Changhua County

There are prehistoric burial sites in Changhua that date back 5000 years. The number of burials tally to 32. The original name of the area was Poasoa (Chinese: 半線; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Pòaⁿ-sòaⁿ; lit. 'half line'), so-named by the local indigenous tribes. Poasoa used to be inhabited primarily by the Babuza people, who have since been mostly assimilated by the Han people.

Qing rule in Taiwan began in 1683, and in 1684, Taiwan Prefecture was established to administer Taiwan under Fujian Province. The prefecture consisted of three counties: Taiwan County, Fongshan District (Formosa) and Zhuluo. Poasoa and modern-day Changhua County were under the jurisdiction of Zhuluo, but the Changhua area was spread over three counties.

In 1723, after the Zhu Yigui rebellion, an inspector official in Taiwan requested to the Qing Emperor to designate Changhua to another county magistrate and legal warden because of the increasing population in the northern part of Zhuluo County.[2] As a result, Changhua County was created, encompassing the area of modern Changhua County, Taichung, half of Yunlin County and three townships of Nantou County. Changhua County Hall was built in the middle of the district and is regarded as the beginning of the Changhua County establishment.[3]

The name of Changhua, meaning "manifestation of a royal civilization", is formally worded "manifestation of the majestic Emperor's civilization spread over the seas".[3]

During early Japanese rule, the island was subdivided into three ken (県): Taihoku, Taiwan, and Tainan. Changhua was ruled under Taiwan Ken. In 1920, after several administrative changes, Taichū Prefecture was established, covering modern-day Changhua County, Nantou County and Taichung City. By 1930, the population in Changhua already exceeded one million.

After the handover of Taiwan from Japan to the Republic of China on 25 December 1945, the area of the current Changhua County was established under the jurisdiction of Taichung County. On 16 August 1950 after its separation from Taichung County, Changhua County was established with Changhua City as its county seat on 1 December 1951.[4]

The Changhua County Magistrate is the democratically elected chief executive officer of the county. The current incumbent is Wang Huei-Mei of the Kuomintang.

Since the reorganization of the Legislative Yuan into a 113-member chamber in 2008, Changhua has been divided into four constituencies, each of which return one legislator. In 2011 the incumbent in Changhua 1, Chen Shou-ching, died in office. Because there was less than a year left on her term in office, the seat was left vacant until the 2012 election.[10] In 2014 a by-election was held in Changhua 4 after Wei Ming-ku was elected as Changhua County Magistrate.

• You Are the Apple of My Eye

Around 1,200 hectares of total land used for growing fruits in the county is used for grape cultivation with Xihu Township acts as the largest grape production hub in the county.[12]

Museums in the county include the BRAND'S Health Museum, Changhua County Art Museum and Lukang Folk Arts Museum.

The county is home to the following art and culture centers, which are Changhua Arts Hall, Lukang Culture Center and National Changhua Living Art Center.

Temples in Changhua County are

• Baozang Temple (芬園寶藏寺) : built in 1672 and dedicated to Guanyin Bodhisattva, designated as a third grade historic building
• Changhua Confucian Temple (彰化孔廟) : built in 1726 and renovated in 1830, is a Grade 1 national historical site
• Hushan Temple (虎山巖) : built in 1747 and dedicated to Guanyin Bodhisattva
• Kaihua Temple (彰化開化寺) : originally constructed in 1724 as Guanyin Shrine
• Lukang Longshan Temple (鹿港龍山寺) : first built in 1738, renowned for its exquisite woodcarvings, as well as for its stone sculptures, especially the 12 major support columns in the main hall, twined by auspicious dragons hewn from solid stone
• Lukang Wen Wu Temple (鹿港文武廟) : first built in 1806, consists of Martial Temple (武廟), Literature Shrine (文祠) and Wenkai Academy (文開書院)
• Nanyao Temple (彰化南瑤宮) : completed in 1738 and originally named Mazu Temple, designated as a third grade historic building
• Shetou Doushan Temple (社頭斗山祠) : built in 1880, ancestral temple of "Xiao" (蕭) clan
• Yuanching Temple (元清觀) : constructed in 1763, one of the earliest temple in Taiwan that is dedicated to Jade Emperor

Nature tourism in the county are Alice's Garden and Changhua Fitzroy Gardens.

Historical buildings in the county are the Changhua Wude Hall, Daodong Tutorial Academy, Fuxing Barn, Lukang Ai Gate, Lukang Kinmen Hall, Lukang Rimao Hang, Luocuo Church, Spring of Youth, Yi Yuan Mansion and Yusan Hall.

There are 8 stations in Changhua County of the Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA), with the largest being Changhua Station located in Changhua City. The rest are: Huatan Station, Dacun Station, Yuanlin Station, Yongjing Station, Shetou Station, Tianzhong Station and Ershui Station.

Taiwan High Speed Rail has also one station in the county, which is Changhua Station.

National Highway 1 and National Highway 3 both pass through Changhua County. In addition, there are plenty of provincial highways as well. The Xiluo Bridge, with a span over 1,900 meters and opened in 1953, links Changhua County with neighboring Yunlin County.