How did Great Britain gain control of Hong Kong in the nineteenth century?

Great Britain gained control of Hong Kong through a series of treaties following the Opium Wars. After the first Opium War (1839–42), Hong Kong Island was ceded to Britain by the Treaty of Nanjing in 1842. Following the second Opium War (1856–60), China ceded the Kowloon Peninsula to Britain by the Convention of Beijing in 1860. In 1898, the New Territories were leased to Britain for 99 years. These acquisitions were part of a series of "unequal treaties" that granted significant concessions to foreign imperialist powers.21345