Hobe Fort (Huwei Fort / Tamsui Fort)

Hobe Fort (滬尾礮臺), also known as Huwei Fort or Tamsui Fort, is a late-Qing Dynasty coastal defense fortification located on a hilltop in Tamsui District, New Taipei City, Taiwan. It stands as one of the most intact examples of 19th-century Western-style military architecture in Taiwan and holds the status of a National Monument (國定古蹟).

Construction and Design

Construction of the fort began in 1886 and was finished once its guns were installed in May 1890, in the aftermath of the Sino-French War (1884–1885), during which the Battle of Tamsui (滬尾之役) demonstrated the vulnerability of Taiwan's northern coastal defenses. Liu Mingchuan (劉銘傳), Taiwan's first provincial governor, initiated a comprehensive coastal fortification program, commissioning German military engineer Lieutenant Max E. Hecht (Chinese name: 巴恩士) to design and supervise construction of ten new Western-style forts at five strategic estuaries — Penghu, Keelung, Tamsui (Hobe), Anping, and Cihou.

Two forts were built at Tamsui: the "北門鎖鑰" (Key to the Northern Gate), which survives as today's Hobe Fort, and "保固東瀛" (Safeguarding the Eastern Seas), which has since disappeared. The fort was constructed in a rectangular layout with main walls of iron-cement (鐵水泥) reaching 4.3 metres in thickness and up to 7 metres in height. The design incorporated a central open parade ground surrounded by covered corridors (甬道) that served as soldiers' quarters, ammunition storage, offices, and defensive passageways.

The Armstrong guns were ordered through the British trading firm Jardine, Matheson & Co. As designed, the fort mounted one 12-inch, one 10-inch and two 8-inch Armstrong breechloaders — four guns out of the 31 Armstrong cannons distributed across all ten forts; during the First Sino-Japanese War the two 8-inch Armstrong guns were replaced by two 21 cm Krupp guns.

The fort's entrance gate bears the inscription "北門鎖鑰" in calligraphy personally written by Liu Mingchuan, with a dedication reading "光緒十二年季春中浣之吉" (an auspicious day in late spring of the 12th year of Guangxu) and "合肥劉銘傳題" (inscribed by Liu Mingchuan of Hefei). This inscription signified Tamsui's role as the critical lock on northern Taiwan's gateway.

Japanese Colonial Period (1895–1945)

On June 9, 1895, during the Japanese invasion of Taiwan, Rear Admiral Togo Heihachiro's fleet fired over ten shells at the fort, but the garrison had already fled and Tamsui fell without resistance. The Imperial Japanese Army subsequently took control of the fort and removed all four main cannons. In 1917, the Japanese military formally repurposed the site as an artillery firing practice range (砲兵射擊練習場).

In 1918, the Japanese constructed a golf course — touted as the finest in East Asia at the time — on the former drill ground east of the fort. In 1928, a wireless radio receiving station (淡水無線電收信所) was built north of the fort for communications with Tokyo, Osaka, and Kagoshima, further indicating the decline of the fort's direct combat role even as the broader area retained military significance.

Throughout the Japanese colonial period, the fort site remained under continuous military jurisdiction. This long period of restricted access paradoxically served to protect the structure from civilian encroachment and demolition, leaving it remarkably well-preserved.

Post-War and Heritage Designation

After Japan's surrender in 1945, the fort came under the control of the Republic of China military. It continued to serve as a restricted military zone for decades. In 1985, the Ministry of the Interior designated Hobe Fort as a National Level 2 Ancient Monument (later reclassified as 國定古蹟, National Monument). The fort was subsequently restored and opened to the public as part of the Tamsui Historical Museum system.

Today, visitors can explore the intact corridor system, the open central parade ground, ammunition storage rooms, and the iconic "北門鎖鑰" gate. A replica gun is displayed on a barbette position; in 2019 the museum obtained approval to reconstruct a full-size 8-inch Armstrong breechloader on the north-west barbette. The fort offers panoramic views of the Tamsui River estuary and serves as a key cultural heritage site alongside nearby Fort San Domingo and the former British Consular Residence.