ERSHAWAN FORT

A little higher than the Zhongzheng Temple, this fortification was built in 1840 to protect the port. Successfully, as attempted English attacks were repulsed, and the French invasion was bloody. Today, they are only reproductions of cannons that guard the way of the seas, but the door of the fortress is original. Other ruined fortifications are still visible, such as the old barracks or artillery firing posts. However, the visit is really worth the detour, if only for the view, but also for the staircase that goes down the hill (and which was used by the soldiers and their cannons!) and its superb door, lost in nature, which gives the impression of being so far from civilization, with a large port yet so close! The access is not necessarily obvious, the walk from the Zhongzheng temple being a little long, but should be favoured by visitors who would not be motorized; it is better to go down the stairs than up them! In summer, beware of mosquitoes, which are particularly numerous and virulent in the fort. The French commander of Pimodan, who went to Keelung in 1896, shortly after the Japanese invasion, offered a description of the fort and its strategic location: "On a promontory in the centre of the harbour, the remains of a Spanish or Dutch fort can still be seen, while old Chinese batteries crown the heights and a French cemetery recalls our expedition. »