Kowloon Park

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Kowloon Park with the Kowloon Mosque

The Kowloon Park (Chinese九龍公園) is a great park and recreation center in Tsim Sha Tsui (now District Yau Tsim Mong ), Kowloon , Hong Kong . With an area of ​​13.3 hectares, it is the largest park in Kowloon. The entertainment on offer includes numerous outdoor activities as in a number of buildings. The former military area was officially opened to the public on June 24, 1970. Today the park is operated by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department .

The Kowloon Park in Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon, should not be confused with the Kowloon Walled City Park (九龍 寨 城 公園) in Kowloon City , also Kowloon.

history

As a result of the Beijing Convention of 1860, the Kowloon Peninsula was awarded to Great Britain and occupied by British troops who were already in the crown colony on the main island of Hong Kong. In the south of Kowloon, where Kowloon Park (formerly the Whitfield Barracks ) is now, was a hill from which the western entrance to Victoria Harbor could be controlled. This site was declared a military area in 1864, and the Kowloon West Battery II artillery battery was located here between 1878 and 1880 to defend the port.

Whitfield Barracks

From 1890 , barracks began to be built on the property for the British-Indian garrison stationed here. In 1910 there were a total of 85 buildings. This facility was named after Henry Wase Whitfield , the commander of the United Kingdom Forces in China , Hong Kong and the Straits Settlements . In addition to the existing artillery battery, the Kowloon Mosque was built in 1896 on the southeast corner of the barracks for the Muslim soldiers of the garrison.

The park today

Kowloon Park from the air

In 1967 the military site with all facilities was handed over to civilian authorities in Hong Kong; In 1970 the municipal council ( Urban Council ) of the crown colony took over the administration of the area; on June 24, 1970, Governor Sir David Trench officially opened the first section of Kowloon Park. A thorough overhaul (and expansion) of the facility was initiated, in the course of which most of the existing buildings of the barracks were demolished. There are only four left: Blocks S61, S62, 58 and S4, all of which have been on the list of listed first-class objects since 2009. The redesign of the park was completed in 1989.

Other sights and attractions include:

  • The Hong Kong Heritage Discovery Center is located in blocks S61 and S62 of the former Whitfield Barracks. From 1983 to 1998 the Museum of History was temporarily housed here. The center for cultural heritage has been located here since 2005.
  • The sports center in Kowloon Park has volleyball and basketball courts, as well as three squash courts, a gym, etc. The swimming center with a large swimming pool is three hectares in size. Leisure options also include a fitness trail.
  • In the park there are bird cages and aviaries as well as a bird lake; there are also around 100 different species of wild birds in the park.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Introduction to 1444 Historic Buildings , an overview of the Antiquities Advisory Board , a facility of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region , Kowloon West II Battery, online at: aab.gov.hk/...126 , page 126
  2. ↑ a b Introduction to 1444 Historic Buildings , an overview of the Antiquities Advisory Board , a facility of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region , Block S61, online at: aab.gov.hk/...40 , page 40
  3. ↑ a b Historic Building Appraisal , an overview of the Leisure and Cultural Services Department of the Hong Kong Government, Block S61, online (archived) at: web.archive.org/.../lcsd.gov.hk/...78 , # 43 / page 78
  4. ↑ a b Historical Background , Brief Report of the Leisure and Cultural Services Department (an institution of the Government of Hong Kong), online (archived) at: archive.org /.../ lcsd.gov.hk / ...
  5. ↑ Syed Minhaj ul Hassan: The Muslims of Hong Kong and their Religious Symbols , in: Peshawar Islamicus , Vol: 7, Issue 1, January-June 2016, online at: journals.uop.edu.pk / ...
  6. ↑ List of the 1,444 Historic Buildings with Assessment Results (as of 6 September 2018) , a government list ( Antiquities Advisory Board ) of listed objects, online at: aab.gov.hk/
  7. ↑ Hong Kong Heritage Discovery Center , Summary Report by the Antiquities and Monuments Ordinance (a Hong Kong government agency), online at: amo.gov.hk / ...
  8. ↑ a b Kowloon Park , brief overview, online at: chinahighlights.com / ...

Web links

Commons : Kowloon Park  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Coordinates: 22 ° 18 ′ 5.1 "  N , 114 ° 10 ′ 11.5"  E