First Taiwan Strait Crisis

The First Taiwan Strait Crisis was a 1954–1955 military confrontation in which the People’s Republic of China shelled Nationalist-held islands near mainland China, drawing in Taiwan and the United States.

Battle of Yijiangshan Islands: A January 1955 amphibious assault in which the People’s Republic of China captured the Yijiangshan Islands from the Republic of China. The battle demonstrated the military pressure behind the Nationalist withdrawal from nearby islands.
Chinese Civil War: A prolonged conflict between Chinese Nationalist and Communist forces that ended with the Communist victory on the mainland in 1949. The crisis continued this conflict after the Nationalists retreated to Taiwan.
Mao Zedong: A Chinese Communist revolutionary who led the People’s Republic of China from its founding in 1949 until his death in 1976. Mao’s government ordered the bombardment of Nationalist-held offshore islands.
Bandung Conference: A 1955 meeting of Asian and African states that promoted cooperation and opposition to colonialism during the Cold War. Zhou Enlai used the conference to present a less confrontational position toward the United States.
Dachen Islands: An island group off Zhejiang, evacuated by the Republic of China in February 1955 after Chinese Communist forces advanced. Their evacuation was the crisis’s most consequential island transfer.
Chinese Communist Revolution: The political and military struggle that established the People’s Republic of China in 1949 under Communist Party rule. The new government sought control over territories still held by the Republic of China.
Chiang Kai-shek: A Chinese Nationalist leader who governed the Republic of China from mainland China and later Taiwan. Chiang maintained the offshore garrisons despite their vulnerability.
Second Taiwan Strait Crisis: A 1958 confrontation in which the People’s Republic of China again shelled Republic of China-held islands in the Taiwan Strait. The later crisis revived the same dispute over offshore islands and U.S. protection.
Quemoy: An island, also called Kinmen, held by the Republic of China near the coast of Fujian, China. Its bombardment became a central flashpoint in the confrontation.
Republic of China retreat to Taiwan: The Nationalist government’s relocation to Taiwan in 1949 after losing control of mainland China to Communist forces. The retreat left the offshore islands as exposed Republic of China outposts.

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Matsu IslandsRelated: The crisis brought the Matsu Islands into the frontline confrontation across the strait.