China and Taiwan: Their Grand Histories and Relationship Explained
Disclaimer:
To remain nonpartisan, I have split each of the following sections into two parts, one that relays events from China’s perspective and one that relays events from Taiwan’s perspective.
Note: To find my source for a particular piece of information, click any underlined text or scroll to the bottom of the article to review all of my sources.
Table of Contents
Section One: China
1. Basic Facts About China
2. A Brief History of China
Section Two: Taiwan
1. Basic Facts About Taiwan
2. A Brief History of Taiwan
Section Three:
1. The Conflict Between China and Taiwan
Section Four: Sources
Section One: China
1. Basic Facts About China
China is also known as The People’s Republic of China (PRC, 1949).
Location:
China is located in East Asia and is the largest country on the continent if Russia is not included.
Note:
“Russia is considered to be both in Europe and Asia with 23 percent in Europe and 77 percent in Asia.”
The Flag’s Meaning
According to Edarabia, “The red represents China’s communist revolution whereas the five stars are interpreted as a unification of the country’s people under the communist party.”
Capital:
Beijing (also known as Peking, pronounced [pee-king]).
Government Form:
The Communist Party of China has been the only political party of China since the PRC’s founding in 1949; although, whether China is truly a communist nation is debated. It is labeled as one of the five remaining communist countries, but many scholars proclaim China to be socialist and even capitalist. As an example, Ann Lee, an American professor and writer says,
“The US spends a larger percentage of its GDP on federal government than China does.”
The Top Five Most Spoken Languages in China:
- Mandarin
- Wu
- Yue (Cantonese)
- Xiang
- Min
Majority Ethnic Group:
The Han Chinese ( 91.6% of the total population).
Religions:
Wealth:
What is GDP According to Investopedia?
“Gross domestic product (GDP) is the total monetary or market value of all the finished goods and services produced within a country’s borders in a specific time period.”
China’s GDP is $14.34 trillion (2019) according to the World Bank and is the second wealthiest country (below America), but if you have never taken an economics class, that number might not mean much, so I’ve included a small comparison below.
The United States’ GDP: $21.43 trillion (2019)
China’s GDP: $14.34 trillion (2019)
The poorest country in South America, Haiti’s, GDP: $8.499 billion (2019)
The poorest country in Africa, Burundi’s, GDP: $3.012 billion (2019)
But while China holds the spot of Second Largest GDP, their urban-rural income gap is also large. Currently, there is a debate of whether China is rich or poor.
Administrative Regions:
Hong Kong and Macau are administrative regions while Tibet and technically Taiwan are also autonomous regions of China.
Fun Fact: Tibet is called “the roof of the world” because it is the most elevated region on Earth.
Allies:
Interesting Facts:
- They are one of the five permanent members of the United Nation’s Security Council.
- The Chinese were the first to invent chopsticks under the Shang Dynasty.
- China is a New Asian Tiger.
- There is a law titled the “Elderly Rights Law” which says that children with parents over sixty must regularly visit their aging parents. BBC states, “The law says adults should care about their parents ‘spiritual needs’ and ‘never neglect or snub elderly people’.” However, it is criticized for its vagueness; the plan does not even say how often a child should visit their parent(s).
This law reflects the longstanding influence of Confucius, a philosopher and politician who lived during the Warring States period who preached Filial piety, which is respecting one’s parents, elders, and ancestors.
2. A Brief History of China
China is considered one of the four ancient civilizations along with the Babylonian, Mayan, and Egyptian empires.
The first known inhabitants of present-day China were the Homo erectus (an extinct large-brained hominid) who lived 1.36 million years ago and who have been linked to recently discovered stone tools.
There were three main rivers that contributed to the formation and growth of China: The Yellow, Yangtze, and Pearl. These rivers were ideal for growing rice, a staple food of the nearby tribes. In late Neolithic times, the Yellow river became the center for two tribes that predated the first Chinese Dynasty, the Xia.
The Xia Dynasty (c. 2070–1600 BC)
Pronounced [Chee-Uh]
The existence of the Xia Dynasty is a topic of debate among scholars and historians. There is little evidence that the Xia dynasty was real except writings such as the Classic of History and Records of the Grand Historian; however, recent geological evidence has corroborated a small fraction of the myth.
The first dynastic ruler of what would become China, Yu the Engineer/Great, is said to have developed “a flood control technique that stopped the Great Flood” and the destruction of many crops; as a result, Yu was awarded a leadership position. Click here to watch Crash Course explain the flood myth and how Yu (possibly) became China’s first dynastic ruler.
The Shang Dynasty (c. 1600–1050 BC)
Unlike the Xia, the Shang Dynasty has archeological evidence that proves their existence. Because of this, some historians consider the Shang to be the first Chinese dynasty.
After the last leader of the Xia dynasty (supposedly a tyrant) was defeated by a tribal chief, Tang, the Shang dynasty was formed. Interestingly, Jie, the Xia leader was not actually killed in the uprising, but died from an illness after the battle.
Accomplishments:
The Shang used calendars, created intricate bronze statues, and wrote in an early form of Chinese that archeologists discovered on tortious shells and cattle bone.
The Zhou Dynasty (1046 BC — 256 BC)
Pronounced [Jow]
The Shang Dynasty was marked by yet another tyrannous ruler and “was considered a cruel leader who enjoyed torturing people.” When the future ruler, the first Zhou ruler, King Wu, led his slave army to battle for control, Shang soldiers refused to fight — some even joined the Zhou in the coup.
Accomplishments:
- It was the longest dynasty which lasted for 790 years.
- Confucius lived during the Zhou Dynasty, therefore it is considered the Golden Age of Chinese Philosophy. The philosophies created during this time are known as the Hundred Schools of Thought.(Daoism was also a budding philosophy).
- Major irrigation networks were engineered and instituted for the first time which increased crop yields.
- The Art of War was written.
- Cross bows were introduced.
Warfare broke out during a time known as the Warring States Period (481/403 BCE — 221 BCE) in which states were annexed and split over the course of many battles. The three major forces of the war were the Qin, Jin and Qi. Eventually, the groups would be united under Qin.
The Qin Dynasty (221 to 206 BC)
Pronounced [Chin]
The Qin Dynasty was the first to unify China as a state although they were considered barbaric by the Zhou because they still practiced human sacrifice. Shang Yang, the Chancellor, was an advocator for the unification of Chinese States. It is considered to be the beginning of the Chinese Empire.
Accomplishments:
- A universalized text was created to enable speaking between different portions of China.
- The Great Wall of China, which extended over 4,000 miles, was built to ensure that China remained protected from Mongolian tribes.
The Qin Dynasty was the shortest in Chinese history (only lasting a little over fifteen years).
The Han Dynasty (206 B.C. to 220 A.D.)
The Han Dynasty is known as the Golden Age of China because of advancements in science, art, and culture. It is characterized by the government’s endorsement of “Confucianism as the state religion and opening the Silk Road trade route to Europe.”
Accomplishments:
- Paper was invented.
- The Silk Road was opened, and effects of the diffusion of culture can still be seen today. For example, Buddhism spread to China via the Silk Road.
- Schools were build “to promote literacy so that the classic texts of Chinese thought might be studied.” This is an effect of the state’s endorsement of Confucianism.
- The Han created a professional army.
Thus, when the Han Dynasty fell, and no one group was powerful enough to reunify China, it was divided into three empires (Wei, Shu, and Wu) which existed during the Three Kingdoms Period. Although the population plummeted, falling from 50 million to 16 million, and is considered one of the bloodiest eras in Chinese History, it has often remembered as a time of honor, and is an era commonly romanticized in Chinese culture.
The Sui Dynasty (581–618)
Pronounced [Sue-ee]
Although a brief dynasty, there are four distinct markers of the era:
- Confucianism lost traction; Taoism and Buddhism flourished.
- “It is thought that the legend of Hua Mulan was composed during this time.”
- Their army became the largest in the world.
- They united a divided north and south China.
When an invasion of the Korean Peninsula failed, so did the dynasty.
Tang Dynasty (618–906)
Also known as the Golden Age of China because of advancements in the arts and culture, the Tang Dynasty was the high point of China’s power. Empress Wu, a concubine of a former ruler, Taizong, led China during this time despite Gaozong, the son of Taizong officially holding power. After Gaozong passed away in 683 AD, Wu proclaimed herself Empress.
Accomplishments:
- The world’s earliest printed book was made.
- Gunpower and porcelain production was refined.
- China became the largest country in the world.
- The first criminal code of China was created.
- The Tang Dynasty is also considered the pinnacle of literature creation in China. Read about this in Britannica’s article.
There would be a fifty-year gap between the end of the Tang and Song Dynasties. This period is known as the Five Dynasties Period, Ten Kingdoms (907–960) named so because “In north China, 5 would-be dynasties followed one another in succession. During the same period, 10 regimes dominated separate regions of south China.”
The Song Dynasty (960–1279)
China was once again reunified under one emperor — Emperor Taizu.
Accomplishments:
- Because of a shortage of copper, China turned from using copper coins to paper currency — the first country to do so.
- A formal navy was established.
- The compass was invented.
- Several iconic structures such as the Iron Pagoda at Kaifeng, Liaodi Pagoda at Dingzhou, and Liuhe Pagoda in Hangzhou were built.
The Yuan Dynasty (1279–1368)
Pronounced [Ooh-an]
The Yuan Dynasty is glaringly different from the other dynasties because it was established by Mongols. The leader, Kublai Khan was the grandson of Genghis Khan. Kublai was the first leader to rule China who was not Chinese.
Achievements:
- The classic art of crafting white and blue Jingdezhen porcelain began and became popular.
- Exploding gunpowder-filled shell bombs were made.
Fun Fact:
The basic unit of money in China is called the Yuan.
The Ming Dynasty (1368–1644)
Zhu Yuanzhang, a Buddhist monk and peasant, was the first leader of the Ming Dynasty. After being forced to leave the monastery because of financial reasons, Zhu joined an insurgency group that was fighting to overthrow the Yuan. Eventually, the last leader of the Yuan dynasty fled to the North of Mongolia and the Ming Dynasty began.
The Ming dynasty fell when the Manchus were called upon by the Ming Dynasty to help reclaim their capital, Beijing, but instead of reclaiming the capital for the Ming Dynasty, they seized the capital as their own and thus began the Qing Dynasty.
Accomplishments:
- The population of China doubled during the dynasty’s rule.
- “The most comprehensive book on traditional Chinese medicine was written.”
- Much of the existing Great Wall today is a result of the restoration during the Ming Dynasty.
The Qing Dynasty (1644–1912)
Pronounced [Ching]
The Qing, Manchurians, were the leaders of the last imperial dynasty.
Accomplishments:
- Peking opera became popular.
- Blue and white porcelain continued as both a classic and popular form of art.
- Woodblock color printing was improved.
- After battling Russia, an official northern border was established.
- ⅓ of the world’s population lived in China during Qing rule.
The Opium Wars, Sino-Japanese War, and the Boxer Rebellion all occurred during Qing rule and all resulted in the defeat of China. Eventually, rebellion groups sprouted inside the country which ultimately led to the fall of the last imperial dynasty.
Opium Wars (1839–1842): Click here to watch a video on the conflict.
Sino-Japanese Wars (1894–95): Click here for the first war and click here for the second.
The Boxer Rebellion: Click here to watch a video on the conflict.
After reading the history of China, it becomes apparent why the One-China Policy is so adamantly preached by the PRC.
Section Two: Taiwan
1. Basic Facts About Taiwan
Taiwan is also known as the Republic of China (ROC, 1945).
Location:
Taiwan is located in East Asia off the coast of China in the Pacific ocean. It is about one-hundred miles of China.
The Flag’s Meaning:
Taiwan’s flag represents the “Three Principles of the People of the Nationalist Party — nationalism, democracy, and socialism.” The sun and blue square is the party’s flag while the red represents China’s ethnic majority, the Han Chinese.
Capital: Taipei
The Qing Dynasty declared Taipei to be the temporary capital of the island after the Han Chinese started to migrate in the 19th century, but it was declared permanent in 1949.
Type of Government
“Taiwan is a multiparty representative democratic republic whose head of state is the president.”
Taiwan has five branches (Yuan) of government: executive, legislative, judicial, examination, and control. The first three branches operate much like the American branches; they are in charge of making, enforcing, and interpreting laws. The examination yuan is responsible for assessing civil servants and their qualifications, and the control Yuan is responsible for monitoring the public officials
Languages:
The official language of Taiwan is Mandarin (consisting of two forms): Standard, and Taiwanese (Hokkien).
The two most popular foreign languages are English and Japanese. As a world language, English is taught in Taiwanese schools, while Japanese is known primarily by the older population because Taiwan used to belong to Japan as a colony.
The Majority Ethnic Group:
As previously mentioned, the Han Chinese are the primary ethnic group in Taiwan. The Taiwanese flag has a red background in honor of the island’s main ethnic group.
What is Taiwan’s GDP?
$635.5 billion (2019)
(Scroll back to the China section and look under “Wealth” to understand what GDP is)
Territories:
Known as the Free Area of the Republic of China, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu are all territories of Taiwan.
Allies:
In the words of the U.S Department of State, “The United States and Taiwan enjoy a robust unofficial relationship.”
The U.S Department of State also said the following:
“The United States has maintained and enhanced its commercial ties with Taiwan since 1979. Taiwan is the United States’ ninth largest trading partner, and the United States is Taiwan’s second largest trading partner.”
Interesting Facts:
- Taiwan is an Old Asian Tiger.
- They are in the Ring of Fire, “The zone of volcanic activity surrounding the Pacific Ocean.”
- Before 1590, the Chinese referred to Taiwan as “a mudball across the sea, not worthy of China” according to Christopher L. Salter and Charles F. Gritzner.
- Garbage trucks in Taiwan play Fur Elise to announce their presence when they arrive at houses to pick up garbage. (This is completely and utterly true).
2. A Brief History of Taiwan
Click on this link to watch a detailed and incredibly well-filmed video on the history of Taiwan.
Discovery
The first record of Chinese exploration of Taiwan goes back to 239 CE when a boat was sent to explore the island (which was settled only one-hundred and twelve miles off the mainland) for the first time.
Early Interactions
605- A boat was sent to the island and aboriginals were brought back to China where they learned to communicate with the mainland.
(1206–1368)- The Yuan Dynasty claimed the Taiwan Strait islands as their own.
1430- A Ming dynasty explorer, Zheng He, traveled to Taiwan and received herbal medicines that were supposedly magical.
Pirates in Taiwan
Zheng Chenggong (Guoxingye) was born in Japan to Japanese parents in 1624. When he was seven, he moved with his father to the Chinese town of Fujian after the Ming Dynasty gave his father a position defending China’s waters. When the Ming Dynasty fell under the uprising of the Qing in 1944, Guoxingye, already a gifted sailor, patrolled China’s waters as if he were still under Ming’s rule and even recruited 100,000 men who went on a military campaign up the Yangtze River in the hopes of restoring the Ming Dynasty. He was eventually forced to retreat, and with the weakening of Ming supporters, he decided to take 25,000 men and fight the Dutch for control of Taiwan in 1661. Taiwan was chosen because of its strategic location that could have been useful in another invasion of the mainland. The Dutch, when they lost control to Guoxingye, were allowed to leave with their belongings. Guoxingye’s next plan was to invade the Philippines and overthrow Spanish rule but died in 1662.
In 1875, in admiration of his loyalty, the Qing Dynasty constructed a temple to him on the island.
He is revered in both Taiwan and China and is one of the few subjects that the PRC and ROC both respect: “Nationalists on Taiwan for his determination to restore proper Chinese rule and from the communists on the mainland mainly for his great victory over Western (Dutch) imperialism.”
Dutch Rule
Taiwan, also called by the Dutch name, Formosa, was under Dutch rule from 1624–1662 and from 1664–1668. More accurately, Formosa was under the Dutch East India Company’s control, as the location of Taiwan meant that it was a perfect trading post for the Dutch to trade with both the Ming Dynasty and Japan. As a bonus, the island allowed the Dutch to regulate the trade relationship that the Spanish and Portuguese had built with China. The Dutch had tried to trade with China in 1601, but were rejected because of trade with the Portuguese. While in Formosa, the Dutch worked to establish Christianity on the island as the main religion and attempted to abolish some aspects of native culture such as head hunting, forced abortions, and public nakedness.
There had been a small community of Han Chinese on the island (now the dominate ethnicity) among a larger population of aboriginals, but in 1662, Ming loyalists fled mainland China to escape Manchurian conquest and drove the Dutch from the island to establish control. During this time, large numbers of Han Chinese migrated to Taiwan. However, Ming rule only lasted twenty years until the Qing Dynasty later took Taiwan; Qing’s rule over the island lasted for 200 years.
Under Japan’s Rule
During the First Sino-Japanese War (a battle for control over influence in Joseon Korea fought between the Japanese and Qing Dynasty, resulting in a humiliating defeat of the Chinese) the Japanese were awarded Taiwan in a treaty after winning the war and controlled the island until 1945, after losing WWII.
The people of the Taiwan had been reluctant for Japanese rule, leading to five months of resistance fighting, and the forceful assimilation of Taiwan’s inhabitants into Japanese culture.
Taiwan During WWII
During WWII, 200,000 Taiwanese men fought for Japan — 40,000 died. Just before the end of World War II, a document was signed at the Cairo Conference (a conference in which decisions were made about postwar Asia by the Allies), that outlined the postwar status of Taiwan. It read, “All the territories Japan has stolen from the Chinese…shall be restored to China.” This includes Taiwan. This posed a problem not only because a new leader was yet again invading Taiwan, but also because Taiwan was more advanced than mainland China, benefiting from Japan’s industrializing.
The 228 Incident and White Terror Under the Republic of China’s Rule (1912–1949)
The ROC was the government of China prior to their relocation to Taiwan in 1949. It was also known as the the Kuomintang (KMT).
In mainland China, conflict between the nationalists and communists was growing. By the end of 1938, over 30,000 refugees were fleeing to Taiwan every day. Mao controlled both Beijing and Nanjing (the capital of Jiangsu province of the People’s Republic of China) at the time.
In 1947, a widow was caught selling contraband cigarettes by ROC soldiers, when she begged for mercy, she was bashed in the head with the butt of a riffle in front of a large crowd. When the soldiers tried to leave, they were followed, and they began to shoot into the crowd, killing one person. Soon after, mass protests erupted and the Taiwanese stormed government offices. The mainland sent soldiers to the island and the island remained under Martial Law for thirty-eight years, a period known as the White Terror. Initially, only direct threats to the government were killed, but soon professors and intellectuals were collected and disposed.
The incident had begun on February 28th, resulting in the name the 228 incident.
American Involvement in Taiwanese Affairs.
During the Cold War, Truman moved vessels into the Taiwan Strait in 1950 while the U.S. was fighting the Korean War to prevent Mao from taking Taiwan while American was distracted. On October 1, 1949, Mao Zedong, the leader of the Communist Party in China and founder of the PRC (People’s Republic of China), overthrew the KMT.
Chiang Kai-shek, the leader of the Nationalist party had served in China between 1928–1949 and then served as the leader of the Nationalist party in Taiwan from 1949 until his death in 1975. When Kai-shek escaped to the island and formed the new ROC, Mao had two goals that were intended to delegitimize Kai-shek’s power: Claim the UN seat on China’s behalf (which came true in 1971 when they inherited the Republic of China’s former seat on the security counsel) and conquer offshore islands to indirectly control Taiwan, which China continued to do until 1979.
Section Three:
The Conflict Between China and Taiwan
Note: The current president of the PRC is Xi Jinping [Chee Jinping]; the current president of the ROC is Tsai Ing-wen (Psy-eeng-win].
The Main Root of the Conflict:
When China was transitioning to a Communist nation under Mao Zedong, asylum seekers fled to Taiwan and the ROC (Nationalist Party) established their headquarters on the island. The One-China Policy asserts “there is only one sovereign state under the name China.” Taiwan is legally a province of the One And Only China — the PRC. One reason for China’s discomfort with Taiwan’s rebelliousness is because they could fear losing influence to the United States. Another reason could be China fearing history repeating, as in, their kingdom dividing into several autonomous or even sovereign states.
Also See:
- “Taiwan is not recognized as an independent country by much of the world nor even the United Nations.”
- “In 2005 China passed a law authorizing the use of military force if Taiwan formally tries to secede.”
In Short:
The Taiwanese:
Want sovereignty.
The Chinese:
Want Taiwan to give up their title as the ROC and integrate economically and politically back into China.
My Solution:
The Republic of China should adopt a pseudonym of the Republic of Taiwan.
Section Four: Sources
China’s Section Sources:
- Science Trends
- Edarabia
- Science Trends
- World Atlas
- Independent.ie
- Day Translations
- World Atlas
- Investopedia
- World Bank
- Investopedia
- South China Morning Post
- Britannica
- China Highlights
- What China
- BBC
- Ducksters
- National Geographic
- History Hit
- Crash Course
- HISTORY
- Learnodo
- China Highlights
- HISTORY
- HISTORY
- World History
- Lumen Learning
- History Hit
- Learnodo
- Britannica
- History Hit
- Lumen Learning
- Asking Lot
Taiwan’s Section Sources:
- Exploring History
- Britannica
- World Atlas
- Wikipedia
- U.S. Department of State
- Investopedia
- Prep Scholar
- Britannica
- Taiwan.gov
- History Stack Exchange
