The end of the first Sino-Japanese war, saw a modernized Japan defeat it's centuries old
Continental rival.
While it'd be another decade before Europeans powers really took notice and meaning of this
development, it's effects were felt locally for over a generation to come.
One region where this clash of rivalries had the largest impact, wasn't in China itself,
but in one of its regions specifically.
The Island of Taiwan.
The island of Taiwan was ceded to the Japanese following the 1894 treaty, but the local populace,
and Qing royalists, refused to give in.
Instead, they fought for their own independence.
This bout for independence, would establish one of the first republicans in Asia and produced
the largest battle ever fought on Taiwanese soil.
It's a tale largely forgotten, and it should be remembered.
So in today's episode, we will be looking at the 1895, Japanese invasion of Taiwan.
Taiwan came under Qing control back in 1683, after a brutal campaign by Qing officials,
beat back the multitude of indigenous tribes, tribal kingdoms, and European colonies that
existed on the island.
During the two hundred year reign, constant rebellions by the native peoples plagued the
island The frequency of rebellions, riots, and civil strife in Taiwan was noted by a
Chinese official as "every three years an uprising; every five years a rebellion".
Northern Taiwan and the Penghu Islands saw occupation during the European wars waged
against the Qing Empire.
During the 1884 Sino-French war, The French had occupied northern Taiwan, largely based
out of the city of Keelug, and occupied the Pescadores island chain, which was originally
intended to be used as a stepping stone for an invasion of Southern China.
to both them and Taiwan in the ensuing peace.
The Treaty of Shimonoseki which ended the first Sino-Japanese war, had a clause that
gave these lands to the Japanese, even if the latter wasn't under occupation.
This was accepted by the Qing government, Yet, a number of nobles on the island, headed
by Qiu Fengjia, decided to resist this attempted annexation by declaring their own independence.
The Republic of Formosa would be proclaimed on May the 23rd of 1895, with the former governor
general Tang Jingsong acting as president.
They attempted to court international support, and while the Republic had some support from
aspects of the French government, it ultimately led to nothing, nor did the Chinese Authorities
in Peking, seek to engage in the Republic, even if a handful of local warlords did what
they could in supporting them.
The new nation, with some support from Chinese warlords, worked fast to build up its military
forces, for the eventual Japanese invasion that they knew would come.
On the 29th of May, 7,000 Japanese imperial guard troops, under the command of Prince
Kitashirakawa Yoshihisa, made a landing at the small village of audi, several miles to
the east of Keelung, and marched overland in an attempt to capture the city.
The first major action would take place five days later at Sui-hong, routing the Chinese
forces that were guarding the countryside.
Keelung, the city that held out against the French for months, fell the next day with
minimal Japanese losses.
The moral of these Chinese troops utterly gone, and them merely wanting to return home.
With the fall of Keelung, the government of the Republic quickly fled, with most returning
to the Chinese mainland on June the 6th, leaving the new republic, with no ordered leadership,
and leaving the countrymen, to fend off the invaders alone.
Their flight from the capital of Taipai, resulted in utter chaos, with soldiers threatening
to fire upon the ship that the government officials were on, unless they paid a high
bribe to let them pass.
The heavily defended forts that were recently built, were left abandoned by the Qing garrison,
and the Japanese manged to enter the city of Taipai on June the 8th, without needing
to fire a single shot.
It was expected that the capture of the capital city would end the war.
But, hopes for an early end to the war proved to be premature.
By the end of June, it was clear that all the island's main towns would have to be occupied
before opposition to the invasion collapsed.
Popular resistance to the Japanese gradually grew among the countryside following the fall
of Taipai, and on June the 26th, the presidency of the Republic was assumed by Liu Yongfu
in Tainan.
This gesture, which effectively transferred the republics capital from Taipei to Tainan,
prolonged the new nations life for another five months.
So far, the Japanese had been fighting Qing regular troops, most of whom wanted merely
to leave the soil of Taiwan and return to mainland China as soon as possible.
They had little stomach for fighting the Japanese, and made no attempt to defeat them when they
did fight.
Now however, locally recruited Formosan troops began to take the lead in the fighting against
the Japanese, giving stubborn resistance and even turning back the Japanese across the
island and guerrilla bands in the rear of the Japanese lines, plagued supply and travel.
Any small groups of soldiers, or under protected supply caravans, would be ambushed, and massacred.
The retaliation by the invaders, of burning down whole villages and killing the inhabitants,
largely just hardened the resolve of the guerrilla fighters.
The next major Japanese objective on the route south was the walled city of Changhua.
The Formosans had massed their forces there to fight a defensive battle, and Liu Yongfu,
the commander of the militia forces, had reinforced the militia with a number of elite Black Flag
units from his southern army.
The capture of Changhua was a formidable proposition for the Japanese.
The heights of Baguashan, to the north of the city, were fortified, and defended by
strong artillery positions.
During the night of 26 August, the Japanese crossed the Toa-to-kei river, and at dawn,
Japanese columns made a surprise attack on the artillery batteries and Changhua.
Resulting in the battle of Baguashan.
The largest battle to take place on Taiwanese soil and was the decisive engagement of the
invasion.
The Formosan loss here doomed the Republic to an early defeat.
While the Japanese were unable to advance after this due to a major outbreak of malaria,
the militia units didn't have the ability to win pitched battles after this conflict,
and largely focused on doing as much damage through guerrilla fighting as they could.
The next major battle, occurred at Chiayi on October the ninth, and was the last major
pitched battle of the campaign, 3,000 militia units were backed by 600 black flag units,
armed with artillery and machine guns.
After a preliminary bombardment, the Japanese scaled the walls and broke into the city,
scattering the defenders while only taking a handful of casualties.
The following day, discouraged by the news of the fall of Chiayi, Liu Yongfu made an
offer of conditional surrender to the Japanese.
He asked that no Formosan should be punished for having taken up arms against the Japanese,
and that all Chinese soldiers still in Taiwan be repatriated to the mainland.
When asked to board a ship to discuss peace terms, Yongfu instead refused, and under disguise,
left for the mainland himself on a British steamer.
The Japanese stopped the steamer, and ended up arresting Yongfu, plus a number of his
cabinet, albeit not knowing who he was.
They were later released on the mainland, after a British complaint, on the same day
that the capital of the Formosan Republic, fell to the Japanese, ending all serious resistance
to the invasion, and putting in an era, under fifty years of Japanese rule.
Yet, this wouldn't be the end of unrest on the island, and the Taiwanese people, would
continue to resist the Japanese until they were forced to give up the island post WW2.
But, that is a topic, for another time.