Global 1776:
Imperial Worlds in Upheaval
12-14 March 2026
Hong Kong
Global 1776:
Imperial Worlds in Upheaval
12-14 March 2026
Hong Kong
Registration
Register below for the main conference. Sign up separately for any of the additional tours listed below. Additional tours are optional and at individuals' private expense.
Basic schedule:
The main conference events will occur from the afternoon of March 12th through the evening of March 14th, 2026. They will include a reception and cruise on the 12th and conference dinners on the 13th and 14th.
In addition to the main conference, we have organized several optional events, for which you may sign up below. These include heritage hikes and evening mixers. These are entirely optional and provide opportunities to explore the city in ways that visitors are unlikely to do on their own. Please sign up separately for each extra activity you wish to attend. These outings come at additional cost.
Conference Program:
A draft conference program will be released after registration has closed.
Conference Location:
Conference events will be held at the University of Chicago’s Francis and Rose Yuen Campus on March 12, and on the University of Hong Kong Centennial Campus on March 13 and 14. Shuttle bus service to/from the University of Chicago campus will be provided.
Travel to/from Chicago and HKU:
Details on transport to/from the campuses by foot, MTR and taxi will be provided later.
Hotels
Hotels near the University of Hong Kong:
Hotel JEN
Closest to campus. Good prices. However, the hotel is under renovation during the daytime. We have secured a discounted booking price. To get the discount use the link here.
Courtyard by Marriott Hong Kong
167 Connaught Road West. Also walking distance to campus.
Oasis Aurum 181.
Also walking distance to campus.
Hotels not in walking distance from campus
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Le Méridien Hong Kong, Cyberport. Isolated suburban location. Accessible via short taxi ride. Good value for money if your priority is room size and quiet.
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Bishop Lei International House. A good way for budget-conscious travelers to economize on lodging while remaining in the city.
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The Pottinger. Accessible by MTR (metro) to HKU. Higher-end hotel in central Hong Kong.
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The Kerry Hotel. Across the harbor and not near an MTR stop, you will need to travel to/from this hotel by taxi, however in exchange for distance you get staycation-level facilities at a good price.
There are, of course, hundreds of other hotels. We recommend a hotel either on Hong Kong Island and/or accessible by MTR (metro), preferably the blue (Island) line.
Seeing Hong Kong on Your Own
There is a lot to see and do on your own in the city. We recommend the following:
Museums:
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M+ is a large and excellent new contemporary art museum. You can take a taxi there from your hotel and easily spend a half day there. https://www.mplus.org.hk/en/ This museum is in a larger park called the West Kowloon Cultural District.
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The Hong Kong Palace Museum is in the same West Kowloon Cultural District and houses various antiquities from the Forbidden City in Beijing and overseas exhibitions. https://www.hkpm.org.hk/en/exhibition
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Hong Kong Maritime Museum is at one of the ferry piers in Central and can be seen as part of a day touring central Hong Kong.
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Tai Kwun is a restored police station in Central with various heritage exhibitions and restaurants.
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Hong Kong Museum of Art is in Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon. It is not walking distance from M+ but is reachable by taxi, MTR or Star Ferry.
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Hong Kong Museum of the War of Resistance and Coastal Defence is housed in a disused fortification and has various exhibits on Hong Kong history in Shau Kei Wan. Reachable by taxi or MTR.
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Hong Kong Heritage Museum houses various cultural exhibits. It is in Sha Tin, which will require a longer taxi ride.
Walking Tours:
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The Peak & Central. Classic tourist destinations. You can take the tram up from Central to the Peak. The tram starting point is near Hong Kong Park and St John’s Cathedral, which are worth seeing. The outdoor escalator is nearby and connects to Tai Kwun, above, along with the antique shops on Hollywood Road. There are many nice walking trails up and down the peak, including the Lung Fu Shan Morning Trail (which starts on Hatton Road, just above the HKU campus) and the Central Green Trail). Both of these involve substantial climbs. Alternatively, the Peak can be reached by taxi or bus.
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Dragon’s Back and Shek O. This will require a taxi. Dragon’s Back is a 6 to 8km hike, with 300 meters of climb, but excellent views. It is a proper hike, but perhaps the most famous and easy hike in town. Bring proper shoes and water. Shek O is a residential village on Hong Kong island with a lovely beach.
Temples:
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Big Buddha (Lantau Island). This large statue of the Buddha includes a museum and a noted vegetarian restaurant on Lantau Island.
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Chi Lin Nunnery and Sik Sik Yuen Wong Tai Sin Temple. These two very different institutions are practically adjacent. It is worth seeing them together. They aren’t too far from Kowloon Walled City Park, which may also be of interest.
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Tsz Shan Monastery This giant shrine was by Li Kai Shing. It is in Tai Po and best accessed by taxi. Register before going.
See also Time Out’s list:
Call for Papers
Submission Deadline:
20 April 2025
The American Revolution is often told as a national story. Yet it was also part of a series of world events which culminated in a global age of imperial crisis lasting from the 1760s through the 1820s. That crisis was simultaneously intellectual, cultural, political, social, and economic. In some places, established empires lost power. In others, new empires took shape. In the Americas, Asia, Europe, and elsewhere local forces demanded change. Was the American Revolution paradigmatic? Did the age of global imperial crisis have a center?
The University of Chicago, the University of Hong Kong and the David Center for the American Revolution at the American Philosophical Society will hold a conference at the University of Hong Kong on 12-14 March 2026 on the theme, “Global 1776.” We invite contributions on any aspect of this age of imperial crisis. Scholars may propose papers or panels, with a range of methodologies and themes. We are especially interested in work that focuses on peoples and places that have received less attention from scholars of the Revolutionary era, especially Asia, India, West Africa, Quebec, Nova Scotia, Ireland, the Caribbean, and Latin America. Work that crosses imperial and historiographic boundaries and uses comparisons or connections to put the American Revolution in broader dialogue is especially welcome.
Topics may include, but are not limited to:
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Causes and consequences of revolution
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Loyalism, Royalism, and other forms of counter-revolution
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Empire and imperial governance
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Slave trade, slavery, other systems of coerced labor
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Antislavery activism and self-liberation
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Women, children, and families
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Changing gender ideologies
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East India Companies
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Commerce and global trade
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Ideological and intellectual intersections with the global imperial crisis
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Enlightenment influences
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Political economy
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The transition to capitalism
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The rise of nation states
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The effect of global empire on metropolitan life and society
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Material and print culture
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The environment
Submit proposals for papers or panels by email to global76@hku.hk or through the link below.
Provide a 250-word abstract for each paper and a c.v. for each participant. If you are submitting a panel, also send a file indicating the panel name and the names and authors of each panel paper.
To submit follow button below or open this Interfolio address in a new browser window:
Steering Committee
"Global 1776" is the result of collaborations between historians in the Americas, Europe, and Asia, and is guided by:
Partner Institutions
Affiliates
Hong Kong
We seek to gather historians based in the Americas, in Europe, and in Asia-Pacific to consider the revolutions of the late 18th and early 19th century. Hong Kong is an ideal location for scholars based in Japan, China and Australia to meet one another and colleagues from around the world.
The University of Chicago (l) and the University of Hong Kong (r) are pleased to host the event.
