Taiwan Religious Culture Map

Built in 1938, Haishan Shrine faces north towards today's Zhongshan Road in Zhonghe District, New Taipei City. During the era of Japanese rule, Zhongshan Road was the main route between Banqiao Town and Zhonghe Village (today's Zhonghe and Yonghe Districts), the largest village in Haishan County (today's Banqiao, Tucheng, Sanxia, Yingge, Shulin, Zhonghe, and Yonghe Districts). Haishan Shrine is situated in the uplands between Banqiao and Zhonghe, overlooking the two largest settlements in Haishan County. Back then, the Japanese government pushed the Japanization movement, hoping to strengthen its rule through faith with its "one shrine for each village" policy. Haishan Shrine is dedicated to Emperor Meiji (1867-1912), Ōkuninushi (one of the three central deities in Japanese mythology), and Prince Kitashirakawa Yoshihisa (1847-1895 CE), who perished during the Japanese invasion of Taiwan. At the time, the shrine was the site of celebrations after harvest each fall, where the Police Regiment (formerly known as zhuangdingtuan, a local police institution) would parade the streets carrying divine sedan chairs. Haishan County's administrative center would also organize performances like wrestling, kendo, and dancing. After World War II, Japanese shrines were forcibly demolished by the Kuomintang government. Haishan Shrine was among those demolished, and so could not be properly preserved.