The Republic of Formosa Is Proclaimed (1895)

May 25, 1895

On May 23, 1895, officials and gentry on the island of Taiwan proclaimed the short-lived Republic of Formosa, installing former Qing governor Tang Jingsong as its first president two days later on May 25. Born from desperation to resist Japanese annexation under the Treaty of Shimonoseki, the republic represented Asia's first attempt at a modern republican government, though it would survive barely five months before Japanese forces crushed it.

The Treaty That Sparked a Crisis

The roots of the Republic of Formosa trace directly to the Qing dynasty's defeat in the First Sino-Japanese War (1894–1895). On April 17, 1895, Qing negotiator Li Hongzhang signed the Treaty of Shimonoseki, formally ceding Taiwan and the Penghu Islands to the Empire of Japan in perpetuity. News of the cession outraged many residents of Taiwan, who had no voice in the negotiations and feared subjugation under a foreign power. Local gentry, scholars, and military officers began organizing resistance almost immediately, arguing that if the Qing court would not defend the island, its people would defend themselves. Prominent figures such as Qiu Fengjia, a Hakka scholar and militia leader, pushed for outright independence rather than accept Japanese rule. Their solution was audacious: declare Taiwan a sovereign republic, hoping that other foreign powers, particularly France or Britain, might intervene to protect an independent state from Japanese occupation, or that international law might treat the situation differently than a simple territorial handover. This calculation reflected both genuine local nationalism and a pragmatic gamble that statehood might buy time or diplomatic leverage the Qing government could no longer provide.

Tang Jingsong and the Birth of a Republic

On May 23, 1895, the Republic of Formosa was formally proclaimed in Taipei, and on May 25, Tang Jingsong, the Qing dynasty's last provincial governor of Taiwan, was installed as its first president. The new government adopted a yellow flag featuring a blue tiger, styled itself as 'Taiwan Republic' or 'Formosa Republic,' and issued proclamations asserting its independence while paradoxically declaring loyalty to the Qing emperor, a contradiction that revealed the movement's improvised and defensive nature rather than any deep republican ideology. Tang Jingsong, along with military commander Liu Yongfu, who commanded the famed Black Flag Army, and civilian leaders like Qiu Fengjia, attempted to organize a functioning government and military defense within days of Japan's planned takeover. However, the republic's foundations were shaky from the start: it lacked recognition from any foreign power, had minimal administrative infrastructure, and depended on hastily assembled militia forces rather than a disciplined army. When Japanese troops landed near Keelung on May 29, 1895, just days after the republic's founding, organized resistance began to falter almost immediately, exposing how unprepared the fledgling state was for the military campaign it now faced.

Collapse and the 151-Day Republic

The Republic of Formosa's fortunes deteriorated rapidly after the Japanese landing. Taipei fell within weeks, and President Tang Jingsong fled to mainland China, abandoning the government he had led for less than a month. Leadership then passed to Liu Yongfu, who relocated the republic's seat to the southern city of Tainan and continued organizing resistance using his Black Flag Army alongside local Hakka and Taiwanese militia units. Fighting continued through the summer of 1895, with notable resistance at battles including the defense of Baguashan in August, but Japanese forces, better equipped and reinforced by sea, steadily advanced southward. By October, Japanese troops encircled Tainan itself. On October 21, 1895, the city fell, and Liu Yongfu escaped by ship to China, effectively ending organized resistance. In total, the Republic of Formosa had existed for just 151 days, from its proclamation on May 23 to Tainan's capture on October 21. Japan subsequently established firm colonial control over Taiwan, which it would govern for the next fifty years until 1945. Though it failed to achieve lasting independence or international recognition, the Republic of Formosa remains historically significant as one of Asia's earliest experiments with republican government and a striking early example of anti-colonial resistance in the region.