Union Church () is an English-speaking, interdenominational church in

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

, which was established in 1844. The latest Union Church building was the 4th generation building. It was located at No. 22A Kennedy Road,

Mid-Levels Mid-Levels () is an affluent residential area on Hong Kong Island in Hong Kong. It is located between Victoria Peak and Central. Residents are predominantly more affluent Hong Kong locals and expatriate professionals. It has a population ...

, up the hill from Central and

Admiralty Admiralty most often refers to: *Admiralty, Hong Kong * Admiralty (United Kingdom), military department in command of the Royal Navy from 1707 to 1964 *The rank of admiral *Admiralty law Admiralty can also refer to: Buildings * Admiralty, Tra ...

, and next to where the

Peak Tram The Peak Tram is a funicular railway in Hong Kong, which carries both tourists and residents to the upper levels of Hong Kong Island. Running from Garden Road Admiralty to Victoria Peak via the Mid-Levels, it provides the most direct route and o ...

bridge intersects with Kennedy Road.

Antiquities Advisory Board The Antiquities Advisory Board (AAB) is a statutory body of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region with the responsibility of advising the Secretary for Development, Antiquities Authority on any matters relating to antiquities and monum ...

. Historic Building Appraisal
Union Church – Sanctuary & Bell Tower, No. 22A Kennedy Road
/ref> Demolition work started in 2017 and a residential building including a church at its base is to be built at the same location.

History

Union Church was founded in 1844 by

James Legge James Legge (; 20 December 181529 November 1897) was a Scottish linguist, missionary, sinologist, and translator who was best known as an early translator of Classical Chinese texts into English. Legge served as a representative of the Lond ...

, a Scottish sinologist and missionary from the

London Missionary Society The London Missionary Society was an interdenominational evangelical missionary society formed in England in 1795 at the instigation of Welsh Congregationalist minister Edward Williams. It was largely Reformed tradition, Reformed in outlook, with ...

, who served as pastor from 1844 to 1867 and from 1870 to 1873. The first Union Church building, called 'Union Chapel', was built in 1845 on

Hollywood Road Hollywood Road ( Chinese: 荷李活道) is a street in Central and Sheung Wan, on Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong. The street runs between Central and Sheung Wan, with Wyndham Street, Arbuthnot Road, Ladder Street, Upper Lascar Row, and Old Bai ...

. In 1866, the church was relocated to a new site at the corner of

Staunton Street Staunton Street () is a street in Central, Hong Kong, Central and Sheung Wan, on Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong. Together with the upper section of Elgin Street, Hong Kong, Elgin Street, it is the heart of the SoHo, Hong Kong, Soho entertainment ...

and Peel Street (2nd generation building). The church on Staunton Street having become very crowded, it was moved to the site on Kennedy Road in 1890 (3rd generation building), which also included a manse. The new building incorporated much of the materials from the 2nd generation building. The church funded half the costs of building the nearby

Kennedy Road stop Kennedy Road is an intermediate station on the Peak Tram. It is located on Kennedy Road, in Central, Hong Kong, 56 metres above sea level. The station comprises a single platform on the western side of the single track. The platform is longe ...

of the

. The church's religious service was ceased during the

Japanese occupation of Hong Kong The Japanese occupation of Hong Kong began when the governor of Hong Kong, Mark Aitchison Young, surrendered the British Crown colony of British Hong Kong, Hong Kong to the Empire of Japan on 25 December 1941. His surrender occurred after Batt ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, and the pastor, Rev. Kenneth Mackenzie Dow, was interned in

Stanley Internment Camp Stanley Internment Camp () was a civilian internment camp in Hong Kong during the Second World War. Located in Stanley, Hong Kong, Stanley, on the southern end of Hong Kong Island, it was used by the Imperial Japanese Army, Japanese imperial fo ...

. The church building was severely damaged during that time, and the church was temporarily moved to the

Hong Kong Volunteer Defence Corps The Royal Hong Kong Regiment (The Volunteers) (RHKR(V)) (), formed in May 1854, was a local auxiliary militia force funded and administered by the colonial Government of Hong Kong. Its powers and duties were mandated by the Royal Hong Kong R ...

Officers Mess on Garden Road from 1945 to 1949.

4th generation building

The church was subsequently rebuilt (fourth generation building) on the site of the third generation building. The Fellowship Hall and the manseUnion Church
on Gwulo.com were completed in 1949, the Sanctuary and its bell tower in 1955 and the Annex in 1970. The sanctuary was built in

minimalist In visual arts, music, and other media, minimalism is an art movement that began in the post-war era in western art. The movement is often interpreted as a reaction to abstract expressionism and modernism; it anticipated contemporary post-mi ...

modern style with references to the

Bauhaus The Staatliches Bauhaus (), commonly known as the , was a German art school operational from 1919 to 1933 that combined Decorative arts, crafts and the fine arts.Oxford Dictionary of Art and Artists (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 4th edn., ...

school. Internally, it featured transverse arches in

Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French (), is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design that first Art Deco in Paris, appeared in Paris in the 1910s just before World War I and flourished in the United States and Europe during the 1920 ...

style. On 16 March 2014, members decided to demolish the church and redevelop its prime real-estate site. Demolition work started in 2017 and a residential building including a church at its base is to be built at the same location in collaboration with

Henderson Land Development Henderson Land Development Co. Ltd. () is a listed property developer in Hong Kong and a constituent of the Hang Seng Index. The company's principal activities are property development and investment, project management, construction, hotel ope ...

Affiliation

Originally a ministry of the

, Union is now an independent congregation, governed by three boards: The Deacon's Court, Committee of Management and Board of Trustees.

Conservation

Before their demolition, the church building and its bell tower were listed as Grade III historic buildings.

List of the 1,444 Historic Buildings with Assessment Results

References

External links

Church website
* Pictures of the 4th generation building
Church buildingChurch tower
{{Coord, 22.2761, 114.1581, display=title Mid-Levels Grade III historic buildings in Hong Kong Protestant churches in Hong Kong 999-year leases in Hong Kong and Kowloon