The Tang Te-chang Memorial Park () is a memorial park in

West Central District West Central District () is a District (Taiwan), district located in the center of Tainan City, Taiwan. It is home to 76,983 people. History The district was founded on 1 January 2004, which merged with West District and Central District.. ...

Tainan Tainan (), officially Tainan City, is a Special municipality (Taiwan), special municipality in southern Taiwan facing the Taiwan Strait on its western coast. Tainan is the oldest city on the island and also commonly known as the "Capital City" ...

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

to commemorate late lawyer Tang Te-chang.

History

Empire of Japan

In 1907, local residents erected a statue of

Kodama Gentarō Viscount was a Japanese general in the Imperial Japanese Army and a government minister during the Meiji period. He was instrumental in establishing the modern Imperial Japanese military. Early life Kodama was born on March 16, 1852, in Toku ...

, the fourth

Governor-General of Taiwan The governor-general of Taiwan ( ja, 臺灣總督, Taiwan Sōtoku) was the head of the Government-General of Taiwan in the Japanese era (including Formosa and the Pescadores) when they were part of the Empire of Japan, from 1895 to 1945. The Jap ...

, one year after his passing. The statue was imported to Taiwan from

Kingdom of Italy The Kingdom of Italy ( it, Regno d'Italia) was a state that existed from 1861, when Victor Emmanuel II of Kingdom of Sardinia, Sardinia was proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy, proclaimed King of Italy, until 1946, when civil discontent led to ...

in 1904 and shipped to Tainan in 1905. In 1911, the park became a

traffic circle A roundabout is a type of circular intersection (road), intersection or junction in which road traffic is permitted to flow in one direction around a central island, and priority is typically given to traffic already in the junction.''The N ...

and the wall surrounding the park was torn down. In 1916, the park was named Kodama Park(児玉公園) and subsequently Taisho Park (大正公園).

Republic of China

After the handover of Taiwan from Japan to the

Republic of China Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the northeast ...

in 1945, the park was renamed Min Sheng Green Park. On 13 March 1947, lawyer Tang Te-chang was shot dead at the park as part of the February 28 Incident. In 1997, the park was renamed Tang Te-chang Memorial Park by Tainan Mayor

George Chang George Chang or Chang Tsan-hung (; born 1 March 1936) is a Taiwanese politician and independence activist. He was the mayor of Tainan City from 1997 to 2001. Early years After graduating from the National Tainan First Senior High School, Cha ...

to honor Tang. He erected a

bust Bust commonly refers to: * A woman's breasts * Bust (sculpture), of head and shoulders * An arrest Bust may also refer to: Places *Bust, Bas-Rhin, a city in France *Lashkargah, Afghanistan, known as Bust historically Media * ''Bust'' (magazine ...

of Tang. On 10 March 2013, various organizations and the PCT Church and Society Committee convened at the park to commemorate the life and legacy of Tang. On 22 February 2014, the statue of

Sun Yat-sen Sun Yat-sen (; also known by several other names; 12 November 1866 – 12 March 1925)Singtao daily. Saturday edition. 23 October 2010. section A18. Sun Yat-sen Xinhai revolution 100th anniversary edition . was a Chinese politician who serve ...

was torn down and painted with red color by the Alliance of Referendum for Taiwan and its supporters. The act prompted the

police The police are a constituted body of persons empowered by a state, with the aim to enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citizens, and to prevent crime and civil disorder. Their lawful powers include arrest and t ...

to arrest the alliance leader although he was released shortly afterwards. In December 2015, the original head of Kodama statue was found by artists working at the old barracks of

Imperial Japanese Army The was the official ground-based armed force of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945. It was controlled by the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff Office and the Ministry of the Army, both of which were nominally subordinate to the Emperor o ...

. On 20 September 2017, restoration work began at the park to better fit its Japanese-style surrounding buildings. The restoration costed NT$8 million and is estimated to be completed within 150 days at the end of February 2018.

Architecture

The park is located at a

in Tainan city center. Seven streets converge to the traffic circle.

Transportation

The park is accessible within walking distance southwest of

Tainan Station Tainan () is a railway station in Tainan, Taiwan served by Taiwan Railways Administration. Situated in centre of the old town square of Tainan, Tainan Station is the main station of the city and also one of the major stations along the western ...

of Taiwan Railways.

References