The British Consulate at Takow

Since 1840s, the European and American countries have expanded their power to the east and forced the Qing Dynasty to open five ports to foreign traders. They aimed to trade with China. After the Second Opium War, the Qing Dynasty signed the Treaty of Tientsin with the Great Britain and France in 1858. Taiwan (Anping) and Tamsui Ports were open and trades were allowed in these two ports. It was discussed that if more ports are needed based on the increase of trade volume. In 1863, Keelung and Takow Ports were opened as the external ports for Tamsui and Taiwan (Anping) Ports. Taiwan Customs was established in Takow on May 5, 1864. Takow was officially connected with the world. To expand its economic benefit in the trade with Taiwan, it established the British Consulate at Takow to protect British residents in Taiwan, do business, implement consular jurisdiction and negotiate with local organizations. In July 1861, Robert Swinhoe, the first Vice British Deputy Consulate at Taiwan set up the first office in the Taiwan Prefecture (Tainan). In 1864, the Takow Port was open and the customs was established. In November 1864, the Great Britain moved the Vice British Deputy Consulate at Taiwan to Takow in south, which later was upgraded to the British Consulate in February 1865. Robert Swinhoe was promoted to the consulate. The British Consulate at Takow became the first official consulate of the Great Britain in Taiwan.
　At the beginning of the time that the British Consulate was moved to Takow, it was set up in Ternate Ship in the port. Later on, it rent a residential house in Qihou and used it as the office until the construction of the official office started at Shaochuantou in 1876. The construction was designed and supervised by the British Municipal Council. The land selected for the official residence is at the northwest of the entrance of Takao Harbor and it is high up. The office is on the foothill. It is adjacent to the port and Taiwan Customs It was convenient for consulate affair and business trade. They are connected by a path completed and commenced in 1879.
　The Qing Dynasty was defeated in 1895 during the Sino-Japanese War of 1984. The Treaty of Shimonoseki was signed by both countries. Taiwan was ceded to Japan. The jurisdiction of the British consulates in Taiwan was taken over by Tokyo‘s ambassador.
　The lagoon was silted up and the sand bar at the entrance was blocked. The Takao Harbor declined gradually. In March 1910, the British Consulates at Takow and Anping were closed simultaneously. The consulates’ affairs and interested shifted to Tamsui. In December 1925, the ownership of British Consulate at Takow and its official residence was transferred to the Japanese Government. The British Consulate at Takow was official closed.
　In 1929, the official residence of the British Consulate at Takow was converted to the Government-General of Taiwan Kaohsiung Ocean Observatory. The Nationalist Government took the Observatory over in 1946 and named it the Central Weather Bureau Kaohsiung Meteorological Station, which was left idle after May 1973. It fell down and the walls were broken due to Typhoon Thelma in 1977. The Kaohsiung City Government renovated it in 1985 and reconstructed it as the Kaohsiung Monument Artifact Exhibition Hall. In April 1987, the Ministry of Interior announced that this building is listed as a monument. Since 2003, the private companies have been collaborated on the maintenance. The monument will be reused as a cultural asset to provide a cultural historical space for visit and recreation.
　The office of the British Consulate at Takow founded the Takao Prefecture Experimental Aquaculture Station on the foothill in 1932 to carry out can manufacturing experiments. The Nationalist government renamed the Station as Taiwan Province Experimental Aquaculture Station Kaohsiung Branch in June 1950. All employees moved out in 2004. In 2005, the Kaohsiung City Government announced that this building is listed as a municipal monument. In 2004, the Kaohsiung City Government also announced that the trail connecting the official residence on the hill and the office on the foothill is listed as a municipal monument.
　In recent years, the development of British Consulate at Takow has been gradually clarified, thanks to the detailed research on the information of the National Archives by the academe. Since 2010, the repair of the British Consulate at Takow and the ancient trail has been started. These two are integrated with the official residence to build a cultural park. This is the only important monument community displaying the complete official residence, ancient trail and office of the British Consulate at Takow.