Modern histories rarely mention the myriad of western women who lived in Hong Kong and the Canton Delta during the British colonial years. This is their untold story, and represents an historical reconstruction of women's lives from all levels of society--from the wives of governors and Taipans, to missionaries, doctors, shopkeepers, and prostitutes. It is the fascinating story of their private lives, brought to life with the help of letters, diaries, and other previously untapped sources.
Spanning one of the most turbulent centuries in Chinese history, The Private Life of Old Hong Kong reveals the personal dimension underlying such events as the Opium Wars, and offers a full picture of women who were well-known in the public arena only as centers of scandal, or victims of violent crime. And it also tells the story of the women who were instrumental in the development of education and health services in old Hong Kong. As the period comes to a close, the figure of the woman emerging from the shadows takes on a truly heroic proportion as she becomes more and more politically active, challenging the status quo regardless of the personal cost. Lively, colorful, and charged with the immediacy of eyewitness accounts, The Private Life of Old Hong Kong offers readers a vivid look at women until now largely--and wrongfully--forgotten.