Review: The Contested Political History of Taiwan

Picture drawed by tacat

Introduction

The political conflict between China and Taiwan has existed since 1949. The current government of China, officially called the People’s Republic of China, has been established since 1949. On the other hand, the government of Taiwan, officially the Republic of China, was established by Sun Yat-Sen in 1912. In fact, both countries originated in Mainland China. However, after the Chinese Civil War (1927 to 1950), the China government was split into two parts led by two political parties, the Kuomintang of China and the Communist Party of China. The Kuomintang retreated to Taiwan, and the the Communist Party founded the People’s Republic of China.

First Opium War (1840–1842)

During the early 1700s, pirates had begun to control the Pacific trade routes, so the Qing imperial government, which ruled Mainland China, blockaded all the ports in China in order to fight against the pirates in the Pacific. At that time, China exported a variety of goods to Britain such as tea, ceramics, and silk, causing Britain’s trading economy to sustain a large trade deficit. In an effort to reduce the trade deficit, the British government sent representatives to China to negotiate a trade treaty to export British goods to China. However, the Qing imperial government rejected their request and…