Japanese invasion of Taiwan (1895)

Japanese Invasion of Taiwan (1895)

Japanese operations in Taiwan, 1895
Date29 May – 21 October 1895
Location
Result

Japanese victory

Territorial
changes
Annexation of Taiwan by Japan
Belligerents
 Empire of Japan

Republic of Formosa

  • Local militias
Commanders and leaders
Empire of Japan Kabayama Sukenori
Empire of Japan Arichi Shinanojo
Empire of Japan Nogi Maresuke
Prince Kitashirakawa Yoshihisa (DOW)
Prince Fushimi Sadanaru
Empire of Japan Hishijima Yoshiteru
Tang Jingsong  Surrendered
Liu Yongfu  Surrendered
Strength
7,000, rising to 37,000 by October 1895
around a dozen warships
75,000 (ex-Qing regulars, local volunteers and Hakka militia)
Casualties and losses
Killed: 333
Wounded: 687
Died from disease: 6,903[1]
Killed: 14,000 including civilian casualties

The Japanese invasion of Taiwan, also known as Yiwei War in Chinese (Japanese: 台湾平定, Chinese: 乙未戰爭; May–October 1895), was a conflict between the Empire of Japan and the armed forces of the short-lived Republic of Formosa following the Qing dynasty's cession of Taiwan to Japan in April 1895 at the end of the First Sino-Japanese War. The Japanese sought to take control of their new possession, while the Republican forces fought to resist Japanese occupation. The Japanese landed near Keelung on the northern coast of Taiwan on 29 May 1895, and in a five-month campaign swept southwards to Tainan. Although their advance was slowed by guerrilla activity, the Japanese defeated the Formosan forces (a mixture of regular Chinese units and local Hakka militias) whenever they attempted to make a stand. The Japanese victory at Baguashan on 27 August, the largest battle ever fought on Taiwanese soil, doomed the Formosan resistance to an early defeat. The fall of Tainan on 21 October ended organised resistance to Japanese occupation, and inaugurated five decades of Japanese rule in Taiwan.

  1. ^ “[Data in English is under preparation] 附録・附図” Japan Center for Asian Historical Records (JACAR) Ref.C13110299800, [Data in English is under preparation] 征台役 近衛師団の行動 北白川宮殿下の御遺跡 明治28.5.4~28.10.21 (National Institute for Defense Studies)

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