Colonized by the
Portuguese in the 16th century, Macau was the first
European settlement in the Far East. Pursuant to an
agreement signed by China and Portugal on 13 April
1987, Macau became the Macau Special Administrative
Region (SAR) of the People's Republic of China on 20
December 1999. In this agreement, China promised that,
under its "one country, two systems"
formula, China's socialist economic system would not
be practiced in Macau, and that Macau would enjoy a
high degree of autonomy in all matters except foreign
and defense affairs for the next 50 years.
The history of
Macau is traced back to the Qin Dynasty (221–206
BC), when the region now called Macau came under the
jurisdiction of Panyu county, in Nanhai prefecture
(present day Guangdong).The first recorded inhabitants
of the area were people seeking refuge in Macau from
invading Mongols during the Southern Song Dynasty.
Under the Ming Dynasty (1368–1644 AD), fishermen
migrated to Macau from Guangdong and Fujian provinces.
Macau did not
develop as a major settlement until the Portuguese
arrived in the 16th century. In 1535, Portuguese
traders obtained the rights to anchor ships in Macau's
harbours and to carry out trading activities, though
not the right to stay onshore.Around 1552–1553, they
obtained temporary permission to erect storage sheds
onshore, in order to dry out goods drenched by sea
water; they soon built rudimentary stone houses around
the area now called Nam Van. In 1557, the Portuguese
established a permanent settlement in Macau, paying an
annual rent of 500 taels of silver. During the 16th
century, Macau also served as a trafficking point for
Chinese slaves to Portugal (see Slavery in Portugal).
Many Chinese boys were captured in China, and through
Macau were brought to Portugal and sold as slaves in
Lisbon. Some were then sold in Brazil, a Portuguese
colony.Chinese slaves were prized by Portuguese and
regarded better than moorish and black slaves but in
1595 a law was passed banning the selling and buying
of Chinese slaves and in February 19, 1624, the King
of Portugal forbade the enslavement of Chinese of
either sex.
As more
Portuguese settled in Macau to engage in trading, they
made demands for self-administration; but this was not
achieved until the 1840s.
In 1576, Pope Gregory XIII
established the Roman Catholic Diocese of Macau. In
1583, the Portuguese in Macau were permitted to form a
Senate to handle various issues concerning their
social and economic affairs under strict supervision
of the Chinese authority, but there was no transfer of
sovereignty. Macau prospered as a port but was the
target of repeated failed attempts by the Dutch to
conquer it in the 17th century.
Following the
Opium War (1839–42), Portugal occupied Taipa and
Coloane in 1851 and 1864 respectively. On December 1,
1887, the Qing and Portuguese governments signed the
Sino-Portuguese Treaty of Amity and Commerce, under
which China ceded the right of "perpetual
occupation and government of Macau by Portugal"
in compliance with the statements of the Protocol of
Lisbon. In return, Macau Government would cooperate
with Hong Kong's smuggle of Indian opium and China
would be able to increase profits through customs
taxes. Portugal was also obliged "never to
alienate Macau without previous agreement with
China", therefore ensuring that negotiation
between Portugal and France (regarding a possible
exchange of Macau and Portuguese Guinea with the
French Congo) or with other countries would not go
forward — so that the British commercial interests
would be secured; Macau officially became a territory
under Portuguese administration.
In 1928, after
the Qing Dynasty had been overthrown following the
Xinhai Revolution, the Kuomintang (KMT) government
officially notified Portugal that it was abrogating
the Treaty of Amity and Commerce; the two powers
signed a new Sino-Portuguese Friendship and Trade
Treaty in place of the abrogated treaty. Making only a
few provisions concerning tariff principles and
matters relating to business affairs, the new treaty
did not alter the sovereignty of Macau and Portuguese
government of Macau remained unchanged.
In the second
world war, unlike in the case of Portuguese Timor
which was occupied by the Japanese in 1942 along with
Dutch Timor, the Japanese respected Portuguese
neutrality in Macau, but only up to a point. As such,
Macau enjoyed a brief period of economic prosperity as
the only neutral port in South China, after the
Japanese had occupied Guangzhou (Canton) and Hong
Kong. In August 1943, Japanese troops seized the
British steamer Sian in Macao and killed about
20 guards. The next month they demanded the
installation of Japanese "advisors" under
the alternative of military occupation. The result was
that a virtual Japanese protectorate was created over
Macau. Japanese domination ended in August 1945.
After the
establishment of the People's Republic of China in
1949, the Beijing government declared the
Sino-Portuguese Treaty of Amity and Commerce invalid
as an “unequal treaty” imposed by foreigners on
China. However, Beijing was not ready to settle the
treaty question, leaving the maintenance of “the
status quo” until a more appropriate time.
Influenced by
the Cultural Revolution in mainland China and by
general dissatisfaction with Portuguese government,
riots broke out in Macau in 1966. In the most serious,
the so-called 12-3 incident, 6 people were killed and
more than 200 people were injured. On 28 January 1967,
the Portuguese government issued a formal apology.
Shortly after
the overthrow of the Portuguese dictatorship in 1974
in Lisbon, the new Portuguese government determined it
would relinquish all its overseas possessions. In
1976, Lisbon redefined Macau as a "Chinese
territory under Portuguese administration" and
granted it a large measure of administrative,
financial, and economic autonomy. Three years later,
Portugal and China agreed to regard Macau as "a
Chinese territory under (temporary) Portuguese
administration". The Chinese and Portuguese
governments commenced negotiations on the question of
Macau in June 1986. The two signed a Sino-Portuguese
Joint Declaration the next year, making Macau a
special administrative region (SAR) of China. The
Chinese government assumed formal sovereignty over
Macau on 20 December 1999. The economy since then has
continued to prosper with the sustained growth of
tourism from mainland China and the construction of
new casinos.