When did the Qing Dynasty settle in Taiwan?

The political situation in the early years of Kangxi

Kangxi ascended the throne at a young age. What he inherited was a country that had been torn apart by wars, a declining economy, a weak country and a poor people, and a divided country.

As Kangxi gradually came of age, he first captured Oboi, seized power, and eliminated hidden worries within the court. Then he concentrated his efforts on dealing with Wu Sangui, Shang Kexi, Geng Jingzhong and other three southern feudal lords. After eight years of hard fighting, Wu Sangui was put down. After the San Francisco rebellion, taking advantage of the remaining power of victory, they once again turned their attention to Taiwan. Kangxi's unification of Taiwan was a complex process that alternated between war and negotiation. It was a long-term struggle of strength, wisdom and winning people's hearts.

War and talks with Taiwan

In the first year of Kangxi (1662), Zheng Chenggong regained Taiwan and expelled the Dutch invaders. He died of illness soon after and internal disputes broke out. The Qing Dynasty took the opportunity to send envoys in an attempt to persuade Zheng Chenggong's son Zheng Jing to surrender to the Qing Dynasty. In order to reduce the pressure, Zheng Jing negotiated with the Qing Dynasty and handed over the imperial edict and seal given by the Nanming Emperor. The Qing Dynasty asked Taiwanese people to move back to the mainland, shave their hair and change clothes, but Zheng Jing refused and the negotiations failed. In the second year of Kangxi (1663), the Qing Dynasty sent troops to attack Xiamen, the last stronghold of the Zheng family on the mainland. Zheng Jing was defeated, withdrew from Xiamen and fled to Taiwan. Taking advantage of the victory, the Qing Dynasty sent its fleet to Taiwan, but encountered a typhoon at sea and the ship sank, returning without success.

Although the two sides of the Taiwan Strait were in armed confrontation at that time, they both had a certain desire for peace. The three vassals of the Qing Dynasty had not been eliminated, the economy was unstable, and it was unable to use military force at sea. As for the Zheng family in Taiwan, the land was newly established, the population was very small, production was backward, the economy was difficult, and they were in urgent need of food and material supplies from the mainland. Moreover, most of Zheng's people are from Fujian. They have been away from home for a long time and miss their hometown. There is an endless stream of people who cross the sea privately and come back. In the sixth year of Kangxi (1667), the Qing government sent General Kong Yuanzhang to Taiwan to negotiate peace and promised that if Zheng Jing surrendered, he would be granted the title of "Eight King of Fujian". Zheng Jing was hesitant and later said, "The policy of peace negotiation cannot last long, and the ambition of the previous king is too great." "Don't fall" ("Hai Ji Ji Yao"), and refused the Qing Dynasty's appeasement. After Kangxi came to power, Xingbu Shangshu Mingzhu was ordered to go to Fujian to preside over the peace talks. He sent the prefect Mu Tianyan to Taiwan to declare his intention to appease. The Qing government made major concessions and allowed the Zheng family to establish a vassal state and defend Taiwan for the rest of their lives. Zheng Jingze proposed: "If you can follow the Korean example, not cut off your hair, call yourself a minister and pay tribute, and respect the great meaning of the matter, then it will be fine" (Jiang Risheng's "Taiwan Foreign Notes"). Kangxi replied: "If Zheng Jing is nostalgic for Taiwan and doesn't want to abandon it, he can do whatever he wants. As for not shaving his hair and being willing to pay tribute and surrender to Korea, I cannot agree to it. The Korean family has never owned a foreign country, and Zheng Jing is a Chinese. "(The third volume of "Historical Materials of the Ming and Qing Dynasties"). Kangxi did not want Taiwan to become a country independent of China, so the negotiations broke down.

After that, the San Francisco Rebellion broke out, and the Central Plains was filled with war. Zheng Jing took the opportunity to collude with Wu Sangui and Geng Jingzhong to occupy Xiamen, Zhangzhou, Quanzhou, Chaozhou and Huizhou. After several years of fighting, Wu Sangui failed, and Zheng Jing was unable to support his army alone, so he returned to Taiwan. The Qing Dynasty once again strived for negotiations. Zheng Jing once again requested that "please follow the example of Ryukyu and Goryeo." However, Kangxi firmly disagreed. Both sides held their own positions and the negotiations yielded no results.

Decision and selection of generals

Soon, Zheng Jing died of illness, and his son Zheng Ke succeeded to the throne. The Qing court discussed how to solve the Taiwan issue, and many people opposed the use of force to conquer Taiwan. Kangxi eliminated many objections and decided to adopt the policy of "suppression and appeasement" to "determine the maritime borders."

Taiwan is located in the sea, with vast turbulent waves, and battles require naval forces. The Manchu soldiers are skilled in horse riding, but not in water warfare, so they must choose another general and train their soldiers. Li Guangdi and Fujian Governor Yao Qisheng recommended Shi Langke for this important task.

Shi Lang, a native of Jinjiang, Fujian Province, has a brave strategy. In his early years, he served under Zheng Zhilong (Editor's note: Zheng Zhilong is the father of Zheng Chenggong), and later followed Zhilong to the Qing Dynasty. Zheng Chenggong killed his father, son, brother and nephew, and formed a deep hatred. Shi Lang had fought with the Zheng family in Fujian for many years. He understood the situation in Taiwan and was familiar with the maneuvers of the navy and the changes in sea waves. He always advocated conquering Taiwan, but because he was once a subordinate of the Zheng family, the Qing government did not trust him, so he was placed in Beijing to live in idleness for thirteen years.

Kangxi decided to appoint Shi Lang as admiral of the Fujian Navy. The governor of Fujian, Yao Qisheng, was only responsible for the logistics supply and worked closely with Shi Lang to ensure the supply of food and materials for Shi Lang's expedition.

Battle and aftermath

On June 14, the 22nd year of Kangxi (July 8, 1683), Shi Lang led more than 20,000 troops and took more than 200 warships. Go to war. Zheng Ke sent the brave Liu Guoxuan to guard Penghu, and his troops and warships were equal to Shi Lang's. The two armies fought fiercely for seven days and nights. Shi Lang was injured in his right eye, and guerrilla Lanli was shot. "The abdomen was ruptured and the intestines flowed out. In order to scoop up the abdomen, he held the horse and practiced binding the wounds. Li ordered the thieves to be killed, and the troops marched forward" ("Manuscript of the History of the Qing Dynasty") Volume 260 1. Biography of Lang Li). In the Battle of Penghu, Zheng's army was defeated. The Qing army sank 159 enemy ships, and Zheng's army suffered 12,000 casualties and corpses scattered across the sea. Liu Guoxuan only escaped back to Taiwan with 31 ships.

Penghu was defeated, Zheng Ke and others were extremely panicked. Shi Lang carried out political struggle work, treated the captured Taiwanese soldiers with courtesy and rewarded them with silver rice. After 800 disabled people were treated, they were released back to Taiwan, and they were asked to declare their intention to appease the people. The Taiwanese people "disintegrated and returned to their hearts, lest (Editor's note: This work is for fear) that Wang Shizhi would not come early" (Ruan Xi's "Records of Sights and Sounds at Sea"). The Zheng family had no ability to resist. On July 27, they surrendered to the Qing army and submitted the gold seal of King Yanping and the household registration and land register. Kangxi accepted the surrender and gave preferential treatment to the Zheng family, saying: "All of your previous crimes of rebellion will be pardoned. You will still be recorded in a favorable manner." (Volume 111 of "Records of the Holy Ancestors of the Qing Dynasty").

All the Zheng family members were properly accommodated. Taiwan was reunified.

In the 23rd year of Kangxi (1684), the Qing government established Taiwan Prefecture and the three counties of Taiwan, Fengshan, and Zhuluo, under the jurisdiction of Fujian Province. They stationed 10,000 troops and officials in Taiwan and Peng each. Through governance and fortification, the island of Taiwan was unified under the Qing government.