From Hermitage to Heritage?: the legacy of the Lantau Mountain Camp

This paper traces the continuity and changes of the little-known Lantau Mountain Camp, a century-old hill station in Hong Kong, with respect to local, regional and global vicissitudes, from its missionary origins, to its memorable tradition as an international summer camp to its growing reputation as a popular scenic landscape. The author discusses how and why this camp was established, its representation in Hong Kong and its transition from a missionary retreat and closely bonded community to a fraternity for rustic, spartan living, with, in recent years, a focus on conservation of the natural environment and cultural landscape. The dynamics of the heritagisation process of the camp involving different stakeholders with different goals and motives are reviewed.