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1 - British by Law

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  19 October 2023

Vivian Kong
Affiliation:
University of Bristol
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Summary

This chapter lays out the legal framework that enabled Hong Kong’s multiracial residents to engage with Britishness. It explains how the British nationality law enabled multiracial inhabitants in pre-war Hong Kong to make claims to Britishness. Using immigration cases, guidebooks, and census reports, this chapter shows when, by whom, and to what extent this inclusive legal status was recognized. Racial presumptions often prompted officials to deny people of colour access to their legal entitlements as British subjects. Nevertheless, colonial subjects in Hong Kong became increasingly aware of their British status, with some making active claims to their rights. In exploring the understanding and usage of British nationality law in 1910–45 Hong Kong, this chapter illuminates how nationality and citizenship were understood in an era when such concepts remained relatively new.

Type
Chapter
Information
Multiracial Britishness
Global Networks in Hong Kong, 1910–45
, pp. 24 - 52
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2023

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  • British by Law
  • Vivian Kong, University of Bristol
  • Book: Multiracial Britishness
  • Online publication: 19 October 2023
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009202930.002
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  • British by Law
  • Vivian Kong, University of Bristol
  • Book: Multiracial Britishness
  • Online publication: 19 October 2023
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009202930.002
Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • British by Law
  • Vivian Kong, University of Bristol
  • Book: Multiracial Britishness
  • Online publication: 19 October 2023
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009202930.002
Available formats
×