Governor of Hong Kong
Immediately after his tenure in Barbados, Hennessy was appointed as Governor of Hong Kong, a position from which he served until 1882.
During his tenure, Hennessy realised that the Chinese people, who were treated as second-class citizens up to that time, had developed an increasingly important influence on the Hong Kong economy. With that in mind, he lifted the ban that forbade Chinese people from buying lands, constructing buildings, and operate businesses in the Central District. This caused a development boom in the Central District. Also, he allowed Chinese people in Hong Kong to become naturalised subjects of the UK. He appointed the first Chinese member to the Legislative Council of Hong Kong, Wu Tingfang, who would later become the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of China.
Also, during his rule, he established the first Grant-in-Aid system in education area. This is a very important point for the educational history of Hong Kong.
Soon after arriving in Hong Kong, in April 1877, Hennessy set out to implement the "separate system" in Victoria Gaol, meaning separate cells for prisoners, during the night if not also during the day. This plan hinged upon sending long-term prisoners to Labuan, for convict labour .
Read more about this topic: John Pope Hennessy
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