Mondo Knows Facts

Hong Kong returned to China in 1997

The ninety nine year New Territories lease expired and ended British rule Britain acquired Hong Kong Island in 1842 and expanded the colony with the New Territories on a ninety nine year lease from 1898. When the lease ran out, the two governments agreed the whole territory would return to Chinese sovereignty on 1 July 1997. The handover was made under the principle of one country, two systems. It sits in Mondo's history collection, one of 200 facts that each trace back to the reference below.

Where this comes from

UK National Archives

Facts that can change over time are reviewed and updated. If something here looks wrong, Mondo would rather know than be confidently incorrect.

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Tags: hong-kong, decolonisation, china

Hong Kong returned to China in 1997: the short answers

Where does this come from, and can I check it?
The ninety nine year New Territories lease expired and ended British rule. The figure is taken from UK National Archives, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.
Is this really a history fact?
Yes. It sits on the History shelf, one of 2,600 sourced facts grouped into space, animals, the human body, history, science and more. Category pages collect every fact in the same field.
What else can I read about it?
The links under the fact point to a quiz, game, puzzle or calculator on the same subject, and the shelf below shows related facts. The wording here is original, and quoted phrases are marked as quotations.