Wednesday, December 19, 2007

Chinese School - Early Development from Three Kingdoms to the Yuan

CHINA / Backgrounder

Early Development from Three Kingdoms to the Yuan

(chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2003-07-21 19:03

In 230, King Sun Quan of the Kingdom of Wu sent 10,000 troops, led by
generals Wei Wen and Zhuge Zhi, to Yizhou (Taiwan). Their starting point
was Piling (near present-day Changzhou). This is the earliest historical
record of large-scale mainland exploration of Taiwan.

From 607 to 610 Emperor Yangdi of the Sui Dynasty dispatched three squads
of envoys from Yi'an Prefecture (near present-day Shantou) to Taiwan. The
first group was led by cavalry commandant, Zhu Kuan, and marine
commandant, He Man. They had been commissioned to search for tribes
living outside the mainland. They arrived in Liuqiu (present-day Taiwan)
in 607. The second year, the emperor sent Zhu Kuan to the island to
convey his goodwill. In 610, court officials Chen Leng and Zhang Zhenzhou
arrived in Liuqiu with more than 10,000 troops.

From the latter period of the Tang Dynasty to the Northern Song Dynasty
(960-1127), the economic center in the mainland moved southward, and the
increasing population along the southeastern coast put great pressure on
its farmland. This factor, together with incessant wars, forced many
people to migrate to Penghu and Taiwan.

During the Southern Song Dynasty (mid-12th century), the government
already had troops garrisoned and civilians living in Penghu. According
to the Records of the Tribes, Penghu was under the administration of
Jinjiang County, Fujian Province. In 1290 the Yuan Dynasty set up a
military inspectorate in Penghu to administer civil affairs in Taiwan and
Penghu, which were then under the jurisdiction of Jinjiang, Fujian
Province. By that time, Taiwan and Penghu were already formally part of
China's administrative area.

Early development of Taiwan began during the Three Kingdoms period.
According to the records of the Three Kingdoms, Sun Quan, ruler of the
Kingdom of Wu, dispatched an army to Taiwan in 230 A.D., led by generals
Wei Wen and Zhuge Zhi. They brought back to the mainland several thousand
local Taiwan residents. This is the earliest record of mainland
exploration in Taiwan. During the Sui Dynasty (581-618), Emperor Yangdi
sent three groups of envoys to Taiwan, the third in 610, when court
officials Chen Leng and Zhang Zhenzhou led an army to Taiwan. They
brought back several thousand local residents who settled in Fulushan,
Fuzhou. In the Tang Dynasty (618-907), people on the southeastern coast
began to migrate to Penghu and Taiwan. Around 1290, the Yuan Dynasty
established a military inspectorate to administer civil affairs in Penghu
and Taiwan, which were placed under the jurisdiction of Jinjiang County,
Fujian Province. During this period, the natives of Taiwan, mainly the
Gaoshan ethnic group, lived by primitive farming and fishing.

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