The Artillery Fortress Was an Engine of European Expansion: Evidence from East Asia

This chapter examines siegecraft from an important war that Jeremy Black and Geoffrey Parker are both fond of mentioning: the Sino-Dutch War of 1661-68. Parker has argued that the artillery fortress was an engine of European expansion, allowing the Portuguese, Spanish, Dutch, French, and British to establish a durable presence not just in the Americas, but also in Asia and Africa. Koxinga is a figure of legend in East Asia, considered a hero on both sides of the Taiwan Strait, and even worshipped in Taiwan. Chinese military tradition, a rich heritage, held attacks on cities to be the lowest and least effective form of combat. The fighting core of Fort Zeelandia was a square artillery fortress that the Dutch called the upper castle. Evidence from the Sino-Dutch war strongly supports the conclusion that the artillery fortress was a key technology of European expansion.