| Summary: | 碩士 === 臺南師範學院 === 鄉土文化研究所 === 90 === ABSTRACT
The study of Taiwanese history, recently, has gain interest in academic field. In particular, by studying the regional history of a small area, one can have better under -standing in the historical progression of various regions in Taiwan, and clarify many questions regarding regional differences. The Ching dynasty is a key era in Taiwanese history. Though the study of Chia-yi region is making progress in recent years, but the area of study is still too large. In this thesis, the study is focused on the Truro area in the Ching dynasty, and the data collected is especially focused on elite in the wall town of Truro. The objective is to outline the social structure of the wall town of Truro in the Ching dynasty, and to serve as the first attempt to the study of smaller area.
In the natural environment of Truro area, the dry and rain seasons are quite distinctive, and the frequent occurence of typhoon and earthquake is the hallmark for this type of weather model. The distinctive dry and rain seasons make the irrigation system very important in this region, and the typhoon and earthquake usually cause great damage to agriculture and buildings in this region. The Trurosan in the Ching dynasty is now at where the Chia-yi city lied. It was both cultural center and county political center in the Ching dynasty. The position is at the converging point of Chia-yi flat and hills and surrounded by two important rivers. Also, this position can control North and middle regions, and protect the regional capital Tai-nan in the South. The geographical features make this region superior.
The progression of the Truro area reflected the processes how original Pin-pu society become mainland-Chinese society. The construction of a city town is a process of mainland-Chinese society development, and the city was the center for political, military, business, cultural and religion activities in the Ching dynasty, and city was also an acknowledged pointer for local people. The construction of the wall town of Truro started during the Con-sea period, and was judged by political policy and rebellion of the Ching dynasty. The real brick walls appeared in the end of the Dow-kwuan period.
The elite took a very important part in the history of the wall town of Truro in the Ching dynasty. They acted as the main participants for local public services and provided leadership. The elite like Lai, Chen, and Wong used their social position, social resources, wealth and personal abilities to participate in literature, religion, social welfare, public construction and public services. Also the elite acted as the bridge between the government and the people, as well as the speaker for the people. In particular, during local rebellion they stayed loyal to the Ching government, and took up the responsibilities to protect the city and their families. This is the main reason why the wall town of Truro never lost in various local rebellions.
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