Final answer:
Great Britain did not buy Hong Kong from China. The territory was ceded to Great Britain in 1842 after the First Opium War and later handed back to China in 1997, following the expiration of a 99-year lease agreed upon in 1897.
Step-by-step explanation:
Did Great Britain Buy Hong Kong from China?
No, Great Britain did not buy Hong Kong from China. Instead, Hong Kong was ceded to Great Britain after China's defeat in the First Opium War. In 1842, the Treaty of Nanjing was signed, which forced China to surrender Hong Kong to Great Britain, open several ports to European traders, and give the British a favorable trading status. This was not a purchase but a coercive transfer of sovereignty as a result of military conflict.
Later, in 1897, Great Britain obtained a 99-year lease for the New Territories, which increased the size of their Hong Kong colony. Eventually in 1997, Britain handed over Hong Kong to China, not as a sales transaction but in accordance with the terms of the lease agreement. The handover was part of a deal that allowed Hong Kong to maintain a high degree of autonomy under the principle of "one country, two systems" for 50 years following the transfer.
The region today, which includes the port of Victoria and an extended area known as the New Territories, was once a doorway for British expansion into China, playing a crucial role in early trade relationships, which were disrupted by conflicts such as the Korean War.