Tainan

For more than 200 years between the 17th and 19th centuries, Tainan (台南) served as the political center of Taiwan. In the 17th century, Zheng Chenggong (鄭成功) repelled Dutch invaders here and successfully recovered Taiwan.

Retrocession of Taiwan

After the Dutch invaders landed on Taiwan, they built the Anping Old Fort (Fort Zeelandia) and Chihkan Tower (Fort Provintia) in Tainan to consolidate their rule over the local people. In 1661, Zheng Chenggong led his troops from Kinmen and successfully defeated the Dutch in Tainan. He then introduced Confucianism to Taiwan by promoting cultural education and building Confucius temples.

Diverse Religious Beliefs

During the period when Tainan was the political center of Taiwan, there was frequent trade between Tainan and mainland China. Many Han Chinese crossed the sea to settle here, bringing a variety of religious beliefs from around the world. Nowadays, Tainan has a wide variety of religions such as A-Ma (媽祖), Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, etc. In many temples here, deities from different religions are worshiped together.