Convention of Peking - Definition and Overview

The Convention of Peking (October 18, 1860), also known as the First Convention of Peking, was a treaty between the Qing Government of China and the British Empire, and between China and France, and China and Russia.

Article 6 of the Convention between China and the Great Britain stipulates that China was to cede a part of the Kowloon Peninsula, south of the present day Boundary Street, Hong Kong, and including the Stonecutters Island, in perpetuity to Britain.

As the Convention was signed as a result of the Second Opium War under the military and diplomatic pressures of British and Franch troops (which were burning the Old Summer Palace at the time), it was considered to be one of the unequal treaties by the Chinese side.

See also

• History of Hong Kong
• Imperialism in Asia