In 1949, the Chinese Civil War ended with the partition of the country. Mainland China remained in the hands of Mao's communists.<\/p>\n
The Kuomintang nationalists, led by Chiang Kai-Shek, were forced to take refuge in Taiwan<\/strong> and other islands that, after the expulsion of the Japanese in 1945, had remained in the hands of the Republic of China<\/strong>, today also known as Taiwan because it is the main island of this country. In addition to it, the Kuomintang maintained in its power the Penghu Islands<\/strong> (Pescadores Islands), the Matsu Islands<\/strong>, two islands in the Dongsha<\/strong> and Spratly<\/strong> archipelagos and, finally, the Kinmen Islands<\/strong>, with an area of \u200b\u200b153 square kilometers and located a few kilometers from mainland China. Communist China has never held these territories, but has claimed them since 1949.<\/p>\n Due to their location, the Kinmen Islands suffered harsh attacks from the communist dictatorship in Beijing<\/strong>. To counter the Mao regime's attempts to seize its control, the archipelago was fortified<\/strong>, becoming one of the most militarized territories in the world until the 1980s, when the military presence in the area diminished. Today, Kinmen is a bastion of free China a short distance from communist China.<\/strong> These islands are home to some 127,000 people and are the base of the 101st Amphibious Reconnaissance Battalion of the Republic of China Army. Many of their old fortifications are abandoned<\/strong>, and there are several military museums on the islands.<\/p>\n
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