Xinzhuang Guangfu Temple Introduction
The San Shan Guo Wang Temple in Xinzhuang was built by Cantonese immigrants in the 45th year of the Qianlong reign (1780) and is the earliest temple in Northern Taiwan associated with Hakka faith, witnessing the participation of Hakka people in the early immigration and land development of Xinzhuang. Originally known as the San Shan Guo Wang Temple, Guangfu Palace is not the oldest temple in Xinzhuang but is the only national second-class historic site and the best-preserved among the four ancient temples in the old street. San Shan Guo Wang is the guardian deity of people from Chaozhou, Guangdong, primarily worshipping the mountain gods Jinshan, Mingshan, and Dushan. Revered by the local Cantonese community, it has become a common belief in Chaozhou. With the immigration of Chaozhou Hakka to Taiwan, they brought the "incense" from their hometown's San Shan Guo Wang Temple to pray for blessings. The deities of the San Shan are nature deities with no initial images, and in Taiwan, they began to be sculpted. The temple was built in the 45th year of Qianlong (1780), destroyed by a fire in the 8th year of Guangxu (1882), and was rebuilt by Chen Chaowang from Hsinchu's Puchao community in the 14th year of Guangxu (1888). After renovations in the 25th year of the Republic of China, it was renamed Guangfu Palace.
