Xinzhuang Guangfu Temple Introduction
The San Shan Guo Wang Temple in Xinzhuang was built by Cantonese people in the 45th year of the Qianlong reign (1780), making it the earliest Hakka faith temple in northern Taiwan, witnessing the participation of Hakka people in the early immigration and development of Xinzhuang. The temple, formerly known as San Shan Guo Wang Temple, is not the oldest temple in Xinzhuang but is the only national second-class historic site and the most well-preserved among the four ancient temples in the old street. The San Shan King is the guardian deity of people from Chaozhou in Guangdong Province, primarily enshrining the mountain gods of Jinshan, Mingshan, and Dushan. Honored and worshiped by the local Cantonese community, it became a common faith in the Chaozhou region. With the immigration of Chaozhou Hakka people to Taiwan, they also brought the "incense" from their hometown's San Shan Guo Wang Temple to seek protection. The gods of San Shan are natural deities without form, and their statues were first created in Taiwan. The temple was built in the 45th year of the Qianlong reign (1780), was destroyed by fire in the 8th year of the Guangxu reign (1882), and was reconstructed in the 14th year of the Guangxu reign (1888) by Chen Chaowang, a person from Hsinchu Pu Chao. After renovations in the 25th year of the Republic, it was renamed Guangfu Palace.
