Kingdom of Middag
Encyclopedia
The Kingdom of Middag was a kingdom
or supra-tribal alliance located in the central western plains of Taiwan
. Such a historical regime was established by the Taiwanese aboriginal
tribes of Papora, Babuza, Pazeh
, and Hoanya; it had ruled as many as 27 village
s (according to the Scottish traveler David Wright), occupying parts of present-day Taichung
, Changhua, and Nantou
Counties. Having taken shape in the 16th century and survived the rulings of European colonists and the Kingdom of Tungning
, the aboriginal tribes that used to form the Middag regime were eventually subjugated to the rule of the Qing Empire
in the 18th century.
being the modern-day name of the historical capital Middag.
The leader of the kingdom also had different titles. The Dutch
name of the title was Keizer van Middag, the German
name was Keiser von Mittag, the Hoklo
name was Quata Ong , and the most common aboriginal
name was Lelian ("Sun King").
established its outpost at Tayuan (in present-day Tainan City) in 1624, it came into armed conflicts with the kingdom on some occasions, and was able to force the kingdom into submission. The kingdom, however, maintained its semi-autonomous status, and had the authority to ban European missionary activities in its territory. Generally speaking, the kingdom maintained a friendly relation with the Dutch.
In 1662, Ming
loyalist Koxinga
and his followers laid siege
to the Dutch outpost, and eventually established the Kingdom of Tungning. Tungning and Middag were constantly at odds due to Middag's friendly relations with the Dutch, and hostility between the kingdom's indigenous population and the Han Chinese
people that constituted the population of Tungning. Furthermore, the Kingdom of Tungning was in constant need of expansion in order to increase food production to feed its vast army because maritime trade was denied by the hostile Dutch-Qing alliance. The rulers of Tungning had to resort to forced acquisition of land to implement Chinese-style intensive farming
, and this resulted in a number of massacres of the indigenous population that refused to comply. As a result, the two kingdoms clashed on numerous occasions, with the territory of Tungning gradually expanded and Middag forced to retreat—much the same as the situation in other traditionally aboriginal areas on the island.
After the Qing's successful campaign that resulted in the capitulation of the Kingdom of Tungning, transportation between Taiwan and China was restored, and the immigration of Chinese population to the island—albeit discouraged by official edicts—resurged. Consequently, the Kingdom of Middag—as were other aboriginal tribes—faced even greater pressure from the exponentially growing Chinese population seeking to "open" more farmlands on the island.
Due to lack of historical records or archaeological
evidence, the actual lineage
and developments of the kingdom cannot be ascertained. According to the accounts by Huang Shujing
, a Qing official dispatched to Taiwan in the early 18th century, a supra-tribal leadership remained in existence in the Dadu area at that time. However, during the reign of Yongzheng Emperor
of Qing later in that century, the population in the traditional Middag territories rose to oppose heavy labor imposed by the Qing authorities, and was brutally quelled by Qing troops and collaborative tribes in 1732, a year after the initial uprising. After this turmoil came to an end, a supra-tribal leadership apparently ceased to exist in the island's central-western plains. In the aftermath of this, the descendants of Middag either fused into the majority "Chinese" population through intermarriage or migrated to present-day Puli
, a basin township surrounded by high mountains in central Taiwan.
Monarchy
A monarchy is a form of government in which the office of head of state is usually held until death or abdication and is often hereditary and includes a royal house. In some cases, the monarch is elected...
or supra-tribal alliance located in the central western plains of Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
. Such a historical regime was established by the Taiwanese aboriginal
Taiwanese aborigines
Taiwanese aborigines is the term commonly applied in reference to the indigenous peoples of Taiwan. Although Taiwanese indigenous groups hold a variety of creation myths, recent research suggests their ancestors may have been living on the islands for approximately 8,000 years before major Han...
tribes of Papora, Babuza, Pazeh
Pazeh people
The Pazeh people, including the Kaxabu, are the descendants of the Tsouic Pazeh speaking indigenous people from the central Taiwanese areas of Taichung and Miaoli...
, and Hoanya; it had ruled as many as 27 village
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
s (according to the Scottish traveler David Wright), occupying parts of present-day Taichung
Taichung
-Demographics:Taichung’s population was an estimated 1,040,725 in August 2006. There are slightly more females in the city than males.24.32% of residents are children, while 16.63% are young people, 52.68% are middle-age, and 6.73% are elderly....
, Changhua, and Nantou
Nantou
Nantou may refer to:* Nantou County - central Taiwan, Republic of China* Nantou City - a city in Nantou County, Taiwan Province, Republic of China...
Counties. Having taken shape in the 16th century and survived the rulings of European colonists and the Kingdom of Tungning
Kingdom of Tungning
The Kingdom of Tungning was a government that ruled Taiwan between 1661 and 1683. A pro-Ming Dynasty state, it was founded by Koxinga after the Ming government in mainland China was replaced by the Manchu-ruled Qing Dynasty...
, the aboriginal tribes that used to form the Middag regime were eventually subjugated to the rule of the Qing Empire
Qing Dynasty
The Qing Dynasty was the last dynasty of China, ruling from 1644 to 1912 with a brief, abortive restoration in 1917. It was preceded by the Ming Dynasty and followed by the Republic of China....
in the 18th century.
Names
The Kingdom of Middag is the western name for the kingdom. In Taiwan, it is known as the Kingdom of Dadu , DaduDadu, Taichung
Dadu is a district in southwestern Taichung, Taiwan.- History :*The Yingpu culture was a Late Neolithic culture in mid-Taiwan.*Dadu was the historical capital of the Kingdom of Middag which was established by the Taiwanese aboriginal tribes of Papora, Babuza, Pazeh, and Hoanya.-External links:*...
being the modern-day name of the historical capital Middag.
The leader of the kingdom also had different titles. The Dutch
Dutch language
Dutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
name of the title was Keizer van Middag, the German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
name was Keiser von Mittag, the Hoklo
Hoklo people
The Hoklo people are Han Chinese people whose traditional Ancestral homes are in southern Fujian of South China...
name was Quata Ong , and the most common aboriginal
Formosan languages
The Formosan languages are the languages of the indigenous peoples of Taiwan. Taiwanese aborigines currently comprise about 2% of the island's population. However, far fewer can still speak their ancestral language, after centuries of language shift...
name was Lelian ("Sun King").
History
Having taken shape before the mid-16th century, the kingdom first came into contact with the West in the early 17th century. After the Dutch East India CompanyDutch East India Company
The Dutch East India Company was a chartered company established in 1602, when the States-General of the Netherlands granted it a 21-year monopoly to carry out colonial activities in Asia...
established its outpost at Tayuan (in present-day Tainan City) in 1624, it came into armed conflicts with the kingdom on some occasions, and was able to force the kingdom into submission. The kingdom, however, maintained its semi-autonomous status, and had the authority to ban European missionary activities in its territory. Generally speaking, the kingdom maintained a friendly relation with the Dutch.
In 1662, Ming
Ming Dynasty
The Ming Dynasty, also Empire of the Great Ming, was the ruling dynasty of China from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan Dynasty. The Ming, "one of the greatest eras of orderly government and social stability in human history", was the last dynasty in China ruled by ethnic...
loyalist Koxinga
Koxinga
Koxinga is the customary Western spelling of the popular appellation of Zheng Chenggong , a military leader who was born in 1624 in Hirado, Japan to Zheng Zhilong, a Chinese merchant/pirate, and his Japanese wife and died in 1662 on the island of Formosa .A Ming loyalist and the arch commander of...
and his followers laid siege
Siege of Fort Zeelandia
The Siege of Fort Zeelandia , which took place in 1661 and 1662, ended the Dutch East India Company's rule over Taiwan and began the Kingdom of Tungning's rule over the island...
to the Dutch outpost, and eventually established the Kingdom of Tungning. Tungning and Middag were constantly at odds due to Middag's friendly relations with the Dutch, and hostility between the kingdom's indigenous population and the Han Chinese
Han Chinese
Han Chinese are an ethnic group native to China and are the largest single ethnic group in the world.Han Chinese constitute about 92% of the population of the People's Republic of China , 98% of the population of the Republic of China , 78% of the population of Singapore, and about 20% of the...
people that constituted the population of Tungning. Furthermore, the Kingdom of Tungning was in constant need of expansion in order to increase food production to feed its vast army because maritime trade was denied by the hostile Dutch-Qing alliance. The rulers of Tungning had to resort to forced acquisition of land to implement Chinese-style intensive farming
Intensive farming
Intensive farming or intensive agriculture is an agricultural production system characterized by the high inputs of capital, labour, or heavy usage of technologies such as pesticides and chemical fertilizers relative to land area....
, and this resulted in a number of massacres of the indigenous population that refused to comply. As a result, the two kingdoms clashed on numerous occasions, with the territory of Tungning gradually expanded and Middag forced to retreat—much the same as the situation in other traditionally aboriginal areas on the island.
After the Qing's successful campaign that resulted in the capitulation of the Kingdom of Tungning, transportation between Taiwan and China was restored, and the immigration of Chinese population to the island—albeit discouraged by official edicts—resurged. Consequently, the Kingdom of Middag—as were other aboriginal tribes—faced even greater pressure from the exponentially growing Chinese population seeking to "open" more farmlands on the island.
Due to lack of historical records or archaeological
Archaeology
Archaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...
evidence, the actual lineage
Lineage
Lineage may refer to:- Science :* Lineage or kinship, descent group that can demonstrate their common descent from an apical ancestor or a direct line of decent from an ancestor....
and developments of the kingdom cannot be ascertained. According to the accounts by Huang Shujing
Huang Shujing
Huáng Shújǐng was the first Imperial High Commissioner to Taiwan . A Beijinger, he was sent by the Kangxi Emperor of the Qing Empire, during whose reign Taiwan was annexed in 1684....
, a Qing official dispatched to Taiwan in the early 18th century, a supra-tribal leadership remained in existence in the Dadu area at that time. However, during the reign of Yongzheng Emperor
Yongzheng Emperor
The Yongzheng Emperor , born Yinzhen , was the fifth emperor of the Manchu Qing Dynasty and the third Qing emperor from 1722 to 1735. A hard-working ruler, Yongzheng's main goal was to create an effective government at minimal expense. Like his father, the Kangxi Emperor, Yongzheng used military...
of Qing later in that century, the population in the traditional Middag territories rose to oppose heavy labor imposed by the Qing authorities, and was brutally quelled by Qing troops and collaborative tribes in 1732, a year after the initial uprising. After this turmoil came to an end, a supra-tribal leadership apparently ceased to exist in the island's central-western plains. In the aftermath of this, the descendants of Middag either fused into the majority "Chinese" population through intermarriage or migrated to present-day Puli
Puli, Nantou
Puli is an urban township in Nantou County, Taiwan. It is the geographic center of Taiwan.In the 19th century the city was known as Posia or Polisia . The Atayal name of the settlement was Sabaha Bakalas, meaning "house of stars"....
, a basin township surrounded by high mountains in central Taiwan.
See also
- Taiwanese aboriginesTaiwanese aboriginesTaiwanese aborigines is the term commonly applied in reference to the indigenous peoples of Taiwan. Although Taiwanese indigenous groups hold a variety of creation myths, recent research suggests their ancestors may have been living on the islands for approximately 8,000 years before major Han...
- Dutch Formosa
- Kingdom of TungningKingdom of TungningThe Kingdom of Tungning was a government that ruled Taiwan between 1661 and 1683. A pro-Ming Dynasty state, it was founded by Koxinga after the Ming government in mainland China was replaced by the Manchu-ruled Qing Dynasty...
- Taiwan under Qing Dynasty ruleTaiwan under Qing Dynasty ruleThe Qing Dynasty ruled Taiwan from 1683 to 1895. The Qing court sent an army led by general Shi Lang and annexed Taiwan in 1683.-History:Qing Emperor Kangxi annexed Taiwan because he wanted to remove the remaining resistance forces against the Qing Dynasty...