Christopher Francis Patten, Baron Patten of Barnes, is a British politician who was the 28th and last Governor of Hong Kong from 1992 to 1997 and Chairman of the Conservative Party from 1990 to 1992. He was made a life peer in 2005 and has been Chancellor of the University of Oxford since 2003. He is also one of the two living former governors of Hong Kong with David Wilson.
Wang Guangya is a Chinese diplomat who is the former Director of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office of the State Council of the People's Republic of China. A career diplomat, Wang was previously Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs. He served as Permanent Representative of the People's Republic of China to the United Nations from 2003 to 2008.
Henry Fok Ying Tung was an entrepreneur and politician in Hong Kong. From 1993 until his death, Fok served as Vice Chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference. He was one of the Hong Kong's wealthiest persons.
The handover of Hong Kong from the United Kingdom to the People's Republic of China was at midnight on 1 July 1997. This event ended 156 years of British rule in the former colony, which began in 1841. Hong Kong was established as a special administrative region of China (SAR) for 50 years, maintaining its own economic and governing systems from those of mainland China during this time, although influence from the central government in Beijing increased after the passing of the Hong Kong national security law in 2020.
The 1990s in Hong Kong marked a transitional period and the last decade of colonial rule in Hong Kong.
Establishment Day, formally the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Establishment Day, is celebrated annually on 1 July in Hong Kong, China since 1997. The holiday celebrates the transfer of sovereignty over Hong Kong from the United Kingdom to the People's Republic of China and the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. The similarly-named holiday in Macau occurs on 20 December, the day of its handover from Portugal.
The 1996 Hong Kong Chief Executive election was held on 11 December 1996 to select the first Chief Executive (CE) of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) which term started from 1 July 1997 after the Chinese resumption of sovereignty over Hong Kong from the British rule. It was selected by the 400-member Selection Committee installed by the Government of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Tung Chee-hwa, a Shanghai-born Hong Kong businessman who was seen being favoured by Jiang Zemin, General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party, was the ultimate winner of the election, defeating former Chief Justice Ti-liang Yang and tycoon Peter Woo with a large margin.
The 2008 Summer Olympics closing ceremony was held at the Beijing National Stadium, also known as the Bird's Nest. It was directed by Chinese filmmaker Zhang Yimou and began at 20:00 China Standard Time (UTC+8) on Sunday night, 24 August 2008. The number 8 is associated with prosperity and confidence in Chinese culture.
The 2008 Summer Paralympics closing ceremony was held at the Beijing National Stadium, also known as the Bird's Nest. It began at 8:00 pm China Standard Time (UTC+8) on September 17, 2008. The number 8 is associated with prosperity and confidence in Chinese culture.
The China Millennium Monument is a monumental complex centered around a structure that evokes both a monumental Chinese altar and a sundial. Associated with Jiang Zemin, it was championed from 1994 by CCP official Zhu Xiangyuan. It was completed in 1999 ahead of the Millennium celebrations, for which it was the principal Chinese venue. Since 2006, it has housed the Beijing World Art Museum.
The 60th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China took place on 1 October 2009. A military parade involving 10,000 troops and the display of many high-tech weapons was held in Tiananmen Square in Beijing and various celebrations were conducted all over the country. China's paramount leader Hu Jintao inspected the troops along Chang'an Avenue in Beijing. This parade was immediately followed by a civilian parade involving 100,000 participants.
Celebrations of the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Republic of China were held on 10 October 2011, on the 100th anniversary of the Xinhai Revolution. It was celebrated in both mainland China and Taiwan, ruled by the People's Republic of China (PRC) and the Republic of China (ROC) respectively, but the connotation and significance of the celebrations varied between the two.
The 1994 Hong Kong electoral reform was a set of significant constitutional changes in the last years of British colonial rule in Hong Kong before the handover of its sovereignty to the People's Republic of China (PRC) on 1 July 1997. The reform aimed at broadening the electorate base of the three-tiers elections in 1994 and 1995, namely the 1994 District Board elections, the 1995 Urban and Regional Council elections and the 1995 Legislative Council election. It was the flagship policy of the last colonial governor Chris Patten.
The flag of Hong Kong from 1871 to 1997 was a Blue Ensign with the coat of arms of Hong Kong on a white disk. In Hong Kong, it is also nicknamed the Hong Kong flag (香港旗), British Hong Kong flag (英屬香港旗) or the Dragon and Lion flag (龍獅旗). In 1959, following a grant from the College of Arms and with the consent of Queen Elizabeth II, it was adopted as the flag of British Hong Kong. While the flag lost its official status following the 1 July 1997 transfer of sovereignty over Hong Kong, it resurfaced in the 2010s as a symbol of support for Hong Kong autonomy and protest against Chinese interference in Hong Kong.
The 2022 Winter Olympics closing ceremony was held at the Beijing National Stadium in Beijing on 20 February 2022. As mandated by the Olympic Charter, the proceedings are expected to combine the formal ceremonial closing of this international sporting event with an artistic spectacle to showcase the culture and history of the current and next host nation (Italy) for the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo.
The 50th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China took place on 1 October 1999. A military parade was held in Tiananmen Square in Beijing and various celebrations were conducted all over the country. China's paramount leader Jiang Zemin inspected the troops along Chang'an Avenue in Beijing. This parade was immediately followed by a civilian parade.
The Flag Raising Ceremony is a traditional military ceremony of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) of the People's Republic of China (PRC) which is done publicly on Tiananmen Square in the capital of Beijing. The People's Republic of China with the leader of Mao Zedong started this in 1954. The ceremony is conducted by the PLA's Beijing Garrison Honor Guard Battalion, which is part of the 1st Guard Division, Central Theater Command. It is done daily precisely at sunrise, with notable ceremonies taking place on National Day of the People's Republic of China in October and New Year's Day in January to honor the PRC flag.
This is a list of military parades held in the Hong Kong since 1945.
Celebrations of the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Chinese Communist Party, or the Centennial of the Chinese Communist Party, were held on 1 July 2021 in Beijing to celebrate the centennial of the founding of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), which has been the sole governing political party of the People's Republic of China (PRC) since 1949. CCP General Secretary Xi Jinping, as the guest of honor, delivered a speech and presented the Order of July the First order of honour to CCP members who have made significant contributions. Premier Li Keqiang served as the official host of the event.
Jiang Zemin, the general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from 1989 to 2002, and the president of the People's Republic of China from 1993 to 2003, died on 30 November 2022, at the age of 96, in Shanghai. According to Xinhua News Agency, he died at 12:13 local time, from leukemia and multiple organ failures. Following a private funeral at PLA General Hospital and cremation at Babaoshan Revolutionary Cemetery, a state funeral for Jiang was held at the Great Hall of the People the next day on 6 December 2022. It was the first major state funeral held in China since 1997 when Deng Xiaoping died.
