In July 1683, Qing admiral Shi Lang defeated the Zheng regime’s navy at Penghu (the Pescadores). Controlling Penghu mattered because it sat on key sea routes between Fujian and Taiwan, and it cut the Zhengs off from reinforcements. The battle set the stage for the end of the Kingdom of Tungning and a major shift in cross-strait security policy.
After the Penghu defeat, Zheng Keshuang—the last ruler of the Kingdom of Tungning—offered to surrender to the Qing. This ended the Zheng family’s Taiwan-based maritime state, which had been a persistent security threat to Qing coastal provinces. The surrender opened the way for Taiwan’s incorporation into the Qing administrative system.
In October 1683, Shi Lang reached Taiwan and formally received the capitulation of key Zheng commanders and officials. The event marked the practical end of Zheng rule and the start of Qing military occupation and transition to civil administration. From this point, Qing policy focused on preventing Taiwan from becoming a base for maritime resistance again.
The Fujian coast had been heavily disrupted by Qing coastal-depopulation and anti-Zheng measures during the long war (1661–1683). With the Zheng threat removed after 1683, the Qing could shift from emergency controls toward rebuilding coastal society and regularizing cross-strait order. This change mattered for trade and migration, because it helped reconnect coastal Fujian with Taiwan under Qing oversight.
After annexation, the Qing imposed strict controls on who could cross from Fujian to Taiwan, including limits on bringing families. These rules aimed to reduce unrest and to prevent Taiwan from turning into a runaway frontier beyond state control. At the same time, the permit-and-registration approach shows how maritime integration was managed as a security problem as much as an economic opportunity.
In May 1684, the Kangxi Emperor accepted proposals to keep permanent forces in Penghu and Taiwan and to organize Taiwan as a prefecture under Fujian Province. This was a turning point from conquest to governance: the Qing began building institutions to manage migration, taxation, and security. The decision also tied Taiwan’s future more directly to Fujian through official shipping and administration.
With the new prefecture system, the Qing organized much of Taiwan’s western plains into Taiwan, Fengshan, and Zhuluo counties. This structure concentrated government control around ports and settled farmland, while many Indigenous areas—especially east of the mountains—remained outside direct Qing administration. It also made Fujian–Taiwan governance more routine by creating clear jurisdictions for officials and courts.
In April 1721, a major settler rebellion led by Zhu Yigui broke out against Qing rule in Taiwan. The uprising exposed limits in the early administrative system and the difficulties of policing a rapidly growing immigrant society. Its suppression pushed Qing authorities to rethink governance, including stronger administration in the more populated western plains.
In 1723, Qing authorities created Changhua County, splitting territory from the very large Zhuluo County. This reflected real demographic change: more settlers were farming and living farther from the early administrative centers. The new county improved tax collection and policing, but also signaled deeper state involvement in frontier land disputes and local violence.
In 1727, Penghu was reorganized as a subprefecture within the Qing’s Taiwan Prefecture administration. Because Penghu sat in the middle of the Taiwan Strait, bringing it into the Taiwan-centered chain of command improved coastal defense coordination. The move also linked maritime policing—anti-smuggling and anti-piracy efforts—with Taiwan’s growing cross-strait shipping needs.
In 1731, the Qing created a Danshui (Tamsui) subprefecture in northern Taiwan. This change extended regular administration beyond the older southwestern core, reflecting continued migration and land development despite official restrictions. It also tightened Fujian–Taiwan integration by expanding the state’s presence near emerging northern ports and trade routes.
By the late 18th century, illegal migration continued, and restrictions gradually relaxed after the 1760s. This shift mattered because it made cross-strait movement less exceptional and more continuous, strengthening Fujian–Taiwan economic ties even when policy remained cautious. The result was faster population growth, wider settlement, and greater need for local administration and security forces.
In January 1787, Lin Shuangwen launched a major revolt after the Qing governor suppressed the Tiandihui (a secret society) and made arrests. The rebellion spread widely and showed how quickly local disputes, secret societies, and immigrant-origin rivalries could become a security crisis. It forced the Qing to mobilize major resources across the strait to restore control.
By February 1788, Qing forces captured Lin Shuangwen and crushed the rebellion. In the same period, the Qing renamed Zhuluo County to Jiayi County to recognize local resistance to the rebels. The outcome hardened Qing thinking about fortifications, policing, and the risks of a heavily maritime, migrant society on Taiwan.
By the early 1800s, Taiwan had grown into a large immigrant society with sustained cross-strait connections, even though the Qing still tried to manage migration and frontier expansion. Administrative changes across the 1700s had gradually extended governance from a few coastal centers into wider settled areas. By about 1810, the long-term outcome of the post-1683 period was a more stable—though still contested—maritime system linking Fujian, Penghu, and Taiwan through state institutions, shipping, and population movement.
Maritime coastal resettlement, anti‑piracy operations, and Fujian–Taiwan maritime integration (1683–1810)