In order for one to understand the dramatic historic development of Taiwan, one must first gain a sense of place and time in order to appreciate how different periods in the history of Taiwan have helped shape its progress, either in a constructive or negative way. The purpose of this thesis is to describe a British presence that existed in Taiwan from 1858 to 1895. The Treaty Port era has been documented in a number of different discourses, but the role the British played in the nineteenth century economic and social transformations of Taiwan have not been studied as a subject within its own right. Attention to this overlooked aspect of British history is not only important because it was a turning point in British perception of extraterritoriality, but also in Chinese relations to foreign powers. In addition the period was also marked by a reformation in the importance Taiwan played to the Qing court. In 1858 with the signing of the Treaty of Tientsin and the Treaty of Peking in 1863, as a result of the Second Opium War, China was required to open four ports on Taiwan. The Treaty of Tientsin designated Anping as a Treaty Port in 1858 and the Treaty of Peking opened the ports of Tamsui and Keelung in 1860 and 1863 respectively. Finally, concessions of the treaty opened Takao in 1864. However, the question of Taiwan as an obvious location for trade was raised as early as 1883 and this period was mirrored by the withdrawal of the East India Trading Company for China. As a consequence, it was not the ‘Company’ that penetrated the shores of Taiwan as it had done in both India and China. Instead it was agency houses and private firms, which transformed the agrarian economy into the market mechanisms of international commerce. This thesis will confront a British community presence as a social historical process by highlighting the cause, course, and consequence of the formation and the theoretical structuration of nineteenth century treaty ports in Taiwan.

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