Juguang Township / Jyuguang Township (; Foochow Romanized: Gṳ̄-guŏng-hiŏng), also spelled Chukuang, is a rural township of

Lienchiang County The Matsu Islands ( or , ; Foochow Romanized: Mā-cū liĕk-dō̤), officially Lienchiang County (, ; Foochow Romanized: Lièng-gŏng-gâing), are an archipelago of 36 islands and islets in the East China Sea governed by the Republic of China ( ...

(the Matsu Islands), Republic of China (Taiwan). Juguang Township includes two major islands, Dongju Island ( "East Ju"; Dĕ̤ng-gṳ̄) and Xiju Island ( "West Ju"; Să̤-gṳ̄), as well as some islets.

Name

On October 15, 1971, the Executive Yuan approved changing the name of the township from Baiquan Township (Paichuan, White Dogs; ) to Juguang Township (Chukuang; ). They also approved changing the name of Xiquan Island (Hsichuan; ) to Xiju Island (Hsiju; ) and Dongquan Island (Tungchuan; ) to Dongju Island (Tungchu; ). The islands were renamed based on a quote of a speech by Chiang Kai-shek, "forget not that you're in Ju" (; Wú wàng zài Jǔ; Ù uông câi Gṳ̄). It refers to the

City of Ju Ju () was an ancient Chinese city that existed during the Warring States period, and was located in what is today Ju County, Rizhao Prefecture, Shandong. The State of Ju was originally a vassal state of the Zhou Dynasty during the Spring an ...

, where the king of Qi prepared a counterattack that retook his country from the

State of Yan Yan (; Old Chinese pronunciation: ''*'') was an ancient Chinese state during the Zhou dynasty. Its capital was Ji (later known as Yanjing and now Beijing). During the Warring States period, the court was also moved to another capital at Xiadu ...

. This is an analogy of Matsu and Taiwan generally as bases of the Republic of China (ROC) to regenerate itself and one day recover

mainland China "Mainland China" is a geopolitical term defined as the territory governed by the People's Republic of China (including islands like Hainan or Chongming), excluding dependent territories of the PRC, and other territories within Greater China. ...

from the

Chinese Communist Party The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), officially the Communist Party of China (CPC), is the founding and sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Under the leadership of Mao Zedong, the CCP emerged victorious in the Chinese Civil ...

. Dongju and Xiju Islands were previously named Dongquan (Tung-ch'üan Tao/Tung-ch'uan Tao ; Dĕ̤ng-kēng) and Xiquan (Hsi-ch'üan Tao/Hsi-ch'uan Tao ; Să̤-kēng) Islands, meaning "Eastern Dog" and "Western Dog" respectively. They have also been called the White Dogs (Paichuan, Baiquan) or White Dog Islands (; Băh-kēng-dō̤) or Baiken Islands (白肯島). The name Baiquan (白犬) has been connected with the homophonous name Baiquan (白畎).

History

On May 15, 1617, sixty-nine ''

wokou ''Wokou'' (; Japanese: ''Wakō''; Korean: 왜구 ''Waegu''), which literally translates to "Japanese pirates" or "dwarf pirates", were pirates who raided the coastlines of China and Korea from the 13th century to the 16th century.

'' were captured alive in the area. In 1872, construction of Dongsha (Tungsha) Lighthouse ( Dongquan Lighthouse) began. In December 1939, Japanese naval forces from Taiwan occupied the islands. The islands were originally part of the

Changle County Changle County () is under the administration of Weifang Weifang () is a prefecture-level city in central Shandong province, People's Republic of China. The city borders Dongying to the northwest, Zibo to the west, Linyi to the southwest, Riz ...

before the ROC government evacuated to Taiwan. It is considered by the

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

government as part of Changle City of the Fuzhou City. In September 1953, the Changlo County () government was established on the islands. Western Enterprises ( 西方公司), a

CIA The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...

front organization, had a communications base on Xiquan (Hsichuan). After a series of combat readiness tests carried out by

MAAG Maag is a surname. Notable persons with that name include: * Bruno Maag (born 1962), Swiss type designer * Dan Maag (born 1975), German film producer * Karin Maag (born 1962), German politician * Peter Maag (1919–2001), Swiss conductor * R ...

were completed on April 15, 1955, the overall Chinese Nationalist defense preparations for the Matsu Islands were rated as satisfactory. One of the weaknesses noted was "the seriously understrength regiment garrisoning the Paichuan (White Dog) Islands group". In July 1956, the islands were transferred to Lienchiang County. The islands were divided into two townships: Xiquan and Dongquan. On August 19, 1958, President Chiang Kai-shek visited Xiju Island (then Xiquan) and spoke to the soldiers there. In September 1960, the two townships were united into one, Paichuan (Baiquan) township. On July 23, 1964,

Chiang Ching-kuo Chiang Ching-kuo (27 April 1910 – 13 January 1988) was a politician of the Republic of China after its retreat to Taiwan. The eldest and only biological son of former president Chiang Kai-shek, he held numerous posts in the government ...

visited the islands. On October 15, 1971, the Executive Yuan approved changing the name of the township from Baiquan Township (Paichuan, White Dogs; ) to Juguang Township (Chukuang; ). They also approved changing the name of Xiquan Island (Hsichuan; ) to Xiju Island (Hsiju; ) and Dongquan Island (Tungchuan; ) to Dongju Island (Tungchu; ). On September 21, 1979, and on May 3, 1980, President

visited the township. On June 18, 1993, President Lee Teng-hui visited the Dongju Elementary School. On June 24, 2001, Typhoon Chebi caused 3,000,000 yuan of damage on the islands. In the 2018 election, Mayor Hsieh Chun-Lan () was re-elected mayor, defeating her opponent Chen Shun-Shou () by over a hundred votes. Hsieh called for rebuilding the former township office as a resort, beautification of the township, and creation of a vibrant sight-seeing economy.

Geography

Dongju (Tong Chu), the southernmost of the Matsu Islands, is 2.63 km² and Sijyu 2.36 km². Islets includes like Yongliu (永留嶼 Yongliu) near Dongju. Dongju is shaped like a

dagger A dagger is a fighting knife with a very sharp point and usually two sharp edges, typically designed or capable of being used as a thrusting or stabbing weapon.State v. Martin, 633 S.W.2d 80 (Mo. 1982): This is the dictionary or popular-use de ...

, while Xiju a

triangle A triangle is a polygon with three edges and three vertices. It is one of the basic shapes in geometry. A triangle with vertices ''A'', ''B'', and ''C'' is denoted \triangle ABC. In Euclidean geometry, any three points, when non- colline ...

, so seemingly bigger on maps. Some cliffs of Dongjyu is severely corroded by

wind Wind is the natural movement of air or other gases relative to a planet's surface. Winds occur on a range of scales, from thunderstorm flows lasting tens of minutes, to local breezes generated by heating of land surfaces and lasting a few ho ...

, creating a strangely aesthetic appearance. Other islands include Linaoyu () also known as Lintouyu (), Xiniuyu (), Dayu (), Xiaoyu (), and Sheshan (). The northernmost and easternmost points of Juguang Township are on Dayu, the westernmost point is on Sheshan, and the southernmost point is on Linaoyu. Linaoyu is also the southernmost point of the Matsu Islands. Juguang is across from

Meihua ''Prunus mume'' is an East Asian and Southeast Asian tree species classified in the ''Armeniaca'' section of the genus ''Prunus'' subgenus ''Prunus''. Its common names include Chinese plum, Japanese plum, and Japanese apricot. The flower, lon ...

Town (),

Changle District (, Foochow Romanized: Diòng-lŏ̤h) is one of 6 urban districts of the prefecture-level city of Fuzhou, the capital of Fujian Province, China. It occupies a land area of and a sea area of . Changle was established in the sixth year of Emper ...

, Fuzhou, Fujian, China (PRC).

Politics and government

Administrative divisions

Xiju, seen from the Qingfan Harbor, Xiju, Matsu, Taiwan

Administratively the islands are part of the

. Neither Dongju nor Xiju has an island-wide administrative level. The islands are divided into five rural villages: Xiju Island ** Qingfan Village ( Qīngfán, ) ** Xiqiu Village ( Xīqīu) ** Tianwo Village ( Tiánwò) Dongju Island ** Daping Village ( Dàpíng) ** Fuzheng Village ( Fúzhèng)

Mayors

* Appointed mayors: # Chen Chia-Tui () (1960-1961) # Lin Tso-Chou () (1961-1964) # Hsueh Chih-Lien () (1964-1967), former mayor of Nangan # Li Kuei-Li () (1967-1970), later mayor of

Beigan Beigan Township (; Foochow Romanized: Báe̤k-găng-hiŏng), is an insular rural township in Lienchiang County (the Matsu Islands), Taiwan (ROC). The township is in the East China Sea off the coast of Fujian Province, China near Fuzhou (Foochow ...

# Chen I-Peng () (1970-1973), mayor during the change of the name of the township and islands, former mayor of

and later mayor of Nangan (Matsu) # Lin Po-Jen () (1973-1978) * Elected mayors: # Lin Mao-Chun () (1978-1982), received 692 votes out of a total 697 votes cast (699 eligible voters) # Chen Chien-Kuang () (1982-1986) # Chen Le-Tuan () (1986-1990) # Tsao Erh-Szu () (1990-1994) # Wang Ta-Chieh () (1994-1998) # Chiang Chih-Hsing () (1998-2002) # Wang Ta-Chieh () (2002-2006), second term # Ko Yu-Kuan () (2006-2014) # Hsieh Chun-Lan () (2014–present) (

KMT The Kuomintang (KMT), also referred to as the Guomindang (GMD), the Nationalist Party of China (NPC) or the Chinese Nationalist Party (CNP), is a major political party in the Republic of China, initially on the Chinese mainland and in Tai ...

), b.1960 first female mayor of the township

Infrastructure

Electricity supply

The township is powered up by Xiju Power Plant located in Xiju Island and Dongju Power Plant located in Dongju Island. Due to the changes in electricity needs, both islands were interconnected by submarine power cable since 2000.

Water supply

Previously,

water supply Water supply is the provision of water by public utilities, commercial organisations, community endeavors or by individuals, usually via a system of pumps and pipes. Public water supply systems are crucial to properly functioning societies. Thes ...

had been scarce in Xiju Island despite having water wells drilled around the island by the residents. Later the

military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...

built a dam and formed the Ledaoao Reservoir for the water needs of residents, defense and irrigation.

Tourism

Tourist information center, Dongju, Matsu, Taiwan

The 19.5-metre (54-step) Dongquan Lighthouse on northern Dongjyu, made during the late

Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-spea ...

with granite. The guiding light is in the shape of a

clam Clam is a common name for several kinds of bivalve molluscs. The word is often applied only to those that are edible and live as infauna, spending most of their lives halfway buried in the sand of the seafloor or riverbeds. Clams have two shel ...

and can reach . Dongju Lighthouse is a second-level national historic building. In front of the lighthouse, there used to be four mist-cannon for signaling, but has now been removed and placed in Matsu Folk Culture Museum. The 42-

character Character or Characters may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''Character'' (novel), a 1936 Dutch novel by Ferdinand Bordewijk * ''Characters'' (Theophrastus), a classical Greek set of character sketches attributed to The ...

Dapu Inscription, in Dapu Seaport of Dongju, was made during the Wanli era of the

Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last orthodox dynasty of China ruled by the Han peo ...

, concerning the capture of

pirate Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable goods. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, v ...

s alive. Remembering-the-Past Pavilion (懷古亭 Huaigu Ting) was constructed in 1966 sheltering the stone. In the sea south of the Sijyu, there is Snake Mountain (蛇山). The main island has a small Green-sail Seaport (青帆港), two water reservoirs and a middle- elementary school, but are not major tourist attractions. It also features the Mysterious Little Bay.

Transportation

There is one accessible seaport on Xiju, and two on Dongju. Juguang can be reached by ferry from Fuao Harbor in Nangan or by helicopter which only operates during the winter and priority on which is given to local residents.

Notable natives

* Chen Hsueh-sheng,

Magistrate The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a '' magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judic ...

of Lienchiang County (2001-2009)

References

External links

*
軍史探舊系列－莒光前線行(上集)
('Exploring Military History Series - A Visit to the Frontline at Juguang (Part One)') {{Lienchiang divisions