Xiyu West Platform (Xiyu Fort) Introduction
After the Qing-French War ended in 1885, Governor of Fujian and Zhejiang Yang Changjun and Taiwan Prefect Liu Mingchuan personally inspected the Pescadores Islands and proposed that "this island is isolated and dangerous, being the gateway to Fujian and Taiwan, and must strengthen the coastal defenses by building strong fortifications, purchasing advanced artillery, and deploying elite troops to ensure adequate defense." They repeatedly petitioned to reinforce the coastal defense of the Pescadores and recommended the construction of a city in Magong. The Qing court accepted their proposals and appointed Wu Hongluo as the first general of the Pescadores. After arriving at the Pescadores, Wu was ordered to build Magong City and constructed four new Armstrong-style coastal artillery forts: the North Fort of Daci, the Jin Guitou Fort, the Eastern Fort of Xiyu, and the Western Fort of Xiyu. In the 21st year of Guangxu (1895), during the Sino-Japanese Battle of the Pescadores, Japanese forces landed at the east side of the main island from Longmenli, Huxi. Because the Western Fort of Xiyu is located on the far west side of the Pescadores, it could not provide fire support for the Eastern Fort of Gongbei on the east side. After the Japanese forces breached the Eastern Fort of Gongbei, they drove straight in to occupy Magong City, while the Western Fort of Xiyu was unable to exert its artillery power during the multiple battles in the Pescadores. During World War II, as the US forces adopted an island-hopping strategy, after capturing the Philippines, they bypassed Taiwan and the Pescadores and directly attacked Okinawa in Japan. Thus, the fortifications of the Pescadores did not engage directly with American ships, allowing the fortifications to remain unharmed until today. On December 28, 1983, the Western Fort of Xiyu was designated as a national historic site. Source: National Cultural Heritage Database [Recommended stay time] 2 hours.
Xiyu West Terrace
