese overran the British defences in Kowloon, forcing them to retreat to Hong Kong Island. By December 17th all resistance in Kowloon had ceased and despite British claims that Hong Kong was impregnable, another 8 days of fierce fighting culminated in the surrender to the Japanese on Christmas Day, December 25th 1941. The Portuguese who served in the British Defence Force were taken to the Shumshuipo Prisoner of War Camp, and some were later shipped off to labour camps in Japan, The Portuguese Community In Hong Kong - 13 Collection MOSAICO, Volume XX

notably the Sendai Camp in the northeast of Japan.The prisoners had to endure loneliness, misery, malnutrition and sometimes the brutality of their captors. The Portuguese who were not imprisoned and those families who did not stay in Hong Kong during the Japanese Occupation were fortunate that Portugal was not involved in the War and that Macau, Portuguese territory, was just across the mouth of the Pearl River, some 40 miles away. Many non-Portuguese nationals clamoured to the consulate for Portuguese papers.14 - António M. Pacheco Jorge da SilvaCollection MOSAICO, Volume XX MOUTH OF THE PEAL RIVER Antonío M. Jorge da Silva

Except for the Portuguese British Subjects who were part of the Hong Kong Volunteer Corps, the Portuguese population of Hong Kong were considered “Third Nationals” and neutral. With a maximum of two suitcases per person permitted, about 1,000 Portuguese lined up on a wooden pier and waited to be herded like cattle into the first of two small ferry boats which was to carry them on a slow four hour journey across the mouth of the Pearl River to their haven, Macau.The fate of War brought many Portuguese families back to their roots, the home of their forefathers – Macau. Few remained behind in the Japanese occupied British colony as there was no way of earning a living in Hong Kong, and all assets were frozen or could only be converted to worthless Japanese military currency. Many left for Macau with their children to wait out the war. The Portuguese Government, with open arms, accepted the victims of war in her cramped quarters.“The sons and daughters of Macau were to be reunited for the last time in the history of the Macanese people as a result of the horrors and indignity of war. Their suffering, loss of life and property, were, in the historical sense, preparing them for their future exodus from their ancestral shores. Most were soon to be separated and ‘fostered’ to a The Portuguese Community In Hong Kong - 15 Collection MOSAICO, Volume XX

world they had only heard of. First they had to endure the purgatory of near starvation, isolation, and for many, the eternal peace of death. Through all this, the majority survived. Portugal did her best with the little she had, for her children. This, they must never forget.”(ii) Many Portuguese in Hong Kong suffered the ravages of war, not only those in the military. Too often the sacrifices of the civilians are forgotten, for they have no plaques to commemorate their suffering and their anguish. Civilians were both tortured and executed. Carlos Henrique “Henry” Basto was arrested during a game of bridge at Club Lusitano. He was accused of espionage, using Bridge bidding terminology to pass on information. He was imprisoned, and soon after, beheaded by the Japanese. Max Sequeira, Philippe Yvanovich and others were brutally tortured by the Japanese. Philippe died after a few weeks of Japanese torture. Many more Portuguese civilians, men and women alike, were arrested and suffered torture under the Japanese on suspicion of working for British Intelligence.Henrique Basto and Peter Norman Rosario are two Portuguese names recorded in the British Army Aid Group’s ‘Roll of Honour’, among its members who paid the supreme sacrifice.iii16 - António M. Pacheco Jorge da SilvaCollection MOSAICO, Volume XX

Leonardo d’Almada e Castro, grandson of José Maria d’Almada e Castro mentioned earlier, served in the Legislative Council between 1937 and 1941. During the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong he moved to neutral Macau where he liaised with the British Consulate for the welfare of the refugees from Hong Kong. In June 1945, he was asked by the British Government to proceed to London where he was urgently needed to prepare for the administration of Hong Kong upon the Colony’s liberation. In disguise and travelling as Chinese peasants, he and his wife left Macau in secret and at great personal risk, on a hazardous journey through Japanese occupied territory to Free China. They were then flown from Kunming over the Himalayas to India and on to London. When Japan surrendered, in August 1945, he immediately returned to Hong Kong to take up his appointment as President of the General Military Court, trying Japanese war criminals and collaborators. He was made Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1953 by Queen Elizabeth II for his loyal and outstanding service to the people of Hong Kong and to the Crown. The Portuguese Government honoured him with the Ordem de Cristo for his service to the Portuguese Community in Hong KongThe Portuguese Community In Hong Kong - 17 Collection MOSAICO, Volume XX

When the Japanese surrendered, the Portuguese refugees in Macau returned to Hong Kong. They put their pieces together and most returned to their old jobs with the British, but their lives would never be the same again. Almost immediately China was engulfed in civil war between the Nationalists and the Communists. Though Hong Kong was not affected directly, the Portuguese in nearby Shanghai were soon to be uprooted, forced to leave their homes and abandon all their possessions. The mass exodus of the Shanghai community in 1949 ended the Portuguese settlement in that part of China. Fleeing to Hong Kong and Macau as refugees they had to wait their turn to emigrate to any country that would have them. Their ancestral home, Portugal, was not an option as most did not speak Portuguese, and their education being all in English would make it impossible for them to obtain employment. Those who took refuge in Macau were housed in refugee camps, some remaining there for many years.Meanwhile, the Portuguese in Hong Kong did the best they could. Schools were crowded resulting in the more affluent sending their children to Australia, England and the USA for further education. Life in the community returned to family gatherings, social life in the two clubs and sports which the Portuguese excelled at. Swimming, soccer, field hockey, softball, cricket, tennis and lawn bowls - the Portuguese dominated the Hong Kong League 18 - António M. Pacheco Jorge da SilvaCollection MOSAICO, Volume XX

championships. A few went on to represent Hong Kong in two Olympic Games. In 1970 Clementi Delgado, the lawn bowling legend of Hong Kong, along with A.R. Kitchell, Roberto da Silva and George Souza became the first bowlers from Hong Kong to capture Rinks Gold at the Commonwealth Games. It was an historic achievement for Hong Kong. He followed up this feat by representing Hong Kong in three successive Commonwealth Games and two World Bowls Games winning a total four medals – three gold and a bronze.Almost regaining their sense of security following the War, the Hong Kong Riots of 1956 rocked the Hong Kong Portuguese community into The Portuguese Community In Hong Kong - 19 Collection MOSAICO, Volume XX

realizing the uncertainties that lay ahead. World War II was over, but the Communist takeover of China was certain to shape things to come bringing an end to colonialism. This meant that the British and the Portuguese colonies of Hong Kong and Macau would soon be no more - their way of life which existed for centuries would be no more. Besides, the technology that followed the War years changed their lives and their environment. The world outside was no longer distant and relatively unknown. Radio, the movies, and the emergence of television soon made it obvious that there were opportunities and a different lifestyle out there – particularly in America. This was confirmed by those who returned from their studies abroad. Although many other underlying factors precipitated their decision to leave following the riots, this was the first wave to leave Hong Kong.About ten years later, in 1966, political demonstrations in Macau by Communist sympathizers over the construction of a school resulted in rioting there. This surge of communist sympathy and protest soon spilled over into Hong Kong. In April 1967 labor disputes and protesting workers, inspired by local Red Guards, turned extremely violent, compelling the Hong Kong government to call out riot police, and eventually the military, to confront them a few weeks later.20 - António M. Pacheco Jorge da SilvaCollection MOSAICO, Volume XX

The 1967 Riots and the events leading up to it, convinced even the most steadfast members of the Portuguese community that it was time to leave. The second and final wave of Portuguese Diaspora from Hong Kong, Shanghai and Macau was under way. By the early 1970s, the majority of the Portuguese community had left via Hong Kong to the many countries of the Western World that would accept them. Between that time and the middle of the 1980s, many of those who remained after the two initial waves of emigration, also left.In July 1997, just a few weeks before the Handover of Hong Kong to China, the last Governor of the British Colony, Christopher Patten, honoured the Portuguese community by making a farewell appearance at Club Lusitano in Ice House Street. In his speech he praised the Portuguese community and thanked them above all the other ethnic communities of the Colony for their contribution to the prosperity and growth of Hong Kong and their part in its history. The exclusivity of what he said was surprising under the circumstances, but well deserved as the presence of the Portuguese and their contribution to its history was evident from the very beginning of the British Colony of Hong Kong.The Portuguese of Hong Kong, most of who have migrated to other The Portuguese Community In Hong Kong - 21 Collection MOSAICO, Volume XX

countries of the world, have left behind their indelible imprint in the history of the former British colony. The words and pictures retrieved from the memories and photo albums, now in the three books I have written, are but a glimpse at the patrimony left to their descendants.A new book which I am about to complete, and to be published next year, tells the story of the Portuguese in Shanghai. They too are part of the descendants of the Portuguese who settled in Macau over four centuries ago.The Portuguese community in China lived with honour and distinction. The three most decorated are named here, but their list of honours is too lengthy to include. Queen Elizabeth II of England knighted Sir Albert Maria Rodrigues in 1971 and Sir Roger Hyndman Lobo in 1985. Many decorations from the Portuguese and other governments were bestowed on Comendador Arnaldo de Oliveira Sales, among them the Grã-Cruz da Ordem do Infante D. Henrique in 1999. Had the attitude of colonial Britain been different immediately after the Second World War, Leonardo Horácio “Leo” d’Almada e Castro would certainly have been honoured more than being appointed King’s Counsel and Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE). The British honoured 18 others over the years by awarding them the Order of 22 - António M. Pacheco Jorge da SilvaCollection MOSAICO, Volume XX

___________________________________________________________________i) Endacott, G. B.: A History of Hong Kong, p. 252.ii) Jorge da Silva, António M. Pacheco: Lusitano Bulletin, San Francisco, Vol. II, No .2, 15 June 1993, including personal interviews with Nidia Silva and Edriz d’Aquino de Carvalho and Dr. Danilo Barreiros.iii) E. Ride, BAAG: Hong Kong Resistance 1942-1945, pp. 331-2. Peter Rosario died on 7 September 1943 and Henry Basto on 31 August 1944.the British Empire (OBE); and an impressive 180 from both Hong Kong and Macau were honoured by Portugal.The Portuguese were model citizens, respectful employees and respected employers; they defended their adopted British government when called to arms, and all can claim to be well educated. When it was time to leave, and that time did come, they became respectful citizens of the countries to which they emigrated. Those here in the United States are proud citizens of this country, their children Americans. The once isolated Portuguese community in Hong Kong is no more, but their history in that very small territory in China will never be forgotten.António M. Pacheco Jorge da Silva