Uhrshawan Battery

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Fort Santo Domingo
Keelung, Taiwan
Type Fort
Built 1840
Built by Qing Empire
Construction
materials		 Stone
In use 1840-1895
Events Sino-French War
Japanese Invasion of Taiwan

Uhrshawan Battery (Traditional Chinese: 二沙灣砲台), or better known as Tenable Gate of the Sea (Traditional Chinese: 海門天險; hai-men-tien-hsien) is a battery emplacements camp in Keelung, Taiwan. It was built during Qing Empire's rule of Taiwan, and was the site of fightings between the French and Chinese forces during Sino-French War. It was the command post of Liu Ming-chuan (Traditional Chinese: 劉銘傳), who was later appointed by Qing court as the first governor of Taiwan, when he was charged with the defense of Keelung during the war. It has lost its military value under the Japanese regime, and is currently listed as a class one national historical monument.

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[edit] History

The battery was first constructed in 1840 by Yao Ying (Traditional Chinese: 姚瑩), disciplinary officer of the Qing garrison in Taiwan. It was originally located by the sea, and was used by the garrison to fend off British assaults during the Opium War.[1] It was part of the Taiwan Seventeen Fortification Plan (Traditional Chinese: 台灣十七口設防圖說狀), which Yao composed and presented to the Qing court.[2]

The fortification that exists today, however, is not at the seaside. When the Sino-French War broke in 1884, Liu Ming-chuan, who was in charge of defense of Keelung, constructed a battery at the present day location with materials cannibalized from the older fortification, and used it as a major strong point in his defense plan. It sustained many French attack, and was eventually abandoned after a French assault at Tamsui threaten to overrun the defenses centered around Taipei. The battery was subsequently occupied by the French, who later destroyed it before their withdrawal. The French also built a cemetery close by, where 500 French fallen were buried. The cemetery still exists today.[3]

After Taiwan was ceded to Japan in 1895, the battery lost its significance as a military base, and fell into despair. It was later classified as class one national historical monument by the Republic of China government, who took control of Taiwan at the conclusion of World War II.

[edit] Layout

[edit] Function and Services

[edit] References

  1. ^ 基隆．二沙灣砲台(海門天險)．基隆失守答辯[1]
  2. ^ 海門天險[2]
  3. ^ 基隆．二沙灣砲台(海門天險)．基隆失守答辯[3]

[edit] See also

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Forts in Taiwan
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