Taiwan's Earliest Modern Sugar Factory: Established by British Merchants in the Qing Dynasty, Forcibly Annexed During Japanese Rule

This article aims to clarify historical misconceptions about the modernization of Taiwan's sugar industry, refuting the view that all credit for sugar economic achievements belongs to the Japanese colonial era. In fact, Taiwan's earliest modern sugar processing equipment factory—the Sankantien Sugar Factory—was established by British merchants Jardine Matheson and local Han Chinese in cooperation during the Tongzhi reign of the Qing Dynasty, introducing European technology. The article points out that after Japan signed the Treaty of Shimonoseki following the First Sino-Japanese War and occupied Taiwan, it immediately implemented a colonial monopoly economy. Through the establishment of Taiwan Sugar Company Ltd., it forcibly acquired (annexed) Jardine's sugar company and local sugar refineries, thereby seizing control of Taiwan's economic lifeline.