Coolies, Pirates and Secret SocietiesNarratives of Chinese Underclass in Hong Kong, Macao and the Straits Settlements as Revealed in British Colonial Office Records, 1838-1938.
The purpose of our paper is to introduce the British Colonial Office records pertaining to Hong Kong, Macao, and the Straits Settlements in the century between the First Opium War and the Second World War (1838 and 1938). We begin with a general introduction to the British Colonial Office records, e...
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| Published in: | Review of Culture |
|---|---|
| Main Authors: | , |
| Format: | Articles |
| Published: |
Instituto Cultural de Macau
2019
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.icm.gov.mo/rc/viewer/pdfViewerParts/40060/2596 |
| _version_ | 1877196269783351296 |
|---|---|
| author | Wong Wei Chin Robert J. Antony |
| author_autocomplete | Wong Wei Chin Robert J. Antony |
| author_browse | Robert J. Antony Wong Wei Chin |
| author_facet | Wong Wei Chin Robert J. Antony Wong Wei Chin Robert J. Antony |
| author_sort | Wong Wei Chin |
| container_title | Review of Culture |
| container_title_str | Review of Culture |
| container_volume | 60 |
| container_volume_str | 60 |
| description | The purpose of our paper is to introduce the British Colonial Office records pertaining to Hong Kong, Macao, and the Straits Settlements in the century between the First Opium War and the Second World War (1838 and 1938). We begin with a general introduction to the British Colonial Office records, explaining where they are located, how they are organized, and what they contain. Our focus will be on two collections: (1) Colonial Office, Hong Kong, Original Correspondence (commonly referred to as CO129), and (2) Colonial Office, Straits Settlements, Original Correspondence (commonly referred to as CO273). Because these two archival collections are quite huge, we will limit our scope to descriptions about the Chinese underclass in these port areas, namely coolies, pirates, and members of sworn brotherhoods. Despite that there are few primary sources in the Chinese language on these topics for the period under discussion, the British Colonial Office records are essential documents not only because they can help us fill in the gaps, but also because they provide us with a new perspective for studying China’s history from below. These foreign records reveal much new information about how coolies, pirates, and brotherhoods organized themselves, what roles they played in local society, as well as how the British colonial governments viewed, regulated, and criminalized the Chinese underclass during the heydays of colonialism. |
| first_indexed | 2026-09-11T02:57:01Z |
| format | Articles |
| genre | Articles |
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| hierarchy_parent_id | zotero-coll-76L3BRGH |
| hierarchy_parent_title | Review of Culture |
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| hierarchy_top_id | zotero-coll-WX87PJHD |
| hierarchy_top_title | News |
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| issn | 1682-1106 |
| last_indexed | 2026-09-11T02:57:01Z |
| latest_content_date | 2026-09-11T02:57:01Z |
| publishDate | 2019 |
| publishDateRange | 2019 |
| publishDateSort | 2019 |
| publishPlace | Macau |
| publisher | Instituto Cultural de Macau |
| publisherStr | Instituto Cultural de Macau |
| record_format | zotero |
| spelling | Coolies, Pirates and Secret SocietiesNarratives of Chinese Underclass in Hong Kong, Macao and the Straits Settlements as Revealed in British Colonial Office Records, 1838-1938. The purpose of our paper is to introduce the British Colonial Office records pertaining to Hong Kong, Macao, and the Straits Settlements in the century between the First Opium War and the Second World War (1838 and 1938). We begin with a general introduction to the British Colonial Office records, explaining where they are located, how they are organized, and what they contain. Our focus will be on two collections: (1) Colonial Office, Hong Kong, Original Correspondence (commonly referred to as CO129), and (2) Colonial Office, Straits Settlements, Original Correspondence (commonly referred to as CO273). Because these two archival collections are quite huge, we will limit our scope to descriptions about the Chinese underclass in these port areas, namely coolies, pirates, and members of sworn brotherhoods. Despite that there are few primary sources in the Chinese language on these topics for the period under discussion, the British Colonial Office records are essential documents not only because they can help us fill in the gaps, but also because they provide us with a new perspective for studying China’s history from below. These foreign records reveal much new information about how coolies, pirates, and brotherhoods organized themselves, what roles they played in local society, as well as how the British colonial governments viewed, regulated, and criminalized the Chinese underclass during the heydays of colonialism. Instituto Cultural de Macau Macau Review of Culture Articles 2019 Chinese underclass. Colonial Office Records Coolie Hong Kong Macao Pirates Secret Societies the Straits Settlements Wong Wei Chin Robert J. Antony |
| spellingShingle | Coolies, Pirates and Secret SocietiesNarratives of Chinese Underclass in Hong Kong, Macao and the Straits Settlements as Revealed in British Colonial Office Records, 1838-1938. Wong Wei Chin Robert J. Antony Chinese underclass. Colonial Office Records Coolie Hong Kong Macao Pirates Secret Societies the Straits Settlements |
| title | Coolies, Pirates and Secret SocietiesNarratives of Chinese Underclass in Hong Kong, Macao and the Straits Settlements as Revealed in British Colonial Office Records, 1838-1938. |
| title_autocomplete | Coolies, Pirates and Secret SocietiesNarratives of Chinese Underclass in Hong Kong, Macao and the Straits Settlements as Revealed in British Colonial Office Records, 1838-1938. |
| title_full | Coolies, Pirates and Secret SocietiesNarratives of Chinese Underclass in Hong Kong, Macao and the Straits Settlements as Revealed in British Colonial Office Records, 1838-1938. |
| title_fullStr | Coolies, Pirates and Secret SocietiesNarratives of Chinese Underclass in Hong Kong, Macao and the Straits Settlements as Revealed in British Colonial Office Records, 1838-1938. |
| title_full_unstemmed | Coolies, Pirates and Secret SocietiesNarratives of Chinese Underclass in Hong Kong, Macao and the Straits Settlements as Revealed in British Colonial Office Records, 1838-1938. |
| title_short | Coolies, Pirates and Secret SocietiesNarratives of Chinese Underclass in Hong Kong, Macao and the Straits Settlements as Revealed in British Colonial Office Records, 1838-1938. |
| title_sort | coolies, pirates and secret societiesnarratives of chinese underclass in hong kong, macao and the straits settlements as revealed in british colonial office records, 1838-1938. |
| topic | Chinese underclass. Colonial Office Records Coolie Hong Kong Macao Pirates Secret Societies the Straits Settlements |
| topic_autocomplete | Chinese underclass. Colonial Office Records Coolie Hong Kong Macao Pirates Secret Societies the Straits Settlements |
| topic_facet | Chinese underclass. Colonial Office Records Coolie Hong Kong Macao Pirates Secret Societies the Straits Settlements |
| url | https://www.icm.gov.mo/rc/viewer/pdfViewerParts/40060/2596 |
| zotero_collection_key | 76L3BRGH |