The year was 1895. The (First) Sino-Japanese War was just winding down. And news came out of Shimonoseki in Japan that the peace terms would include the annexation of Taiwan, a.k.a. Formosa.
So what did the Taiwanese do? They issued a declaration of independence, establishing the first democratic republic in East Asian history...
Even if it would not last very long, the Republic of Taiwan set a fascinating precedent that reverberates until today.
