The Macau Special Administrative Region, simply known as Macau, is one of the two special administrative regions of the People’s Republic of China, and the other is Hong Kong. This territory has thriving industries such as electronics, textiles, and most notably, gambling. Macau’s lavish resorts and casinos make this city one of the worlds richest. Macau was both the first and last European colony in China.

Portuguese traders first settled Macau in the 16th century, and subsequently administered the region until the handover took place on December 20, 1999. But before the new millennium rolled around, Macau was already a hotbed of gambling.

Macau’s gambling and lottery industry has a very long history. Most of the Chinese people living in Macau in the 16th century were construction workers, dock workers, and servants. With the brisk and steady business, people from inland areas poured into Macau. The Portuguese claimed to respect most Chinese customs, even the more undesirable ones.

They took a nonjudgmental stance on the Chinese and their gambling habits. During the 16th century, gambling rooms began to spread over the streets and lanes. At this time, there were no rules or regulations in place on gambling activities. The Chinese were free to do as they pleased when it came to their gaming.

In 1749, Zhang Rulin, magistrate of Haifang and the high-chief of administration signed Article 10 of the Provisions on Dealing with Problems Arising from Incidents in Macau. This document stipulated that it was now forbidden to harbor bandits or give shelter to young ruffians. The idea behind this was simply to put an end to gambling. Gamblers were considered delinquents, and anyone allowing a “gambler” to enter their establishment was in violation of the law. In 1829, the Macau local authorities issued an official notice once again, putting more stress on the overall banning of gambling.

When Hong Kong opened its port to the outside world, Macau suffered an immediate and drastic decline in its gambling business. With no economic leg to stand on, the Macau-Portuguese authorities announced the legalization of gambling in 1847, and began to rely on gambling for its main revenue.

Soon after, Macau had over 2,000 gambling houses, raising over 100,000 patacas (the currency of the time) annually. Fighting amongst various sects made this a confusing time in Macau history. In 1896, the Portuguese government announced another ban on gambling. However, the gambling dealers continued to engage in gambling, offering up donations to the government. This led to a push and pull relationship between gambling and law for over 60 years.

In the 1900s, the Republic of China was founded, and the Macau government resumed the concession system and practiced exclusivity. In 1930, Lou Kao set up Hou Heng co. and won exclusive rights to operate a gambling business at a yearly tax of 800,000 patacas.

Since then, gambling has been met with a resistance in some circles, open arms in others. Ultimately, the money generated from gambling was just too great to ignore, and Macau gradually made the transition to modern gaming houses. Today, Macau is one of the world’s foremost gambling industries. With multi-billion casino resorts and hotels going up one after another, Macau is among the riches cities, not only on earth, but in its history.

Sands Macao - Macau City - Macau
Tel: +853 883 388
The Sands Macau is a Casino in Macau, Macau . The 163,000 square foot casino features 848 slots and 360 table games. The property has two restaurants and a hotel with fifty-one rooms....read more »