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The Commonwealth of England, later known as the Protectorate, was established on 19 May 1649, following the execution of King Charles I. At its height, it ruled over all the British Isles leaving the Thirteen Colonies effectively ruled over by a republic. The monarchy was restored on 29 May 1660. Algeria. 1659.
- Overview
- Early history of Taiwan
- Taiwan as part of the Japanese empire
- Early Nationalist rule
history of Taiwan, a survey of notable events and people in the history of Taiwan. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, the island of Taiwan lies roughly 100 miles (160 km) off the coast of southeastern China. Taipei, in the north, is the seat of government of the Republic of China (ROC; Nationalist China). In 1949 Chinese communist armies defeate...
There are references to Taiwan in Chinese court records dating to the 3rd century bce. The first recorded contact between China and Taiwan occurred in 239 ce, when the Chinese emperor sent a 10,000-man mission to Taiwan to explore the island. In 605 China sent another expedition, which brought back to China several Indigenous people from Taiwan, who were taught Chinese. A follow-up mission went to Taiwan to gather more information. During the Yuan dynasty (1206–1368), when the Mongol empire ruled China, the P’eng-hu (Penghu) Islands in the Taiwan Strait were brought under China’s control. In 1430 the Ming dynasty’s famous explorer Zheng He (Cheng Ho) landed on Taiwan and obtained from the Indigenous peoples herbal medicines that were said to have “miracle powers.”
Meanwhile, perhaps as early as the 7th century, Chinese fishermen visited the P’eng-hu Islands, and probably some farmers settled there and on Taiwan itself. In any event, there were Chinese settlements on the island of Taiwan before the 12th century. Chinese and Japanese pirates also frequently used the island as a base of operations, and some Japanese settlements were established there.
The early Chinese settlers were in imminent danger of raids by Indigenous peoples, who practiced head-hunting and coveted Chinese heads—possession of which demonstrated a sign of manhood and their qualifications for marriage. Early Chinese societies on the island were thus organized to a considerable degree on the basis of a concern with security. However, there was only infrequent contact among the Chinese settlements, and there was no common government or body of laws.
In 1517 a Portuguese ship sailed through the Taiwan Strait, and the ship’s log recorded the words “Ilha Formosa,” meaning “Beautiful Island” in Portuguese. Formosa subsequently became the Western term for Taiwan. But the ship did not stop, and the Portuguese did not lay claim to Taiwan. In 1622, Dutch forces landed in the P’eng-hu Islands (which the Portuguese had called the Pescadores [“Fishermen”] because a large portion of the population there was engaged in fishing) and established a presence there. The next year, a Chinese official gave the Dutch a trading post on Taiwan and other privileges in exchange for leaving the P’eng-hu Islands. In 1626, Spanish forces seized Chi-lung (Jilong or Keelung) and expanded their presence on the island from there. Japanese settlers on the island left shortly after that.
In 1642, Dutch forces expelled the Spanish, put down a rebellion by Chinese inhabitants, and, with the help of Indigenous peoples, established control over the entire island. As a result, Taiwan became a Dutch colony, governed by the Dutch East India Company. The company dug wells, conducted land surveys, and created the basis for expanded commerce, including trade with China and other places in East Asia. It introduced new farm implements and the use of oxen to till the fields. In addition, its representatives developed a written language for the Indigenous peoples and converted many to Christianity.
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In 1894 China and Japan went to war over their conflicting interests in Korea. Japan won the conflict handily. The Treaty of Shimonoseki (1895), which ended the war, contained a provision that ceded Taiwan and the P’eng-hu Islands to Japan in perpetuity. The Western powers regarded the treaty as legally binding, but China did not, seeing it as an agreement imposed on it under duress.
When news of the treaty reached Taiwan, local leaders there proclaimed the Republic of Taiwan—Asia’s first republic—but its life was brief, lasting only about 10 days. Taiwan had no central government, was plagued by warlordism (causing many residents of the island to feel that Japanese rule would be an improvement), and had neither a recognized leader nor a real military. Moreover, Japan was determined to make Taiwan a colony, so it dealt firmly with opposing movements on the island.
Japan’s military at first governed the island, but within three years those forces were seen as being no longer necessary. Taiwan, Tokyo’s first attempt at colonialism, was an experiment with which Japan had great success in establishing order, eradicating disease, building infrastructure, and creating a modern economy. Taiwan soon became the most advanced place in East Asia outside Japan itself.
Japan’s policy makers focused on agriculture first and improved rice production with new seeds and farming techniques. Rice and sugar were exported. Taiwan had about 30 miles (50 km) of railroads when Japan took control of the island, but within a decade it had increased the track length to some 300 miles (500 km), and much more construction was planned. Taiwan was soon electrified, which facilitated the growth of new industries such as textiles and chemicals. World War I was a boon for Taiwan’s economy, as new industries were developed and trade expanded. World War II also had a positive impact on the island’s economy.
On the other hand, Japan ruled Taiwan strictly, using harsh punishment to enforce the law. Tokyo, initially at least, showed no interest in making Taiwan a democracy. Moreover, in governing Taiwan, Japan experienced a dilemma over whether to make the colony part of Japan or to allow it to be administratively separate and to some degree self-governing. Ultimately, Tokyo resisted assimilating Taiwan, although it did force the population there to learn Japanese and absorb Japanese culture. That strategy had advantages for the people of Taiwan, as it gained for them access to science and technology, but such advantages came at the cost of suppressing local culture and the Chinese language.
In 1935, after Lin Hsien-t’ang (Lin Xiantang) of Taiwan’s Home Rule Association advocated the transfer of more political power to local officials, Japan announced the establishment of a somewhat autonomous local government. An election was held, and there was some evidence for the beginnings of democratic government in Taiwan. That movement was short-lived, however, as the militarists in Japan rose in power there the following year.
Taiwan became part of the Republic of China on October 25, 1945, which has been celebrated since then as Retrocession Day. However, Taiwan was not made a standard province of China at that time, as most people on the island had expected. Moreover, Chiang Kai-shek appointed Ch’en Yi (Ch’en I) governor-general of the island, with powers similar to those that had been exercised by the Japanese military governors. Finally, Japanese officials, administrators, and technicians departed, leaving a vacuum that was not easy to fill. Taiwan’s economy, which had become linked to Japan’s, had to be reorganized. Japanese law, customs, and much more were to be replaced.
Ch’en, like many others in his administration and many of the Nationalist Chinese soldiers sent to Taiwan at the time, regarded the Taiwanese as traitors tainted by inferior Japanese culture. Ch’en hailed from Fujian (Fukien) province and could speak both Minnan (Taiwanese) and Japanese. He refused to do so, however, believing that the Taiwanese should learn Mandarin, which many of them found difficult. Ch’en took few Taiwanese into his government, especially in jobs of importance. He hoped that he and his administration could govern by moral example, but many of his subordinates were incompetent or corrupt.
Just as Ch’en and his people espoused condescending views toward the Taiwanese, the latter viewed the newly arrived mainland Chinese as dirty, dishonest, and technologically backward. The Taiwanese could see that the new government lacked the technical expertise to run public services. They did not like the new legal system imposed on them, especially the provision that allowed the forced occupation of property to lead to legal claims on it. Thus, the Taiwanese came to view the government as a carpetbagger to be despised. Meanwhile, Chiang was preoccupied with the civil war against the communists and thought that the residents of Taiwan should understand his situation and be willing to sacrifice. Most Taiwanese did not understand, and they were dismayed by economic deterioration in Taiwan as well as a return of eradicated diseases, falling educational standards, and ill treatment of citizens by the government.
Ill feelings came to a head in February 1947 when a government agent knocked to the ground a woman who was selling black-market cigarettes and agents then fired into the angry crowd that had assembled, killing a bystander. Widespread civil disobedience ensued, creating what seemed to be a rebellion. Mainland Chinese were attacked, beaten, and killed in large numbers. Fukien Taiwanese killed people who could not speak to them in Minnan, including many Hakka people, an ethnic minority group in Taiwan. The event became known as er-er-ba, or 2-2-8, for the incident’s date (February 28). A memorial park was established in Taipei in the 1990s to commemorate the incident.
In March, Chiang sent troops to Taiwan to end the chaos. The soldiers used their weapons at will, often against unarmed civilians and seemingly in revenge. Punitive actions were taken against anyone thought to be organizing trouble. Order was restored, but not before thousands were killed, including the core of Taiwan’s potential local political and social leadership.
Chiang subsequently relieved Ch’en of his post, rescinded military rule, and appointed a number of Taiwanese to top political jobs. Many government monopoly enterprises were sold, and efforts were made to alleviate unemployment. Those actions helped ameliorate a bad situation, but not before considerable damage had been done, including the creation of hostile feelings toward Ch’en, the government, and mainland China.
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