Battle of Penghu

Timeline

1. 1683Penghu · PenghuKangxi granted Shi Lang sole authority for the expedition, ordering him to cross the sea from Tongshan in Fujian with his fleet. Zheng Jing had died in 1681, and the young Zheng Keshuang could not take the field personally, so Liu Guoxuan directed Penghu's defenses. Shi Lang's fleet arrived on the fourteenth day of the sixth month, first seizing several outer islands in preparation for a decisive battle with the main Zheng force.
2. 1683Penghu · PenghuRepeatedly attacking Liu Guoxuan's fleet with gunfire and boarding assaults, the Qing forces destroyed large numbers of Zheng warships over several days of naval combat, with heavy Zheng casualties and many surrenders. On the twenty-second day of the sixth month, Liu Guoxuan's remnants broke through and retreated to Taiwan; Penghu fell to the Qing, and Ming Zheng lost the gateway controlling the strait.
3. 1683Penghu · PenghuShi Lang repaired his warships, settled the prisoners, and sent envoys with letters urging Zheng Keshuang and Liu Guoxuan to submit. With Penghu lost, Taiwan itself had no sea barrier left to defend. The Zheng court deliberated between powerful ministers like Feng Xifan and Liu Guoxuan, ultimately deciding to surrender, as the naval battle turned into a political resolution.