This book examines how China, Japan, and the United States have influenced Taiwan's history through economy and trade at different stages over more than 400 years. A wide range of questions are addressed within this volume. Is the "Liuqiu" mentioned in biographies of the Book of Sui Ryukyu or Taiwan? What connection did the migration of Han Chinese to Taiwan during the Ming- Qing transition have with the exchange of Chinese silk for Japanese silver? How did the common cause behind the opening of Taiwan’s ports in the late Qing China and Japan’s ports in the late Edo period facilitate Taiwan's trade to develop more quickly than mainland China? How did the Shimonoseki Treaty cause a large shift in Taiwan's trading partners and difference in public expenditure across the Taiwan Strait? What connection does the intersection of Chinese civilization and the Meiji Restoration in Taiwan have with the land reform of the Republic of China in Taiwan? What influence did China, the Dutch, the United Kingdom, Japan and the United States separately have on Taiwan’s commerce?