Taiwan Prefecture

Taiwan Prefecture (Chinese: 臺灣府; pinyin: Táiwān Fǔ) was a prefecture of Taiwan under Qing rule. The prefecture was established by the Qing dynasty government in 1684, after the island "became an integral part of the Chinese Empire" in 1683. The Taiwan Prefecture Gazetteer (臺灣府志; Taiwan Fu Zhi) documented it as part of Fujian Province. The Taiwan Prefecture Gazetteer was completed by Gao Gonggan in 1695, the 34th year of the reign of the Kangxi Emperor.

When the Qing wrested the island from the control of the Kingdom of Tungning in 1683, Taiwan was made a prefecture under the administration of Fujian Province. The new Prefecture "was divided into three hien or districts":

The aboriginal lands on the east coast were not under Qing jurisdiction (this area was called Behind the Mountains (後山) by the Qing). The seat of government, referred to as "Taiwan-fu" (; Táiwān fǔchéng), was located in modern-day Tainan, "which city had been in turn the capital of the Dutch, Koxinga, and the Chinese".

Prefectures (from south to north):

Seaboard Divisions:

An administrative change occurred in 1875, when Imperial Commissioner Shen Pao-chen demanded that another prefecture be added in Taiwan to revamp the administrative organization of the northern area of the island. As a result, Taipeh Prefecture was created from part of Taiwan Prefecture.

Taiwan Province (officially "Fujian-Taiwan-Province") was established in 1887. The new province was reorganized into four prefectures: Taipeh, Taiwan, Tainan, and Taitung. Tainan Prefecture was created from part of Taiwan Prefecture. Thus Taiwan Prefecture was reduced to the area of central Taiwan only, composed of the modern-day Miaoli County, Taichung City, Nantou County, Changhua County, and Yunlin County.

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