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Simplified Chinese, Japanese, English, Korean “After the Qing–Japanese War ended in 1885, the Qing governor of Fujian and Zhejiang, Yang Changjun, and the Taiwan Intendant Liu Mingchuan personally inspected Penghu and proposed that “the Penghu archipelago is a solitary, perilous, and isolated island that serves as the gateway for Fujian and Taiwan; it must be fortified with thick, sturdy fortifications, equipped with powerful cannons, and garrisoned by strong troops in order to provide adequate defense.” They repeatedly petitioned to strengthen Penghu’s coastal defenses and suggested building a city at Maming. The Qing court adopted their proposal and appointed Wu Honglu as the first commander of Penghu. Upon arrival, Wu Honglu was ordered to construct Maming City, and he built a new northern battery for the city, the Jin Gui Tou battery, the western island eastern battery, and the western island western battery—four new-style, post-barrel guns mounted on the Amberg’s design. In the 21st year of Guangxu (1895) during the Battle of Penghu, the Japanese forces landed from the western dragon gate on the eastern side of Penghu’s main island. Because the western island western battery was on the far western side of Penghu, it could not provide fire support for the Gongbei battery on the eastern side. After the Japanese overran the Gongbei battery, they advanced straight into Maming City. The western island western battery could not demonstrate its full artillery potential during the repeated battles on Penghu. During the Pacific War, because the U.S. military employed island-hopping tactics, after capturing the Philippines they bypassed Taiwan and Penghu to attack Okinawa directly. Therefore, Penghu’s fort batteries never faced direct cannon fire from U.S. warships, and all the batteries on Penghu remained unscathed and have been preserved to this day. In the 72nd year of the Republic (1983) on December 28, the western island western battery was designated a national historic site. Source: National Cultural Heritage Network. 【Suggested stay time】 2 hours.”