Lantau Island: Encyclopedia II - Lantau Island - History

Lantau Island - History

Artifacts unearthed on the island show human activities dated back to the Neolithic Age and the Bronze Age. For instance, rock carvings at Shek Pik are thought to date back to the Bronze Age, while a stone circle at Fan Lau is probably from the Neolithic Age. Both sites are located on the southwestern coast of the island.

In 1276, the Southern Song Dynasty court fled to Guangdong by boat, fleeing Mongol invaders, and leaving the emperor Gong Di behind. Any hope of resistance centred on two young princes, Gong Di's brothers. The older boy, Zhao Shi, aged nine was declared emperor, and, in 1277, the imperial court sought refuge first in Silvermine Bay (Mui Wo) on Lantau Island and later in today's Kowloon City (see Sung Wong Toi). The older brother became ill and died, and was succeeded by the younger, Zhao Bing, aged seven. He died in 1279, and the Song Dynasty ended. These emperors are also believed to have held court in the Tung Chung valley, which takes its name from a local hero who gave up his life for the emperor.

Like Cheung Chau, Lantau was once the base for pirates and smugglers, and was one of the bases of Cheung Po Tsai in the 19th century.

Lantau Island, together with Tuen Mun were among the first European trading settlements in the Pearl River area, established by Portuguese traders in the 1510s. The Portuguese abandoned these settlements around 1517, following defeat against Chinese troops (see Fernao Pires de Andrade). Later, the island became an important trading post for the British, long before they showed an interest for Hong Kong Island.

Silver was mined at Mui Wo until the 19th century.

A major change affected the island in July 1998, with the start of operations of Hong Kong International Airport at Chek Lap Kok.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "History", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki