1895 · Yiwei— The Onset of China’s Modernization

 

 現代中國的誕生從一場失敗的戰爭（甲午戰爭）以及一紙屈辱的和約（馬關條約）開始。爾後半世紀，日本成了東亞地區的霸主，朝鮮和臺灣遂與原本的華夏天下秩序脫鉤，成為日本的殖民地。日本帝國依自己認定的現代化模式，開始打造日本以及兩個新領地的現代化面貌。挫敗的滿清王朝在君民協力下展開戊戌變法，變法由技術面深入到制度面。臺灣人民自十九世紀最後一個乙未年以後，不得不在棄兒意識的狀態下，展現不能自己的文明化的歷程，現代東亞的政治秩序已隱然成形。本單元展品包括甲午乙未時期，日本、滿清和臺灣三方要員與士人的書畫和手札，以及這段時期的地圖與出版品，以顯示這場掀動東亞地區的歷史巨變。

 

 Modern China emerged from the defeat of the First Sino-Japanese War and the humiliating Treaty of Shimonoseki. In the decades that followed, Japan rose as the dominant power in East Asia, while Taiwan and Korea were separated from the former Sinocentric order and incorporated into the Japanese empire as colonies. Under Japanese rule, new models of modernization reshaped both Japan and its newly acquired territories.

 In the wake of military defeat, the Qing court launched the Hundred Days’ Reform in 1989, extending reform efforts from technological change to political and institutional transformation. After 1895, the people of Taiwan experienced a complex process of modernization shaped by a growing sense of displacement and the colonial rule. Through these upheavals, a new political order in modern East Asia gradually took form.

 This section presents calligraphy, paintings, letters, maps, and publications produced by political figures and intellectuals from Japan, Qing China, and Taiwan during the Jiawu (1894)–Yiwei (1895) period, revealing the profound historical transformations that reconfigured East Asia.

 

1-1 甲午馬關與現代東亞

The Treaty of Shimonoseki and Modern East Asia

 

 現代東亞的概念在1895年（乙未）的《馬關條約》後真正形成，韓國脫離了朝貢體制的天下觀，形式上成了主權獨立的國家。清朝也更進一步由朝廷的模式轉向主權國家，維新變法，開啟新中國的第一章。日本則成了東亞的新霸主，琉球、臺灣都被併入版圖，東亞史與世界史合流。直至1945年二戰結束，政治局面才改觀，但東亞格局不變。

 本欄展出與甲午戰爭－馬關條約相關的戰爭浮世繪、條約與臺韓人士的手札、條幅。

 

 Modern East Asia took shape in the wake of the 1895 Treaty of Shimonoseki. Korea broke away from the tributary position under Qing Empire and formally became an independent sovereign state. The Qing Empire also began its transformation from an imperial dynasty into a modern sovereign state, launching the late Qing reforms and opening a new chapter in China’s modernization. Meanwhile, Japan emerged as the dominant power in East Asia, incorporating the Ryukyu Islands and Taiwan into its empire, as East Asia became fully integrated into modern world history.

 This showcase features war ukiyo-e (woodblock prints), a facsimile of the Treaty of Shimonoseki, as well as personal letters and hanging scrolls by figures from Taiwan and Korea, illustrating the profound impact of the war and the treaty on the transformation of modern East Asia.

1-2 痛定思痛的現代化之路

The Hard Journey Toward Modernization

 

 甲午戰爭挫敗，中國知識分子猛醒，體悟政治、社會全面變革的必要性。先有戊戌變法，主張君主立憲制改革，失敗後康有為、梁啟超等倡議者避居海外，仍以如椽之筆傳播新思潮。隨著八國聯軍、庚子賠款的屈辱，國內不分滿漢大臣，均戮力興學、創辦實業；展出的如大臣端方，廣興各類學校有成，且推動博覽會，促進工商業。又如以美國退還超收的庚子賠款成立清華學堂，舉送英才留學美國，他們返國後均成為中國現代化的基石。同時期，日本在臺灣殖民地，禁鴉片、革除纏足舊習，為社會灌入一息新風氣。

 本欄展出與甲午戰爭－馬關條約相關的戰爭浮世繪、條約與臺韓人士的手札、條幅。

 

 China’s defeat in the First Sino-Japanese War jolted many Chinese intellectuals into recognizing the need for sweeping political and social change. The Hundred Days’ Reform of 1898 advocated a constitutional monarchy. After the movement failed, leading reformers such as Kang You-wei and Liang Qi-chao went into exile, yet continued to disseminate new ideas through their prolific and influential writings. The intervention of the Eight-Nation Alliance and the humiliation of the Boxer Indemnity gave even greater urgency to the search for national renewal. Manchu and Han officials alike devoted themselves to establishing modern schools and promoting industry and commerce. Duanfang, for example, founded a wide range of schools and promoted expositions to encourage industrial and commercial development. Tsing Hua College was established with the excess portion of the Boxer Indemnity refunded by the United States to select of talented students for study in the United States; after returning to China, many became key contributors to the country’s modernization. During the same period, the Japanese colonial administration in Taiwan sought to restrict opium use and eliminate the practice of foot-binding, introducing new currents of social reform to the island.

1-3 帝國的推手

An Architect of Empire

 

 伊藤博文（1841-1909），出身長州藩農家，後為武士伊藤家收養。1863年赴英國留學，接觸西方政治制度。明治維新後加入新政府，歷任太政官參議、內閣總理大臣等職，並主導制定明治憲法，為近代日本立憲政治的推動者。1894年甲午戰爭期間再任首相，戰後作為日方代表與清廷簽訂《馬關條約》。1896年伊藤博文來臺視察，同行者包括後藤新平等人，其間共作漢詩7首，展出的書蹟收錄其中3首，抒發對日本帝國擴張與統治臺灣的想像。

 本欄展出與甲午戰爭－馬關條約相關的戰爭浮世繪、條約與臺韓人士的手札、條幅。

 

 Itō Hirobumi (1841–1909) was born into a farming family in the Chōshū domain and was adopted by the samurai Itō family. In 1863, he studied Western political institutions in Britain. Following the 1868 Meiji Restoration, he joined the new government and successively served as Councilor of State and Prime Minister. He also played a leading role in drafting the Meiji Constitution, becoming one of the principal architects of constitutional government in modern Japan. During the First Sino-Japanese War, Itō again served as Prime Minister and represented Japan in signing the Treaty of Shimonoseki. In 1896, he visited Taiwan with officials, including Gotō Shinpei, to inspect the newly acquired colony. During the journey, he composed seven poems on Taiwan. The three works exhibited here are among those poems, expressing his vision of Japanese imperial expansion and the ideological underpinnings of colonial rule.