The Fort Zeelandia Museum was formerly the Anping Tax Office during the Japanese colonial era, and later served as the local administrative office of the Anping District after World War II. To recreate the life and commercial activities of the 17th-century "Fort Zeelandia," the museum officially opened in May 2009. From planning and design to completion, the project took four years.
The museum uses modern audiovisual equipment to present four main exhibition themes: "Immersive Reenactment," "Impenetrable Fortress," "Stories of the Castle," and "Fragments of the Past," allowing visitors to experience life and culture during the Dutch colonial period.
"Fort Zeelandia" was a large fortress built by the Dutch East India Company during their occupation of Taiwan. It served as the Dutch administrative and trading center for the entire island. In 1662, Koxinga (Zheng Chenggong) successfully defeated the Dutch and reclaimed Taiwan, renaming the fort to "Anping Fort," which is now known as "Anping Old Fort."
The Fort Zeelandia Museum showcases the development of Anping culture and the history of Taiwan through unearthed artifacts and historical documents, enhanced with interactive and visual technology. The museum walls are decorated with historical anecdotes about the fort, along with detailed explanations of the ancient construction techniques used to build the fortress.
After visiting the museum, take a moment to explore the original brick walls of Anping Old Fort, which has been designated a national historic monument. You’ll find it fascinating to compare the real structures with the information presented inside the museum.
