【Introduction】

In order to raise funds for the building of the Taipei City Walls, Taipei Prefecture Governor Chen Xing-ju convened meetings with the local gentry and businessmen, urging them to donate money. The construction started in 1882 (the 8th year of Emperor Guangxu of the Qing Dynasty), and it was completed in 1884. The circumference of the walls was 5.32 kilometers. The interior walls were filled with compacted soil, and the exterior was composed of stacked sandstones. The stone materials were supplied by the quarry in the Neihu area, which were shipped to the sites by waterways connecting to the moat. The walls could be crossed by five gates: The North Gate Chengenmen to Dadaocheng; the South Gate Lizhengmen to Jinwei; the Little South Gate Chongximen to Banqiao; the East Gate Jingfumen to Xikou; and the West Gate Baochengmen to Monga. Both the North and the East Gates featured barbican structures with fortified outposts or gateways. The North Gate, being the main gate, was built with double brick walls to defend against attacks of firearms. Battlements and gun ports in the walls gave the appearance of a bunker or fortress. The gatehouse is structured with a single-eave roof supported by a traditional wooden frame. The barbican structure along with its reception pavilion was torn down, but the tower retains its original form. The city's walls and the West Gate were destroyed as part of the city plan for street construction under Japanese colonial rule in the early 20th century. In 1966, the city government rebuilt the East Gate, South Gate, and Little South Gate with iron-reinforced concrete structures on the grounds of “improving the city’s appearance to accord with the requirements of tourism. ”Although the foundations of the lower buildings have been retained, their architectural styles above the 2nd floor were re-designed to resemble those of palatial buildings seen in Northern China.

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