By Simon Parry, Hong Kong9:00PM BST 29 Sep 2014
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Hong Kong’s biggest protests under Chinese rule spread across huge swathes of the city on Monday, as 80,000 people calmly demonstrated for greater democracy, singing songs and holding candles into the night.
After the turbulence of the weekend, when police fired 87 salvos of British-made tear gas in an ultimately futile attempt to clear the streets, the authorities changed tack, ordering riot squads to melt away.
The result was the numbers on the street blossomed and the crowds savoured the moment to make their demands.
Throughout the day, a mile-long river of people meandered along the arterial four-lane Connaught Road in the centre of Hong Kong, forcing banks and businesses to close and drawing thousands of secondary school students into what at times felt like a carnival of defiance.