Kingdom of Tungning
Taiwan, 1661–1683. Draft, not yet reviewed
The Kingdom of Tungning was a dynastic maritime state that ruled part of southwestern Taiwan and the Penghu islands between 1662 and 1683. It is the first predominantly ethnic Han state in the history of Taiwan. The kingdom was founded by Koxinga (Zheng Chenggong), a Southern Ming loyalist, who attacked the Dutch fortress in 1661 and expelled Dutch forces from Taiwan. Until its annexation by the Qing dynasty in 1683, the kingdom was ruled by Koxinga's heirs, the House of Koxinga.
Seat of power: Tainan
Rulers
Koxinga
monarch, 1661–1662
Koxinga was a Southern Ming general who resisted the Qing conquest of China in the 17th century and expelled the Dutch from Taiwan, founding the Kingdom of Tungning. He was best known for defeating the Dutch East India Company's colonial state on Taiwan at the Siege of Fort Zeelandia in 1662. After defeating the Dutch, he died suddenly in 1662 while planning to invade Luzon in retaliation for the Fourth Sangley Massacre committed by Spanish colonists in the Philippines.
Portrait of Koxinga: AnonymousUnknown author, Public domain, file
Culture
- Under Zheng rule, Taiwan underwent a process of Sinicization in an effort to consolidate the last stronghold of Han Chinese's resistance against the invading Manchus.
- At its zenith, the kingdom's maritime power dominated varying extents of coastal regions in southeastern China and controlled the major sea lanes across both China Seas, and its vast trade network stretched from Japan to Southeast Asia.
- Koxinga first called Taiwan Tungtu, and in 1664 his son and successor Zheng Jing renamed it Tungning.
Picture
Koxinga, also known as Zheng Chenggong, was a Southern Ming general who expelled the Dutch from Taiwan and founded the Kingdom of Tungning.
Image: AnonymousUnknown author, Public domain, file
Sources
Text adapted from the Wikipedia articles listed as sources, CC BY-SA 4.0.