Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
History
Settlers began arriving on Kinmen as early as the Tang dynasty (AD 618-907). Origin-
ally called Wuzhou, it was changed to Kinmen (literally 'Golden Gate') after fortified
gates were put up to defend the island from pirate attacks. During the Ming (AD
1368-1644) and Qing (AD 1644-1912) dynasties, increasing numbers of Chinese mi-
grants settled on Kinmen's shores. The Ming loyalist Koxinga, also known as Cheng
Cheng-kung, used Kinmen as a base to liberate Kinmen and Penghu from the Dutch. In
the process, he chopped down all of Kinmen's trees for his navy, something the residents
still grumble about. Koxinga's massive deforestation made Kinmen vulnerable to the
devastating soil-eroding winds that commonly sweep across the strait.
Kinmen remained fairly peaceful until 1949, when Chiang Kai-shek transformed the
island into a rear-guard defensive position against the communist forces that had driven
his own Nationalist army off the Mainland. Though his original plan was to have his sol-
diers recuperate on the island before launching a full-fledged attack on Mao Zedong's
armies, this never happened. Instead, the island became the final flashpoint of the
Chinese Civil War and was subjected to incessant bombing from the Mainland
throughout the 1950s and '60s.
