List of rulers of Taiwan

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Dutch Formosa (1624–1662)

The Dutch Empire, during the period of the Dutch United Provinces and under the auspices of the Dutch East India Company (VOC), attempted to conquer Macau in 1622. Later they colonized the Pescadores Islands, where they built a fort in Makung. In 1624, the Chinese attacked, and the Dutch were driven to Taiwan (then called Formosa, meaning "beautiful island"). That year they established Fort Zeelandia on Taiwan's southwest coast. In 1637, the Dutch conqurered Favorolang (also Favorlang; present day Huwei, Yunlin). The names listed here are the Dutch governors:^[1]

№	Portrait	Name	Term
1		Martinus Sonck	1624 - 1625[2]
2		Gerard Frederikszoon de With	1625 - 1627
3		Pieter Nuyts	1627 - 1629
4		Hans Putmans	1629 - 1636
5		Johan van der Burg	1636 - 1640[2]
6		Paulus Traudenius	1640 - 1643
7		Maximilian le Maire	1643 - 1644
8		François Caron	1644 - 1646
9		Pieter Anthoniszoon Overtwater	1646 - 1649
10		Nicolas Verburg	1649 - 1653
11		Cornelis Caesar	1653 - 1656
12		Frederick Coyett	1656 - 1662
13		Harmen Klenck van Odessen[3]

Spanish Formosa (1626–1642)

In response to the Dutch settlements, the Spanish settled at Keelung on the northeast coast of the island in 1626 and built Fort San Salvador. Later they built another outpost, Fort San Domingo, at Tamsui in the northwest. In 1629 these forts had a combined total of about 200 Spaniards and 400 Filipinos. By 1635, the Tamsui settlement was abandoned; however, the Keelung settlement remained in Spanish hands until 1642, when a Dutch force of 11 ships and 1,000 men attacked the fort of 446 people. The Spanish surrendered.

Kingdom of Tungning (1662–1683)

The Southern Ming (Ming Dynasty loyalists) invaded Taiwan under Koxinga, expelling the Dutch and capturing Fort Zeelandia. They established the Kingdom of Tungning.

№	Portrait	Name (Birth–Death)	Title(s)	Reign (Lunar calendar)
1		Zheng Chenggong (Koxinga) 鄭成功 Zhèng Chénggōng (1624–1662)	Prince of Yanping (延平王) Prince Wu of Chao (潮武王)	14 June 1661 Yongli 15-5-18	23 June 1662 Yongli 16-5-8
2		Zheng Xi 鄭襲 Zhèng Xí (1625–?)	Protector (護理)	23 June 1662 Yongli 16-5-8	November 1662 Yongli 17
3		Zheng Jing 鄭經 Zhèng Jīng (1642–1681)	Prince of Yanping (延平王) Prince Wen of Chao (潮文王)	November 1662 Yongli 17	17 March 1681 Yongli 35-1-28
4		Zheng Kezang 鄭克𡒉 Zhèng Kèzāng (1662–1681)	Prince Regent (監國)	17 March 1681 Yongli 35-1-28	March 1681 Yongli 35
5		Zheng Keshuang* 鄭克塽 Zhèng Kèshuǎng (1670–1707)	Prince of Yanping (延平王) Duke Haicheng (海澄公)	March 1681 Yongli 35	5 September 1683 Yongli 37-8-13

* Regency of Feng Xifan from 1682 to 1683.

Taiwan under Great Qing (First period, 1683–1721)

• The Qing Dynasty invaded Taiwan; the Ming rulers surrendered and were expelled.
  • Kangxi Emperor (1683–1721)

Taiwan-Xiamen Circuit Commissioner (福建分巡台灣廈門道, 1687—1727)

Taiwanese revolt (1721)

• Yonghe-based rebellion under Zhu Yigui.
  • Zhu Yigui (朱一貴; May 26-July 30, 1721)

Taiwan under Great Qing (Second period, 1721–1895)

• Qing rule was reestablished after a month-long revolt. The Taiwan Circuit was established in 1727 with its seat in Taiwan-fu, unlike its predecessor, the Taiwan-Xiamen Circuit, which was based in Xiamen. The Taiwan Circuit Commissioner had its powers checked by the Taiwan Circuit Investigating censors.

Taiwan Military Circuit Commissioner (福建分巡臺灣兵備道, 1767-1791)

Provincial Censor-ranked Taiwan Military Circuit Commissioner (按察使銜分巡台灣兵備道, 1791-1895)

Governor of Fujian-Taiwan Province

№	Portrait	Name (Birth–Death)	Ancestry	Original Post	Term of Office (Lunar calendar)
1		Liu Mingchuan 劉銘傳 Liú Míngchuán (1836–1896)	Hefei, Anhui	Governor of Fujian	12 October 1885 Guangxu 11-9-5	4 June 1891 Guangxu 17-4-28
—		Shen Yingkui[4] 沈應奎 Shěn Yìngkuí	Pinghu, Zhejiang	Civil Affairs Minister, Fujian Province	4 June 1891 Guangxu 17-4-28	25 November 1891 Guangxu 17-10-24
2		Shao You-lien 邵友濂 Shào Yǒulián (1840–1901)	Yuyao, Zhejiang	Governor of Hunan	9 May 1891 Guangxu 17-4-2	13 October 1894 Guangxu 20-9-15
3		T'ang Ching-sung 唐景崧 Táng Jǐngsōng (1841–1903)	Guanyang, Guangxi	Civil Affairs Minister, Fujian-Taiwan Province	13 October 1894 Guangxu 20-9-15	20 May 1895 Guangxu 21-4-26

Republic of Formosa (1895)

Following its defeat in the First Sino-Japanese War (1894–1895), China ceded Taiwan and the Pescadores to the Empire of Japan in perpetuity, with a grace period for inhabitants wishing to remain Qing Dynasty subjects to sell their property and return to the Great Qing. The date set for the handover was June 2, 1895.

However, the Republic of Formosa was formed on May 25, 1895 by a group of Qing officials and local gentry with its capital at Tainan to resist impending Japanese rule. The republic lasted for less than six months; on October 21, 1895 Imperial Japanese Army forces entered the capital and quelled the resistance. The Republic of Taiwan had two presidents:

№	Portrait	Name (Birth–Death)	Place of Birth	Term of Office		Days
1		T'ang Ching-sung 唐景崧 Táng Jǐngsōng (1841–1903) President	Guilin, Guangxi, Qing Dynasty	23 May 1895	5 June 1895	13
2		Liu Yung-fu 劉永福 Liú Yǒngfú (1837–1917) Commander-in-chief	Qinzhou, Guangdong, Qing Dynasty	5 June 1895	21 October 1895	138

Taiwan under Japanese Empire (1895–1945)

After establishing control over the island, the Japanese used the French Empire model of an occupying force and were instrumental in the industrialization of the island; they built railroads, a sanitation system and a public school system, among other things. Around 1935, the Japanese began an island-wide assimilation project to bind the island more firmly to the empire.

In 1941, war broke out when the Japanese attacked the U.S. naval port of Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. By 1945, desperate plans were in place to incorporate popular representation of Taiwan into the Imperial Diet to end colonial rule of the island and transfer occupying troops to the front lines to fight the Allies. The names listed here are the Japanese governor-generals:

  Military   Rikken Seiyūkai   Kenseikai   Rikken Minseitō

№	Portrait	Name	Origin	Occupation	Affiliation	Term of Office
1		Kabayama Sukenori 樺山資紀	Kagoshima	Admiral (Imperial Japanese Navy) (Viscount)	Military	10 May 1895	2 June 1896
2		Katsura Tarō 桂太郎	Yamaguchi	Lieutenant General (Imperial Japanese Army) (Viscount)	Military	2 June 1896	14 October 1896
3		Nogi Maresuke 乃木希典	Yamaguchi	Lieutenant General (Imperial Japanese Army) (Baron)	Military	14 October 1896	26 February 1898
4		Kodama Gentarō 兒玉源太郎	Yamaguchi	Lieutenant General (Imperial Japanese Army) (Baron)	Military	26 February 1898	11 April 1906
5		Sakuma Samata 佐久間左馬太	Yamaguchi	General (Imperial Japanese Army) (Viscount)	Military	11 April 1906	1 May 1915
6		Andō Teibi 安東貞美	Nagano	General (Imperial Japanese Army) (Baron)	Military	1 May 1915	6 June 1918
7		Akashi Motojiro 明石元二郎	Fukuoka	Lieutenant General (Imperial Japanese Army)	Military	6 June 1918	24 October 1919
8		Den Kenjirō 田健治郎	Hyōgo	Member of Terauchi Cabinet (Baron)	Seiyūkai	29 October 1919	2 September 1923
9		Uchida Kakichi 內田嘉吉	Tokyo	Member of House of Peers	Seiyūkai	6 September 1923	1 September 1924
10		Izawa Takio 伊澤多喜男	Nagano	Member of House of Peers	Kenseikai	1 September 1924	16 July 1926
11		Kamiyama Mitsunoshin 上山滿之進	Yamaguchi	literary figure	Kenseikai	16 July 1926	16 June 1928
12		Kawamura Takeji 川村竹治	Akita	Member of House of Peers	Seiyūkai	16 June 1928	30 July 1929
13		Ishizuka Eizō 石塚英藏	Fukushima	Member of House of Peers	Minseitō	30 July 1929	16 January 1931
14		Ōta Masahiro 太田政弘	Yamagata	Director of Kwantung Leased Territory	Minseitō	16 January 1931	2 March 1932
15		Minami Hiroshi 南弘	Toyama	Member of House of Peers	Seiyūkai	2 March 1932	26 May 1932
16		Nakagawa Kenzō 中川健蔵	Niigata	Undersecretary of Education	Minseitō	26 May 1932	2 September 1936
17		Seizō Kobayashi 小林躋造	Hiroshima	Admiral (Imperial Japanese Navy)	Military	2 September 1936	27 November 1940
18		Hasegawa Kiyoshi 長谷川清	Fukui	Admiral (Imperial Japanese Navy)	Military	27 November 1940	30 December 1944
19		Andō Rikichi 安藤利吉	Miyagi	General (Imperial Japanese Army)	Military	30 December 1944	25 October 1945

Taiwan under Republic of China (1945-Present)

Following the end of World War II in 1945, under the terms of the Instrument of Surrender of Japan, Japan provisionally accepted the Potsdam Declaration (which referenced the never-signed Cairo Declaration), under which the island was to be transferred to the Republic of China. ROC troops were authorized to come to Taiwan to accept the surrender of Japanese military forces on behalf of Allied Powers in General Order No. 1, issued by Douglas MacArthur, the Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers, on September 2, 1945. ROC troops were later transported to Keelung by the U.S. Navy, and Japanese handed the control of Taiwan to the ROC on October 25, 1945. Following its defeat in the Chinese Civil War in 1949, Premier Yan Xishan proclaimed the ROC Government's relocation to Taiwan (where it exists until today), thus replacing the Provincial Chairperson as the highest-ranked executive official on Taiwan. This lasted until March 1950, when Chiang Kai-shek resumed his duties as President in Taipei.

  Kuomintang   Democratic Progressive Party

Chief Executive

№	Portrait	Name (Birth–Death)	Term of Office		Political Party
1		Chen Yi 陳儀 Chén Yí (1883-1950)	August 29, 1945	April 22, 1947	Kuomintang

Chairperson of the Provincial Government

№	Portrait	Name (Birth–Death)	Term of Office		Political Party
1		Wei Tao-ming 魏道明 Wèi Dàomíng (1899-1978)	May 16, 1947	January 5, 1949	Kuomintang
2		Chen Cheng 陳誠 Chén Chéng (1897–1965)	January 5, 1949	December 21, 1949	Kuomintang

Premier of the Republic of China (7 December 1949—1 March 1950)

№	Portrait	Name (Birth–Death)	Term of Office		Days	Political Party	President
26		Yan Xishan 閻錫山 Yán Xíshān (1883–1960)	3 June 1949	7 March 1950	277	Kuomintang	Li Zongren, Chiang Kai-shek

President of the Republic of China (1 March 1950— )

№	Portrait	Name (Birth–Death)	Term of Office		Term	Elections	Political Party	Vice President
1		Chiang Kai-shek 蔣中正 Jiǎng Zhōngzhèng (1887–1975)	1 March 1950	20 May 1954	1	—	Kuomintang	Li Zongren (1950–1954[5]) Vacant(1954)
			20 May 1954	20 May 1960	2	1954 (96.91%)		Chen Cheng
			20 May 1960	20 May 1966	3	1960 (93.97%)		Chen Cheng (1960–1965[6]) Vacant(1965-1966)
			20 May 1966	20 May 1972	4	1966 (98.60%)		Yen Chia-kan
			20 May 1972	5 April 1975	5	1972 (99.39%)		Yen Chia-kan
2		Yen Chia-kan (C.K. Yen) 嚴家淦 Yán Jiāgàn (1905–1993)	6 April 1975	20 May 1978	—	Kuomintang	Vacant
3		Chiang Ching-kuo 蔣經國 Jiǎng Jīngguó (1910–1988)	20 May 1978	20 May 1984	6	1978 (98.34%)	Kuomintang	Hsieh Tung-min
			20 May 1984	13 January 1988	7	1984 (95.11%)		Lee Teng-hui
4		Lee Teng-hui 李登輝 Lǐ Dēnghuī (1923–)	13 January 1988	20 May 1990	—	Kuomintang	Vacant
			20 May 1990	20 May 1996	8		1990 (85.24%)	Li Yuan-zu
20 May 1996	20 May 2000	9	1996 5,813,699 (54.0%)	Lien Chan
5		Chen Shui-bian 陳水扁 Chén Shuǐbiǎn (1950–)	20 May 2000	20 May 2004	10	2000 4,977,737 (39.3%)	Democratic Progressive Party	Annette Lu
			20 May 2004	20 May 2008	11	2004 6,446,900 (50.11%)
6		Ma Ying-jeou 馬英九 Mǎ Yīngjiǔ (1950–)	20 May 2008	20 May 2012	12	2008 7,658,724 (58.45%)	Kuomintang	Vincent Siew
			20 May 2012	20 May 2016	13	2012 6,891,139 (51.60%)		Wu Den-yih
7		Tsai Ing-wen 蔡英文 Cài Yīngwén (1956–)	20 May 2016	Incumbent	14	2016 6,894,744 (56.1%)	Democratic Progressive Party	Chen Chien-jen

See also

• History of the Republic of China
• History of Taiwan
• Taiwan Province
• Taiwan Province, People's Republic of China

References

External links

• WorldStatesmen.org listing
• Regnal Chronologies listing