The earliest record of people living in Taiwan is the people of the Malay-Polynesian descent before the 1600’s. The island of Taiwan was called “Pakan” at the time ("Taiwan's 400 years of history"). These aborigines moved from the lowlands to the mountains and were then considered “mountain people”. The first western ship came across Taiwan in 1590 by the Dutch. As the Dutch occupied this land, they brought in Chinese laborers who would work and then return to the mainland ("Taiwan's 400 years of history"). As the Chinese people settled and married the aborigines, the Taiwanese race was born. Cheng Cheng-Kung, a Ming Dynasty pirate, defeated the Dutch in 1662. His son took over after he died and in 1683, the Ming Dynasty was overpowered by the Qing troops ("Taiwan's 400 years of history").
The theories from Guns, Germs, and Steel apply to the settlement of Taiwan because the Dutch were in their Golden Age when they came across the land. The Dutch were extremely developed in their military during this time which gave them a huge advantage over the aborigines. The people of Taiwan had resources that were valuable to foreigners. Examples include deerskins, venison, and sugarcane. Resources and unique trading materials made the land appealing to those conquering it.
For the next 200 years, Taiwan became the land for immigrants and pirates. Famine and war pushed the Chinese to move to the island. Later, in 1895, the Japanese won the Sino-Japanese War and won over Taiwan in the Treaty of Shimonoseki ("Taiwan: History"). The people of Taiwan did not want to be a part of Japan, so on May 25th of 1895, the Taiwan Republic was established.
This did not last long, however. On May 29th, 12,000 Japanese soldiers came to the island to reclaim the land. In October of the same year, the Taiwan Republic was over. The next shift of control came during World War II when Taiwan was “returned” to the Chinese. The people of Taiwan were happy to be separated from Japan, but the corruption of China soon altered their emotions ("Taiwan's 400 years of history"). For 40 years after 1949, Taiwan was under Martial Law ("Taiwan: History"). In the San Francisco Peace Treaty, it was decided that the United Nations would decide the status of Taiwan.
Martial Law was not dropped until 1987, and the KMT rule over China ended in 1991. Ever since the Nationalist Chinese legislators who were elected on the mainland entered retirement, Taiwan has been working toward an independent democratic political system, though there are still KMT authorities that insist Taiwan is a part of China ("Taiwan's 400 years of history").
Taiwan's 400 years of history. (n.d.). Retrieved January 29, 2017, from http://ted.coe.wayne.edu/sse/wq/Taiwan/Taiwanese%20History.htm
Taiwan: History. (n.d.). Retrieved January 29, 2017, from https://globaledge.msu.edu/countries/taiwan/history
These are two reliable sources for information regarding Taiwan. The first gives valuable details about Taiwan's history of settlement and China. Also, it provides tabs about the Taiwanese government, religion, and geography. The second source is similar in that it provides a lot of information about the government, history, and culture. The website also has tabs about the economy, statistics, resources, and more.