Taiwan

Flag of the Republic of China.

**Taiwan** (Chinese: **台灣**, ***Táiwān***), officially the **Republic of China** (Chinese: **中華民國**, ***Zhōnghuá Mínguó***) (**ROC**) is an East Asian island nation. The main island of Taiwan, formerly known as *Formosa*, contains a highly urbanized population. This makes Taiwan one of the most densely populated countries in the world.

Taiwan shares maritime borders with the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Japan to the northeast, and the Philippines to the south. Taipei is Taiwan's capital while New Taipei is Taiwan's largest city. Other major cities include Kaohsiung, Taichung, Taipei, Taoyuan, and Tainan

Taiwan's status as a nation was historically compromised by its much larger and much more powerful neighbor, the PRC, which it would later fight during the Sino-Korean War. During and after the conflict, pro-reunification sentiment with the mainland, under the democratic system of the Republic of China grew once again.

## History

### **Early Settlement (to 1683)**

Taiwan was originally part of the Asian mainland until sea levels rose about 10,000 years ago. Human remains that are around 20 to 30 thousand years old have been found on the island as well as later artifacts of an early human culture.

Taiwan was settled by farmers from southeast China around 6,000 years ago and are believed to be the ancestors of today's Indigenous Taiwanese people. In the 13th century, Han Chinese fishermen began to settle on Taiwan, but hostile tribes and a lack of valuable resources caused few outsiders to visit the island. During the 16th century, fishermen and pirates began to visit the islands more often.

In the 17th century, European powers, the Dutch and Spanish, attempted to settle the island but were eventually driven off by the Chinese.

### **Qing Rule (1683 - 1895)**

In 1683, the Qing Dynasty of China annexed Taiwan, making it a prefecture of Fujian Province, and tried to reduce piracy and vagrancy. During this period, there were many rebellions, riots and instances of civil strife against the Imperial Government.

In 1887, the island's administration was turned into the Fujian-Taiwan-Province, with its new capital at Taipei. Modernization also occurred, with a telegraph line being developed between Tainan and Taipei and the building of China's first railway system.

### **Japanese Rule (1895 - 1945)**

After China's defeat in the First Sino-Japanese War, Taiwan, its associated islands, and the Penghu Archipelago were taken over by the Japanese Empire after the singing of the Treaty of Shimonoseki. People on these islands who wanted to remain under Qing rule were allotted two years to sell their belongings and move to Qing territory, but very few agreed with this.

On May 25, 1895, pro-Qing officials founded the Republic of Formosa to resist Japanese rule, but Japanese forces entered the nation's capital at Tainan and crushed all resistance. Guerilla warfare continued until 1902 and led to the deaths of around 14,000 Taiwanese. There were several other, albeit unsuccessful, attempts to rebel against Japan.

During Japan's rule, the inhabitants of the island were seen as second and third class citizens while government positions were taken by Japanese officials. Japan also stimulated more industrialization on Taiwan, with expansion of railways, an extensive sanitation system and the establishment of a formal education system. Cash crops such as sugar also increased production, making Taiwan the seventh greatest sugar producer in the world by 1939.

During World War II, because of Japan's war effort, agriculture, industry and commerce suffered on Taiwan as the island was made into a naval and air base. Tens of thousands of Taiwanese served in Japan's military while over 2,000 women were forced into sexual slavery. After Japan's surrender, most of Taiwan's 300,000 Japanese residents were sent back to Japan.

### **Republic of China (1945 - 1949)**

While the island of Taiwan itself was under Japanese rule, the Republic of China was founded on the Chinese mainland on January 1, 1912, after the Xinhai Revolution, which ended almost two thousands years of Chinese imperial rule. It was based in mainland China until 1949, when it was pushed off the mainland by the People's Republic of China.

The Chinese Civil War began before World War II but was halted when Japan invaded, forcing the two warring Chinese factions into a tense alliance. After Japan's defeat, the Civil War began again, ending in a Nationalist defeat, with the ROC's government retreating to Taiwan in 1949.

### **Republic of China on Taiwan (1949 - present)**

Martial law was declared by the Kuomintang in May 1949 and was not repealed until 38 years later, all the way in 1987. Taiwan became an authoritarian nation during this time, much like its mainland neighbor. From the late 1970s to the 1980s, the government reformed and transformed into a democracy.

The first opposition party against the Kuomintang, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), was formed in 1986 but lost the first direct presidential election in 1996.

After the turn of the century, Taiwan continued to develop, albeit with tensions with its mainland neighbor, the PRC. In 2023, after the onset of the Sino-Korean War, Taiwan, along with the United States, sent support to Korea. In return, around a year later, the PRC attempted to invade and capture Taiwan, but was held off by a combined Taiwanese, American, Korean, and Japanese force. In the present, Taiwan, like its neighbors, is still recovering from the conflict.