HONG KONG will revert to China at midnight tonight (5 p.m. Irish time), ending 156 years of British colonial rule. Prince Charles will formally cede sovereignty of the territory to President Jiang Zemin, following which the prince and the last governor of Hong Kong, Mr Chris Patten, will sail away on the royal yacht Britannia.
Despite the pomp and circumstance surrounding the historic event, the atmosphere between the British and Chinese remained distinctly cool to the end, with British officials warning China that they will be closely monitoring its behaviour in Hong Kong in the coming years.
As the British head out into the South China Sea, the shipping tycoon, Mr Tung Cheehwa, will be sworn into office as the first chief executive of Hong Kong, which becomes a Special Administrative Region of China.
At dawn, 4,000 members of the Chinese armed forces will enter Hong Kong to symbolise the restoration of Chinese sovereignty.
The city of 6.4 million people is in carnival mood, with banners proclaiming "wash away 100 years of national shame", and a blimp in the sky declaring "celebrate the return of Hong Kong". Six tons of fireworks will explode over Victoria Harbour.
However, the Democratic Party will hold protests over the dissolution of the legislative assembly, which was elected under reforms unilaterally introduced by Mr Pat ten, and the swearing in of an unelected provisional legislature.
Ireland will be represented at the handover by the Minister of State at the Department of the Taoiseach, Mr Seamus Brennan. He will also attend the investiture 90 minutes later of the provisional legislature, which the British Prime Minister, Mr Blair, his Foreign Secretary, Mr Robin Cook, and the US Secretary of State, Ms Madeleine Albright, are boycotting as undemocratic. They are sending senior diplomats instead.
However, the British delegation is divided, with the former foreign secretary, Sir Geoffrey Howe, and two former governors attending. Sir Geoffrey said this was because the ceremony also included the swearing in of the new chief executive and the judiciary.
Mr Brennan, who attended a reception on the Britannia yesterday at which he had a conversation with Prince Charles about Northern Ireland, said he was encouraged by Mr Tung's promise of new elections within a year.
The incoming chief executive said yesterday in talks with visiting dignitaries that elections for a new legislature would be held next May. Mr Jiang promised at a ceremony in Beijing's Great Hall of the People yesterday that China would "safeguard the Hong Kong residents' rights and freedoms in accordance with the law".
Mr Blair arrives in Hong Kong this afternoon and will meet Mr Jiang and the Chinese Prime Minister, Mr Li Peng, for an hour, accompanied by Mr Cook. The Chinese leader is also to have a 10 minute meeting with Prince Charles.
Ms Albright criticised the use of armoured cars to bring Chinese troops into Hong Kong tomorrow. "I don't think this is the best way to start off," she said, referring to memories of the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown.
To ease fears over Chinese troops, Mr Tung told US television they could not move against Hong Kong people without his approval.
British officials said Mr Tung might not go to a British sunset farewell ceremony because of the likely simultaneous arrival of the Chinese leadership. Many observers see this as a possible snub.