Taichung was founded in 1705 as a part of Changhua County with the name of Dadun (ch: 大墩; p: Dàdūn; w: Ta-tun; lit. large mound). At this point in history, the Qing Dynasty, formed by invading Manchus in the 1640s, was consolidating its hold on western Taiwan, which it had wrested from the Cheng family in 1682. As a part of strengthening its control, a garrison was founded in 1721 near the site of present-day Taichung Park by Lan Ting-chen.
All was not peaceful for Qing authorities in central Taiwan. North of the city, at the Dajia River, an aboriginal revolt broke out in 1731 after Chinese officials moved in and compelled them to provide labor. After being joined by other aboriginals, they drove as far south as the county seat of Changhua in May, 1732 before being chased into the mountains by Qing forces.
Another rebellion, this one in 1786, against Qing authorities had its roots in the nearby town of Dali, just south of Taichung City. Led by Lin Shuang-wen, it began as an attempt to overthrow the Manchu government and restore the Ming Dynasty. Unfortunately, as they moved northward, they turned to slaughter and looting. They were eventually defeated by a coalition of Hakka, Quanzhou Fujianese descendants, and Aboriginal volunteers who joined with the government to defeat the rebels.
The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Taichung
Where To Stay & Best Hotels in Taichung - updated May 2024
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Taichung Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.
