In the 16th century Western sea powers dispatched their fleets around the globe as they sought to expand the scope of their influence. Situated opposite ports along China's southeast coast, Taiwan provided the ideal base of operations for conducting trade with the mainland. Moreover, Taiwan was located on the main trade routes between Japan, Korea, and the islands of Southeast Asia. For this reason, the Dutch and the Spaniards set up base in Taiwan on several occasions, leaving behind Fort Zeelandia and Fort Providentia in Tainan, as well as other structures.

The Treaty of Tianjin

In the eighth year of the Xianfeng reign of the Qing Dynasty (1858), under pressure from expansionist Europe, China signed the Treaty of Tianjin with the Anglo-French Expeditionary Force. As a result, Tanshui and Anping were established as trade ports, and foreign consuls, importers, and missionaries flocked to Taiwan. Arrayed along the coastline, the first line of foreign residences comprised customs houses and importers. The second line, located upslope from the waterline, consisted of Fort San Domingo, the British Consulate, the residence of the British consul, the residence of Dr. Mackay, and other official buildings. On the third and final line were educational centers Tamkang Middle School, Oxford Hall, and a women's school. "Looking upslope from the Tanshui River, you can see that the space has been divided into three layers-a fine display of the geographic allocation of power during colonial times," observes Huang Jui-mao, assistant professor in Tamkang University's Department of Architecture.

Staying only for brief business ventures, merchants tended to reside within the protective sphere provided by the consulate. On the other hand, the permanent settlers-the missionaries-built their hospitals and churches in the middle of Chinese neighborhoods. The consuls and merchants directly transplanted the architectural norms of their traditional Western manors, while the missionaries infused their churches and halls with local flavor, once again testifying to the different mindsets of these two distinct forces in colonial Taiwan.

The British Consulate provides an excellent example. Built in 1891, it combines the English preference for redbrick with the winding corridors particular to tropical countries. Beneath the first floor cloisters is a humidity-resistant basement. All in all, these features are truly typical of the colonial style. The exquisite brickwork further reveals a carved inscription, "VR," for Victoria Regina-the insignia of the famous English monarch.

The series of academic buildings left behind by Canadian Dr. George Mackay are in decided contrast. Buried in Tanshui, Mackay spent a lifetime in Taiwan, having married a plains aboriginal woman with whom he sired two daughters and a son. His buildings successfully blend traits of both Western and Taiwanese building design. For example, the layout of Oxford Hall, located on the Aletheia University campus, conforms to the traditional Chinese family compound model. However, European influences are apparent in the door that faces the mountain, as well as in the Western-style window arches. Atop the roof, a cross and a pagoda stand side by side in perfect harmony.

Tamkang Middle School's octagonal building and tower are in fact samples of Byzantine-style architecture, yet the two classroom wings resemble Taiwanese farm residences. Both structures are truly exceptional examples of local missionary architecture. Morever, these unique foreign-designed schools, salient amongst the rows of the more recently constructed neighboring buildings, continue to provide education for today's students.

Brothers in the spirit world

It's easy to imagine the sensations that Dr. Mackay or one of the French soldiers in the Sino-French war must have felt upon sailing up the mouth of the Tamsui River 100 years ago, when they would have seen the English flag flying atop Fort San Domingo beneath splendid Mt. Kuanyin and Mt. Tatun, the Western-styled buildings, and the homes and streets of the Chinese at the very edge. The image that the foreigners beheld 100 years ago remains much the same today, with the cannons by the mouth of the river still there to speak of the brutality of the Sino-French War.

In the tenth year of the Guangxu reign (1884), the French commander led his Far Eastern Fleet into a ferocious battle at Keelung. After a prolonged engagement, the Qing dynasty forces' intensive counterattack forced the French to shift their assault to Tanshui, where they succeeded in completely destroying the three cannons deployed at the mouth of the river. However, after disembarking at an open area beyond Tanshui where the Tanhai New Town planned community is now located, the French were defeated by the Qing forces in a bloody battle that claimed heavy casualties on both sides.

On the day of the French defeat, local residents subsequently ordained a ritual so as to pay homage to the ghosts of those who died so far from home. Regardless of whether the battle victims were from the mainland province of Hunan or from far-off France, all were buried within close proximity of one another, and received the same burial rites-an ending that is at once ironic and tragic.

Tanshui's historical buildings do more than just represent the colonial architectural style, but indeed tell the story of colonial times. Six score years after the Sino-French War, the war victims have become brothers in the spirit world, and are equally recognized in local ritual. This international port city contains both foreign buildings and the bodies and souls of the foreigners who influenced Tanshui history.

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Fort San Domingo holds a strategic position overlooking the Tanshui River. (photo by Pu Hua-chih)