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Kowloon Walled City (Chinese: 九龍城寨) was an ungoverned and densely populated de jure Chinese enclave within the boundaries of British Hong Kong.

The Walled City's population increased dramatically following World War II, and by 1987 it had an estimated 33,000 residents within its 2.6-hectare (6+1⁄2-acre) borders, making it one of the most densely populated places on Earth at approximately 1.2 million inhabitants per square kilometre (3 million per square mile). The city was demolished between 1993 and 1994; the Kowloon Walled City Park was built in its place and opened in December 1995. The 1898 Convention that leased the New Territories to Britain excluded the Walled City, and after the fall of the Qing dynasty in 1912, the succeeding Republic of China inherited this claim. After World War II, with both Britain and China reluctant to assert control, the city's population swelled with refugees fleeing the Chinese Civil War. From the 1950s to the 1970s, the Walled City was effectively controlled by local triads, becoming a haven for prostitution, gambling, and drug trafficking. In 1984, the British and Chinese governments agreed to demolish the city, citing the deteriorating quality of life.

The Convention for the Extension of Hong Kong Territory of 1898 handed additional parts of Hong Kong (the New Territories) to Britain for 99 years, but excluded the walled city, which at the time had a population of roughly 700.

With no government enforcement from the Chinese or the British aside from a few raids by the Hong Kong Police, the walled city became a haven for crime and drugs.

Construction work on Kowloon Walled City Park started the following month.

The walled city was located in an area of Kowloon that became known as Kowloon City.

Names in Kowloon Walled City were mostly Cantonese.

The area where the walled city once stood is now Kowloon Walled City Park, adjacent to Carpenter Road Park.

Along with its foundation, other remains included two stone plaques inscribed with "South Gate" and "Kowloon Walled City" from the South Gate and a flagstone path that had led up to it.

The rising publicity around Hong Kong following the 1997 handover sparked a re-emergence in the public interest of Kowloon Walled City and its disappearance.

Gordon Jones, a District Officer of Kowloon City District at the time, also published his recollections of the city during his time in office.

The 1982 Shaw Brothers film Brothers from the Walled City is set in Kowloon Walled City. A walled neighbourhood of Gotham City called the Narrows in the 2005 film Batman Begins was inspired by the walled city. The 2024 Hong Kong action crime film Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In, an adaptation of the manhua City of Darkness by Andy Seto, sets its location and plot premise in Kowloon Walled City during the 1980s.

The manga Blood+: Kowloon Nights uses the walled city as the setting for a series of murders. The later part of episode 3 and episode 4 of the anime Street Fighter II V are set in Kowloon Walled City, depicted as a dark and lawless area where Ryu, Ken and Chun-Li have to fight for their lives at every turn, being rescued by the police once they reach the walled city's limits. The manga and anime Kowloon Generic Romance is also set in the walled city.

Kowloon Walled City is depicted in several games, including Kowloon's Gate and Shenmue II.

The Chinese catering brand Wenheyou runs multi-storey retro-themed restaurant buildings in Changsha and Shenzhen that have been likened to the Kowloon Walled City, with some media outlets calling them either inspired by or even "1:1 recreations" of the city.

Shibam in eastern Yemen, nicknamed "the oldest skyscraper city in the world", resembles Kowloon Walled City in manner of urban planning.

Official website for Kowloon Walled City Park, Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD).

Quick Facts

• The city was demolished between 1993 and 1994; the Kowloon Walled City Park was built in its place and opened in December 1995.
• The walled city was located in an area of Kowloon that became known as Kowloon City.
• The area where the walled city once stood is now Kowloon Walled City Park, adjacent to Carpenter Road Park.
• The 1982 Shaw Brothers film Brothers from the Walled City is set in Kowloon Walled City.
• The 2024 Hong Kong action crime film Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In, an adaptation of the manhua City of Darkness by Andy Seto, sets its location and plot premise in Kowloon Walled City during the 1980s.

Source material: Wikipedia - "Kowloon Walled City". Adapted and summarized for DiscoverScroll. Original contributors are credited through the linked Wikipedia article. Read original on Wikipedia. CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes were made from the original.